Mountain Brook High School
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Mountain Brook High School (MBHS) is a three-year
public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
in the city of
Mountain Brook, Alabama Mountain Brook is a city in southeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, United States, and a suburb of Birmingham. Its population at the 2010 census was 20,413. History The city was originally developed in 1929 by real-estate businessman Robert Jemi ...
USA. It is the only high school in the Mountain Brook City School System. The school's colors are green and gold and the athletic teams are called the Spartans. The MBHS competes in
AHSAA The Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA), based in Montgomery, is the governing body for interscholastic athletics and activities programs for public schools in Alabama. The AHSAA is a member National Federation of State High School ...
Class 6A athletics.


Recognition

MBHS is consistently recognized as one of the best high schools in Alabama: * MBHS was ranked 4th among the 12 Alabama schools included in the ''Washington Post'''s 2015 list of "America's Most Challenging High Schools." * MBHS was included among the "Top 150 high schools in the U.S." by the ''Daily Beast''. * SchoolDigger ranks MBHS second among 357 high schools in the state of Alabama and first among high schools in the
Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area The Birmingham metropolitan area, sometimes known as Greater Birmingham, is a metropolitan area in north central Alabama centered on Birmingham, Alabama. , the federal government defines the Birmingham–Hoover, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area ...
. * Niche ranks MBHS 2nd in the state of Alabama and 2nd among high schools in the
Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area The Birmingham metropolitan area, sometimes known as Greater Birmingham, is a metropolitan area in north central Alabama centered on Birmingham, Alabama. , the federal government defines the Birmingham–Hoover, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area ...
. * The
U.S. Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...
has recognized MBHS as a
National Blue Ribbon School The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States Department of Education award program that recognizes exemplary public and non-public schools on a yearly basis. Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures, ...
, the highest honor awarded by the department.


Athletics

The Mountain Brook Spartans compete in Class 6A of
AHSAA The Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA), based in Montgomery, is the governing body for interscholastic athletics and activities programs for public schools in Alabama. The AHSAA is a member National Federation of State High School ...
and hold 122 state championships, the most in Alabama. Mountain Brook High School has a history of successful sports teams, with the men's basketball team winning state championships in 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021. They also reached the Final Four in 2001 and were the runner-ups in 2015 and 2020. The girls' cross country team have won 12 state championships in a row, since 2003, and the boys have won the previous three state championships. The girls' cross country team previously had a 14-year state championship winning streak. The boys tennis teams have won 23 state championships, the most in the state. The girls tennis teams have also won 23 state championships, holding the record for most state championships. The school's football team won two state titles in 1975 and in 1976 with the all-American running back Major Ogilvie.


Accomplishments

*
United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...
Blue Ribbon School The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States Department of Education award program that recognizes exemplary public and non-public schools on a yearly basis. Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures, ...
; 1983–84, 1992–93. *
United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...
Secondary Schools Recognition Program. * Selected by
Redbook ''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the " Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publication as of January 2019 and now operates an article-comprise ...
magazine as one of 155 schools honored for "overall excellence" * Recognized by
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magazine as one of the nation's top 100 high schools. * Honored by
College Board The College Board is an American nonprofit organization that was formed in December 1899 as the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) to expand access to higher education. While the College Board is not an association of colleges, it runs a ...
for academic excellence and outstanding support and participation in
Advanced Placement Program Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...
. * Mountain Brook has graduated three
Rhodes Scholars The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
. * Mountain Brook has won more state athletic championships (119) than any other public school in the state of Alabama. * In October 2006, Mountain Brook High School's drama department, under the direction of Pat Yates, combined with
Fairfield High Preparatory School Fairfield High Preparatory School is a public high school located in Fairfield, Alabama, United States, a suburb of Birmingham, and serves grades 9–12. It is the only high school in the Fairfield City School System. School colors are purple, go ...
to present
Christopher Sergel Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρει ...
's dramatization of
Harper Lee Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926February 19, 2016) was an American novelist best known for her 1960 novel ''To Kill a Mockingbird''. It won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize and has become a classic of modern American literature. Lee has received numero ...
's ''
To Kill a Mockingbird ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' is a novel by the American author Harper Lee. It was published in 1960 and was instantly successful. In the United States, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' has become ...
''. The joint production received local and eventually national attention, and was featured on NBC's ''
Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...
'' and ''
NBC Nightly News ''NBC Nightly News'' (titled as ''NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt'' for its weeknight broadcasts since June 22, 2015) is the flagship daily evening News broadcasting#Television, television news program for NBC News, the news division of the NB ...
''. Even
Harper Lee Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926February 19, 2016) was an American novelist best known for her 1960 novel ''To Kill a Mockingbird''. It won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize and has become a classic of modern American literature. Lee has received numero ...
herself took notice, as the normally private author agreed to meet with the cast. *Mountain Brook was named the top athletic program in Alabama for the 2006–2007 season by
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...
. In 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018 the Mountain Brook High School basketball team, led by coach Bucky McMillan, reached the state finals in Alabama's highest classification winning state championships in 2013, 2014, 2017, and 2018.


Controversy

The school attracted national attention in 2022 for a series of anti-Semitic incidents. The school responded by adopting a diversity program by the
Anti-Defamation League The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), formerly known as the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, is an international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the United States specializing in civil rights law. It was founded in late Septe ...
, but dropped it after complaints that the diversity program "focused too heavily on race and gender". A Jewish student was reprimanded by the school for posting a video of a teacher making his class give a
Nazi salute The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. Th ...
during a lesson on how symbols change.


Notable graduates

*
Nate Bland Nathan Garrett Bland (born December 27, 1974) is a former professional baseball pitcher. Career Bland played high school baseball at Mountain Brook High School in Birmingham, Alabama and was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 4th round of ...
, former
MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
player (
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
) *
Scott Bondy Auguste Arthur Bondy, also known as Scott Bondy and A. A. Bondy, is an American alternative folk artist from Birmingham, Alabama. Early life Bondy was born and raised in Mountain Brook, Alabama where he attended Mountain Brook High School. Car ...
, an American folk/alternative musician. Formerly lead singer of the band
Verbena ''Verbena'' (), also known as vervain or verveine, is a genus in the family Verbenaceae. It contains about 150 species of annual and perennial herbaceous or semi-woody flowering plants. The majority of the species are native to the Americas a ...
. *
Courteney Cox Courteney Bass Cox (previously Courteney Cox Arquette; born June 15, 1964) is an American actress and filmmaker. She gained international recognition for her starring role as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom '' Friends'', which aired from 1994 ...
, actress (''
Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa ...
'', ''Scream'', ''
Cougar Town ''Cougar Town'' is an American television sitcom that ran for 102 episodes over six seasons, from September 23, 2009, until March 31, 2015. The first three seasons aired on ABC, with the series moving to TBS for the remaining three seasons. ABC ...
'', ''Dirt'') * Alan Hunter, MTV Veejay * Willson Love, former
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defensive linemen, Current head coach of Strength and Conditioning for Ole Miss * Spencer Jakab, author and
Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
editor *
David Jaffe David Scott Jaffe (born April 13, 1971) is an American video game designer best known for creating the ''Twisted Metal'' and ''God of War'' series. Biography Jaffe is originally from Birmingham, Alabama and currently resides in San Diego, Cali ...
, video game designer (''
God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...
'', ''
Twisted Metal ''Twisted Metal'' is a series of vehicular combat video games published by Sony Computer Entertainment, and developed by various companies. The series has appeared on the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 3. As o ...
'') * Pat DuPré, semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 1979 and a quarter finalist in the U.S. Open. 1979–1981; he was ranked in the top 20 in the world, reaching as high as 12th. * Graeme McFarland, football player (
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...
) * Emeel Salem, All-American baseball player at the
University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
, former minor league player in the
Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...
organization. (6th round draft pick 2007) *
William Vlachos William Constantinos Vlachos (born May 26, 1988) is an American football coach and former player who is currently the offensive line coach at Central Michigan. He played college football at the University of Alabama. High school career Vlachos a ...
, center for the
University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
National Championship Team in 2009 and 2011. *
Tommy Dewey Thomas R. Dewey (born August 3, 1978) is an American actor, producer, and writer. He co-starred with Michaela Watkins in the Hulu original series '' Casual.'' Early life Dewey was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He went to Mountain Brook High Schoo ...
, actor (17 Again, The BabyMakers, The Mindy Project) * Sarah Simmons, Top 8 finalist on
season 4 Season 4 may refer to: * "Season 4" (''30 Rock'' episode), an episode of ''30 Rock'' See also * * Season One (disambiguation) Season One may refer to: Albums * ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004 * ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughte ...
of ''
The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...
''. * Tribble Reese, quarterback for Clemson, and star in the Reality Series '' The New Atlanta''. * Trevor Holder, pitched in College World Series for
University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...
. Currently with
Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
organization. *
Natalee Holloway Natalee is a female given name. It is a variant of the name Natalie, though uncommon according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Notable people with the name include: *Natalee Caple (born 1970), Canadian author of novels and poetry *Natalee Holloway (born ...
(class of 2005), an 18-year-old who mysteriously disappeared while in Aruba with friends in 2005. *
Bucky McMillan Bucky McMillan (born August 12, 1983) is an American basketball coach. He is currently the head coach at Samford. Early life and education McMillan played basketball at Mountain Brook High School in Alabama and led them to a state final four in ...
, Samford basketball coach who coached at Mountain Brook from 2008 to 2020. *
Trendon Watford Trendon Nelson Watford (born November 9, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the LSU Tigers basketball, LSU Tigers. High school c ...
, a LSU basketball player as of (2021) *Patrick Claybon, Anchor for NFL Network * Ethan Fasking, a Northeastern University roller hockey player as of 2022


References


External links


MBHS website

MBHS profile on SchoolDigger

MBHS profile on NicheAlabama High School Athletic Association Records
{{authority control Public high schools in Alabama Educational institutions established in 1966 Schools in Jefferson County, Alabama 1966 establishments in Alabama Mountain Brook, Alabama