Central High School is a

public high school A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-f ...

Independence, Oregon Independence is a city in Polk County, Oregon, Polk County, Oregon, United States, on the west bank of the Willamette River along Oregon Route 51, and east of nearby Monmouth, Oregon, Monmouth. It is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Ar ...

, United States.

Academics

Central High School back under construction - Independence Oregon

In 2005–2006, Central High School was rated "satisfactory" by the

Oregon Department of Education The Oregon Department of Education is the department responsible for implementing Oregon's public education policies, including academic standards and testing, credentials, and other matters not reserved to the local districts and boards. The ...

. In 2008, 73% of the school's seniors received a

high school diploma A high school diploma (sometimes referred to as a high school degree) is a diploma awarded upon graduation of high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary s ...

. Of 185 students, 135 graduated, 21 dropped out, 14 received a modified diploma, and 15 were still in high school the following year. In 2019–2020, 81% of students graduated on time, and 90% within five years.

Extracurriculars

In 2019, the Central Cheerleaders won first place in the United Spirits Association National Championship for varsity show cheer novice non-tumbling, continuing their success, in 2023 the team won state and went to nationals. They won a state title again in 2025. The school has 3 choirs and 3 bands. The sports programs are football, wrestling, girls' basketball, boys' basketball, cross country, cheerleading, boys' soccer, girls' soccer, volleyball, tennis, golf, baseball, softball, and track and field. There is also a large theater program.

Notable faculty

* Greg Craven, climate change author

Notable alumni

Jasmine Ash Jasmine Ash is an American singer-songwriter, from Portland, Oregon. Biography In the fall of 2011, Ash's song "Starlight" premiered in Ferrero Rocher "Make Your Moments Golden" commercials in the UK, US and Ireland. The brand has continued to ...

, pop artist and singer/keyboardist for Oh Darling *

Jeff Charleston Jeffrey David Charleston (born January 19, 1983) is an American former professional football defensive end. He was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Idaho State University. Charleston ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

of the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

and member of the team's 2010

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...

rosterAaron Fentress
"New Orleans Saints defensive end Jeff Charleston enjoying undefeated season after long trek to the NFL"
''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the West Coast of the United States, U.S. West Coast, founded as a weekly by Tho ...

'', December 10, 2009. *

John Clem Clarke John Clem Clarke (June 6, 1937 – June 5, 2021) was an American painter and graphic artist who was active in the SoHo art scene during the 1970s. Early life Clarke was born in Bend, Oregon to Wilma (née Owen) and Eugene Clarke, both of whom ...

(class of 1955), football player at

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

, art degree from the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

, distinguished

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

Patrick Page John Patrick Page (born April 27, 1962) is an American actor, low bass singer, and playwright. Beginning his career in classical theatre and the works of Shakespeare, he originated the Broadway roles of the Grinch in '' Dr. Seuss' How the Grin ...

, class of 1979, Broadway actor who played Lumiere in the production of

Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...

among many other Broadway productions. *

Marlon Tuipulotu Marlon Tuipulotu (born May 31, 1999) is an American professional American football, football defensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans football, USC Trojans a ...

, defensive lineman for the

USC Trojans The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...

and

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

who was a member of the Eagles 2024

team.

References

External links

Central High School
High schools in Polk County, Oregon Monmouth, Oregon Educational institutions established in 1950 Public high schools in Oregon 1950 establishments in Oregon Independence, Oregon {{Oregon-school-stub