Beaverton High School

Beaverton High School (BHS) is a public high school located in Beaverton, Oregon, United States. It is the oldest high school in Beaverton and is believed to be the oldest public high school in the state of Oregon that is in its original location and building. Beaverton High School contains grades 9– 12.

In addition to sections of Beaverton, it includes portions of West Haven-Sylvan. - Compare to addresses and school attendance boundary maps.

History

In 1875, the original schoolhouse opened on land between Canyon Road and Broadway Street. It was called Beaverton Public School. A ninth grade class was added in 1902, followed by a 10th grade class in 1910.

A $21,000 bond (equivalent of $660,504 today) was passed in 1915 to build a 21-room school to be a dedicated high school. This remains the current location of the building, and up until its slated demolition in 2027, the building was considered to be the oldest public high school in Oregon that was in its original building. The building was dedicated in 1916.

The Works Progress Administration constructed a new school just south of the building in 1937 to replace the aging Beaverton Public School building, named Beaverton Grade School. It was renamed to Merle Davies Elementary School in 1948, honoring a long-time teacher turned principal. In 1983, due to more elementary schools being built in the area and overcrowding at BHS, the building was shut down and turned into extra classroom space for the high school.

Two fires have occurred at the school. The first was in the spring break of 1979, when a faulty lightbulb sparked a massive fire that burnt down the entire auditorium. It took the effort of multiple fire departments to put it out. The drama department continued with work on their production of Oklahoma! and put on the show at Aloha High School's auditorium. A second, smaller fire occurred in 2020 after a refrigerator failure in the kitchen. Semi-permanent damage occurred across the entire building, which was already aging.

In 2022, voters passed a large-scale $723 million bond measure which includes the funds to rebuild Beaverton High School. Construction is scheduled to begin in summer 2024. Because there is no viable swing school, students will attend school on site during construction. The new building will be located on the grass field along SW Farmington Road. Once the new school is completed, the old one will be torn down and replaced with a parking lot. The rebuilt school is slated to open in fall of 2027 and will accommodate about 1500 students.

Academics

In 1985, Beaverton High School was honored in the Blue Ribbon Schools Program, the highest honor a school can receive in the United States.Archived: Blue Ribbon Schools Program, Schools Recognized 1982-1983 Through 1999-2002 (PDF)

In 2008, 75% of the school's seniors received a high school diploma. Of 521 students, 390 graduated, 99 dropped out, five received a modified diploma, and 27 were still in high school in 2009.

The school has a wide variety of athletic programs and competes in the 6A-2 Metro League of the Oregon School Activities Association. It also hosts club sports like lacrosse, racquetball, ski team, snowboarding team, Dragon Boat, and Multicultural Soccer. Along with this, the band, choir, and drama clubs all compete in OSAA sanctioned competitions.

The school also has several student-organized and teacher-supervised clubs, ranging from many different subjects. Just a few examples of this many groups include MEChA, HOSA, Sewing Club, REAP, Ballet Folklorico, MUN, Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA), Key Club, Dungeons & Dragons Club, National Honor Society (NHS), National Art Honor Society (NAHS), Fishing Club, and Eco Club. There are also competitive academic teams like Speech and Debate and Robotics.

Notable alumni

* Anomie Belle (1998) - musician and artivist
* Shoshana Bean (1995) - recording artist and Tony-nominated actress
* John Brotherton (1998) - actor
* Mike Byrne (2008) - drummer, member of the Grammy-Award winning band The Smashing Pumpkins

* Ben Crane (1994) - four-time PGA Tour tournament champion

* Ryan Deckert (1989) - formerly represented District 8 in the Oregon House of Representatives

* James FitzPatrick (1982) - professional football player

* Jamey Harris (1989) - National Champion 1998 U.S. Track & Field, men's 1500 meters
* Collin Hegna (1996) - musician for The Brian Jonestown Massacre

* Dorothy Johnson (1955) - film actress

* Steve Lyons (1978) - former Major League Baseball player and current announcer for the Boston Red Sox

* Anthony Newman (1984) - NFL safety

* Meredith Phillips (1991) - television personality/contestant on ABC reality television series ''The Bachelorette''

* Jordan Railey (2010) - basketball player

* Jordan Senn (2003) - professional football player for the Carolina Panthers in the National Football League
* Ari Shapiro (1996) - radio journalist for NPR
* Scott Shleifer (1995) - billionaire hedge fund manager
* Todd Snider (1985) - singer-songwriter

* Anthony Taylor (1984) - basketball player

* Mac Wilkins (1968) - gold medalist in the 1976 Summer Olympics in the discus throw; silver medalist in the 1984 Summer Olympics in the discus throw.
* Elsie Windes (2003) - gold medalist in the 2012 Summer Olympics for women's water polo; silver medalist in the 2008 Summer Olympics for women's water polo
* Carolyn Wood (1963) - gold medalist in the 1960 Summer Olympics in the 4 x 100 freestyle relay.

References

External links

website

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High schools in Washington County, Oregon
Education in Beaverton, Oregon
Educational institutions established in 1902
Buildings and structures in Beaverton, Oregon
Public high schools in Oregon
1902 establishments in Oregon
Beaverton School District