Central High School (Westerville, Ohio)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Westerville 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 ...
located in
Westerville, Ohio Westerville is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, Franklin and Delaware County, Ohio, Delaware counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. A northeastern suburb of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus as well as the home of Otterbein University, the population was 39 ...
, northeast of
Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...
. It is the newest of three high schools in the
Westerville City School District Westerville City Schools serves Westerville, Minerva Park, Blendon Township, portions of Columbus, and other nearby rural areas. Though the district is situated in northern Franklin County, it also serves much of Genoa Township in southern ...
. It opened in August 2003.


History

Westerville experienced a population boom in the late 1990s, particularly in Genoa Township in the northern part of the school district. In order to keep up with the growth, the district announced that it would build two new elementary schools and a third high school. Westerville was the second Greater Columbus school district to build a third high school. The district asked taxpayers to pay for part for the new buildings. Central cost the district $40 million, but voters turned the district down. Eventually, the district secured the funds and Central opened in August 2003. Students had the opportunity to select the school mascot and colors. The winning nickname was the Warhawks. The colors chosen were Black and Silver. On March 3, 2008, Central hosted President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
, who was then a candidate in the Democratic Party Presidential primary election. On March 14, 2016, Central housed presidential candidate
John Kasich John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician and author who was the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, and a Republican candidate for the pre ...
for a local rally the day before Ohio's Republican primary.


The facility

Construction began on Central in 2002. The district hired Firestone Jaros Mullin, Inc./TMP Architecture to execute the project after declaring its proposal the best of those offered. The school features numerous facilities, including seven athletic fields, a 5,000-seat stadium, an 1800-seat gymnasium, and a state-of-the-art 750-seat auditorium/theatre. The school design called for four distinct academic "wings" for focus on individual subjects. Each "academy" is marked by color; there are red, yellow, blue, and green wings. Central's centerpiece is its common area, traditionally referred to as Central Avenue. It serves as the school's dining area, is the point that connects all wings of the school, and also is the site for many school functions. It is meant to resemble Westerville's historic business district, Uptown Westerville, with a design that includes storefronts, signs, and lampposts. For its design, the school design earned the designation of "2004 Outstanding Design Award" from
American School and University ''American School & University'' (''AS&U'') is a magazine published by Endeavor Business Media that covers the operations of educational facilities, including design and construction of new school buildings, maintenance, and renovation of existin ...
magazine.


Opening

Central opened its doors to students in the fall of 2003, enrolling only freshmen and sophomores. Central added a third class in the 2004-05 school year and had its first senior class in the 2005-06 school year. In the spring of 2007, Principal Todd Meyer announced that he would be leaving his position at Central to become the principal at
Olentangy Orange High School Olentangy Orange High School is a public high school in Lewis Center, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Olentangy Local School District. Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championships * Boys Basketball - 2025 * Girls Golf - ...
, a new high school in the Olentangy Local School District set to open in 2008. Todd Spinner was chosen to be the new principal after an extensive search. Spinner had been the assistant principal at Delaware Hayes High School. After ten years at Central (2017), Spinner announced he would be leaving the school to become the principal at Olentangy Berlin High School, the newest high school in the Olentangy Local School District. Thomas Lanier was chosen to be the newest principal of Westerville Central starting in the 2017/18 school year after previously being an assistant at
Pickerington High School North Pickerington High School North (Pickerington North, North, Pick North, or PHSN) is a public high school in Pickerington, Ohio. It is one of two high schools in the Pickerington Local School District. The mascot is the Panther. In 2003, "Pickering ...
. In 2022 Lanier took the job as principal at Pickerington High School Central, and Dawn Sayre was chosen to be the newest principle for Westerville Central.


Athletics

Westerville Central is an
OHSAA The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for junior and senior high schools in the state of Ohio. The OHSAA governs eligibility of student athletes, resolves disputes, organizes levels of comp ...
Division I school that competes in the
Ohio Capital Conference The Ohio Capital Conference is a high school athletic conference located in Central Ohio. It comprises 33 public high schools located primarily in suburban Columbus, Ohio, encompassing Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Hocking, Licking, Pickaw ...
(OCC) Ohio Division alongside Gahanna Lincoln, Grove City, New Albany, Pickerington North, and Central Crossing. The school has crosstown rivalries with Westerville North and Westerville South.


OHSAA State Championships

* Boys
Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
- 2015 State Runner-Up * Boys
Bowling Bowling is a Throwing sports#Target sports, target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a bowling ball, ball toward Bowling pin, pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). Most references to ''bowling'' are ...
- 2017 * Boys
Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
- 2021 State Runner-Up * Boys
Track & Field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and ...
- 2021 State Runner-Up * Girls
Track & Field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and ...
- 2022 State Runner-Up


Notable alumni

*
Benny Snell Benjamin Snell Jr. (born February 26, 1998) is an American professional football running back. He played college football for the Kentucky Wildcats. Snell is the great-nephew of former New York Jets running back Matt Snell. His father, Benjamin ...
-
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, 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 ...
(NFL) football player *
Nick Vannett Nick Vannett (born March 6, 1993) is an American professional football tight end. He played college football at Ohio State and was a member of the Buckeyes team that won the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship. Vannett was selec ...
- National Football League (NFL) football player


References


External links

* {{authority control Westerville, Ohio High schools in Delaware County, Ohio Public high schools in Ohio