public high school
State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...
serving students in grades 9 to 12 in
Natick, Massachusetts
Natick ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 37,006 at the 2020 census. west of Boston, Natick is part of the Greater Boston area. ...
, United States. The school is located on the banks of Dug Pond. Its enrollment was 1,603 students during the 2015–2016 school year. The original building was built in 1953 at approximately . and opened in 1954. The building was expanded in 1965 (additional 94,000 sq ft.). Additional renovations took place in 1985. In 2010, the town voted to replace the Natick High School building. The new facility was constructed on the fields immediately to the south of the former building. Demolition on the former building began on June 25, 2012. The new building design is based on a model approved by the state of Massachusetts. This was necessary in order to maximize state reimbursement for design and construction; it cost $78 million. The new high school opened to students on August 29, 2012.
The arts at Natick High
* Natick High School Theater produces two full-length plays each year, usually presenting a full-scale musical in the fall semester and a more intimate straight play, revue or theatrical event in the spring. In the winter, students have the option of staging a completely student-run, student-acted, student-directed piece as well.
* The Natick High School Speech Team is a speech and debate team. The team has won the Massachusetts Forensic League State Championship and has had multiple state and national champions. Each year, the Natick High School Speech Team sends students to the
National Catholic Forensic League
The National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL) is a speech and debate league that was formed in 1951. It is organized into regions that correspond to Roman Catholic dioceses. Member schools include both public and parochial high schools. The NCFL r ...
Grand National Tournament and occasionally sends competitors to the National Speech and Debate Association's National Speech and Debate Tournament as well.
* The Natick High School Music Program provides students with a rich selection of vocal and instrumental ensembles including Concert Choir, West Street Singers (formally advanced concert choir, currently a competitive show choir), Chamber Singers (all-female advanced choir), Men's Choir (all-male choir), Musae (all-female choir), Symphonic Band, Jazz Band, and Wind Ensemble, all of which offer an honors designation. Natick High School also has a student-led a cappella program consisting of two co-ed groups, Seven's Not Enough (est. 2006) and Scalestorm (est. 2016) and one treble group, Retrograde (est.2019). Each year, Natick High sends vocalists and instrumentalists to the Jr. District Festival Sr. District Festival and All-State Music Festival. Historically, Natick High's musical ensembles have had success at the ''
Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors Association The Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors Association (MICCA) is a sanctioning body for marching band field contests in the state of Massachusetts. Previous championships were held at the Cawley Memorial Stadium in Lowell, Massachusetts. ...
'' (MICCA) Competition, winning gold medals.
Notable alumni of Natick High's theatre program, speech team and music programs include William Finn, Alison Fraser,
Jonathan Richman
Jonathan Michael Richman (born May 16, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 1970, he founded the Modern Lovers, an influential proto-punk band. Since the mid-1970s, Richman has worked either solo or with low-key acoustic a ...
and
Marc Terenzi
Marc Eric Terenzi (born June 27, 1978) is an American pop singer and reality show participant. He was a member of the boy band Natural and was married to German pop/soul singer Sarah Connor from 2005 to 2008. They have a son named Tyler and a ...
.
Athletics at Natick High
*Natick High School offers 18 sports for boys and 19 for girls.
*The school announced the formation of an
esports
Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...
team in 2019.
*Natick's Football team has made ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'' Top 25 list a total of three times. In 1982 ( 23). 1983 ( 10), and 1984 ( 13).
''The Sassamon''
''The Sassamon'' was the school newspaper that was published four times a year, in December, February, April, and June. It eventually became the annual yearbook. The Sassamon was named after
John Sassamon
John Sassamon, also known as Wussausmon (), was a Massachusett man who lived in New England during the colonial era. He converted to Christianity and became a praying Indian, helping to serve as an interpreter to New England colonists. In January ...
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), ...
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
,
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
,
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
,
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
,
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
,
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
).
*
Rich Costello
Richard Anthony "Rich" Costello (born June 27, 1963) is a retired American professional ice hockey player.
Biography
As a youth, Costello played in the 1976 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Boston ...
, retired American professional ice hockey player.
* Doug Flutie, played football, basketball, and baseball at the school, went on to play football at
Boston College
Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...
and won the
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
in 1984. His career continued in the
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
and
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
before retiring after the 2005 season with the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
.
* Darren Flutie, CFL and NFL veteran who attended Natick High School before going to Boston College; second all-time in receptions in the CFL. CFL Hall of Famer.
*
Anjali Forber-Pratt
Anjali Forber-Pratt (born June 22, 1984) is an American wheelchair racer who competes in sprint events at the Paralympic level. She is currently the Director of the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Researc ...
, wheelchair racer and Paralympian.
*
Dottie Green
Dorothy M. "Dottie" Green (April 30, 1921 – October 26, 1992) was an American professional baseball catcher for the Rockford Peaches in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) from 1943 through 1947, and a team chaperone fro ...
, female
catcher
Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...
who played from
1943
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured.
* January 4 – ...
through
1947
It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Events
January
* January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country in ...
in the
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was a professional women's baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley which existed from 1943 to 1954. The AAGPBL is the forerunner of women's professional league sports in the Uni ...
*
Walt Hriniak
Walter John Hriniak (pronounced RIN-ee-ack) (born May 22, 1943, at Natick, Massachusetts) is a former catcher in American Major League Baseball who—despite a very brief MLB playing career and a batting average (baseball), batting average of only ...
,
Major League Baseball
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 (
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...
Dan LaCouture
Daniel Scott LaCouture (born April 18, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey left winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). LaCouture is a graduate of South Hadley High School, in South Hadley Massachusetts.
Playing car ...
, drafted into the NHL 1996; played for the Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Carolina Hurricanes.
* Eddie Mahan, American football player.
*
Pete Smith (baseball, born 1940)
Peter Luke Smith (born March 19, 1940) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from to for the Boston Red Sox. Listed at 6' 2", 190 lb., Smith batted and threw right-handed.
A native of Natick, Massachusetts, he idolized B ...
, former Boston Red Sox player.
*
Frank Varrichione
Frank Joseph Varrichione (pronounced "Vair-akee-oh'-nee;" January 14, 1932 – January 6, 2018) was an American athlete. Varrichione was best remembered for being part of the 1953 University of Notre Dame football team that shared the collegiate ...
(born 1932), college All-American and five time Pro Bowl professional football player (
Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
,
Rams
In engineering, RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability and safety)Joanie Bartels, first female children's music artist to receive RIAA Gold Record Certification, awarded for her album ''Lullaby Magic''.
* William Finn, Tony, lyricist and musical theater composer.
* Alison Fraser, stage actress and a two-time Tony Award nominee for her roles in
The Secret Garden
''The Secret Garden'' is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett first published in book form in 1911, after serialisation in ''The American Magazine'' (November 1910 – August 1911). Set in England, it is one of Burnett's most popular novels and ...
and
Romance/Romance
''Romance/Romance'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Barry Harman and music by Keith Herrmann.
Synopsis
The show is composed of two acts linked only by the common theme of love and one song performed in both acts. The first, ''The Little Co ...
.
* Augustine Og Mandino (1923–1995), self-help inspirational author of 22 books. He was born in Framingham and a 1940 graduate of Natick High School where he was an editor of the high school newspaper, "The Sassamon."
* John O'Hurley, actor best known for role on
Seinfeld
''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...
.
*
Jonathan Richman
Jonathan Michael Richman (born May 16, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 1970, he founded the Modern Lovers, an influential proto-punk band. Since the mid-1970s, Richman has worked either solo or with low-key acoustic a ...
, singer-songwriter and former frontman of The Modern Lovers. He featured an instrumental track entitled "Maybe a Walk Home from Natick High School" on his solo album ''Her Mystery Not of High Heels and Eye Shadow.''
* Jim Riley graduated from Natick High School and went on to become drummer and band leader for the country band
Rascal Flatts
Rascal Flatts is an American country music band founded in 1999. The band members were Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background vocals). DeMarcus is LeVox's second cousi ...
.
*
Marc Terenzi
Marc Eric Terenzi (born June 27, 1978) is an American pop singer and reality show participant. He was a member of the boy band Natural and was married to German pop/soul singer Sarah Connor from 2005 to 2008. They have a son named Tyler and a ...
of the boy band
Natural (band)
Natural was an American boy band that formed in 1999 and broke up in 2004 consisting of Ben Bledsoe, Marc Terenzi, Michael 'J' Horn, Michael Johnson, and Patrick King.
They were best known for their debut single and signature song " Put Your A ...
is a graduate of Natick High School where he experienced early success in the music program.
Other
* Joseph M. Connolly, American police detective and politician.
* Paul Dellegatto, chief meteorologist for Fox13 WTVT in Tampa and a contributor to the Fox News Channel is a 1978 graduate of Natick High.
*
Gerald Eustis Thomas
Gerald Eustis Thomas (June 23, 1929 – March 20, 2019), was an American naval officer, diplomat and academic. He was the second African American to achieve the rank of Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy.
Early life
Thomas was born in Natick, Massa ...
, second
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
to become a
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...
in the
US Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...
. He went on to serve as
ambassador
An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
to
Guyana
Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...
and
Kenya
)
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Susan Wornick
Susan Wornick (born December 31, 1949) is a former American television journalist and current TV host and spokesperson, best known as a longtime reporter and anchor, from 1981 until 2014, at WCVB-TV in Boston.
Since May 2014, Wornick and ex-husba ...
, former American television journalist and current TV host and spokesperson.