Natrona County High School (NCHS) is a public secondary school (grades 9–12) located in Casper,

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

, United States. It serves Natrona County School District #1, which encompasses all of Natrona County, Wyoming. The school remains a rival of Kelly Walsh High School, one of Casper's other two high schools along with Roosevelt High School. A fourth nearby high school is Midwest School in Midwest, Wyoming.

History and facilities

Natrona County High School was originally known as Casper High School. The current building was constructed between 1924 and 1941 in

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

style. It was partially built under the authority of the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

; the crest of the WPA is visible in the sidewalks on the front campus. In exchange for federal assistance, male student participation in the

Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) is a federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools across the United States and at US military bases across the world. The progr ...

was mandatory until a few years after Kelly Walsh High School opened in 1965. The JROTC at NCHS is the second oldest unit in the nation and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2014. The

International Thespian Society The International Thespian Society (ITS) is an honor society for high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary educ ...

, originally called National Thespians, was founded in 1929 in

Fairmont, West Virginia Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 18,313 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in West Virginia, eighth-most populous city in ...

by Dr. Paul Opp, Earnest Bavely, and Harry T. Leeper. It honored high school theater students who participated in their school programs. The first troupe was started by Dr. Earl Blank at Natrona County High School in

Casper, Wyoming Casper is a city in and the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States. Casper is the List of municipalities in Wyoming, second-most populous city in the state after Cheyenne, Wyoming, Cheyenne, with the population at 59,038 as of th ...

. The school's swimming pool was built in 1929, making it the first indoor pool for educational purposes in the state. It was demolished in 2014 during renovations to the building. A new swimming pool was opened up during the 2021 - 2022 school year. Natrona County High School was the first campus for

Casper College Casper College is a Public college, public community college in Casper, Wyoming. It is one of the largest and most comprehensive community colleges in the region. Established in 1945 as Wyoming's first junior college and initially located on the ...

, a community college also located in Natrona County Wyoming, which occupied the upper level of NCHS in the late 1940s, before it had a campus of its own. Natrona County High School was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on January 1, 1994. In 2010–2011 the Natrona County School District began the process of a major re-design to reconfigure the site and renovate the historic building. In early 2012 the state allocated $118 million for the design and construction of the NCHS renovations and expansion. In July 2012 the state released funds for the design, with construction funds to be released in 2013. In August 2012 preliminary concepts for the design of the renovated school were presented to the community by

Bassetti Architects Bassetti Architects is an architectural firm based in Seattle, Washington with a second office in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1947, the firm has newly designed or substantially renovated several well-known Seattle landmarks and many schools in th ...

. Dean Kelly resigned as principal in September 2014 after a school district investigation into sexual harassment complaints resulting from a skit performed during hazing and initiation of new teachers before the start of the school year. Kelly did not take part in or directly approve the skit, but took responsibility as the head administrator. Kelly Hornby, executive director for curriculum instruction in Natrona County School District #1, filled the role as Acting Principal following the resignation of Dean Kelly. Aaron Wilson was hired as the new NCHS Principal at the beginning of the 2021 - 2022 School year following Former Principal Sharon Harris hiring as a superintendent for a school district.

Academics

In addition to standard core curriculum, NCHS offers courses in several areas of academic and technical specialty, including Agriculture, Automotive, DECA, FBLA, FFA, and

JROTC The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) is a Federal government of the United States, federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools across the United States and at US mil ...

. NCHS has offered the

IB Diploma Program The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry int ...

through the IB World School program since 2001. The program is a comprehensive two-year curriculum for students in grades 11 and 12. Graduates of the program are awarded a high school diploma recognized by universities worldwide.

Athletics

NCHS offers the following athletic programs: *Alpine skiing - unisex' *Basketball – boys' *Basketball – girls' *Cross country - unisex' *Football - unisex' *Golf - unisex' *Indoor track – boys' *Indoor track – girls' *Nordic skiing *Soccer – boys' *Soccer – girls' *Softball - girls' *Swimming – boys' *Swimming – girls' *Tennis - unisex' *Track – boys' *Track – girls' *Volleyball *Wrestling - boys' *Wrestling - girls' *JROTC Drill

State championships

Boys Cross Country *Class A 1963, 1979, 1981, 1982 *Class 4A 2010 Girls Cross Country *Class 4A 1977, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 2018, 2019, 2023 Football *Class AA 1933, 1937, 1939, 1942, 1948, 1951, 1957, 1963, 1975 *Class 4A 1985, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018 Boys Golf *Class AA 1976, 1978, 1981 *Class 4A 1993 Girls Golf *Class 4A 1987, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2012, 2013 Boys Tennis *1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2005 Girls Tennis *1976, 1977, 1978, 2006, 2011, 2012 Volleyball *Class AA 1976, 1981 *Class 4A 1998, 1999, 2007, 2013 Boys Team Alpine Skiing: *1998, 2006, 2007 *Class AA 1960, 1964 Boys Basketball: *1939 (Casper) *Class A (Casper) 1940, 1946, 1949, 1955

Notable alumni

* Logan Wilson, Linebacker for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

* Taven Bryan, Defensive Tackle for the

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Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American former politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He has been called vice presidency o ...

(Class of 1959), 46th

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

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(Class of 1959), wife of Dick Cheney * James A. "Jim" Corbett, co-founder of the

Sanctuary movement The Sanctuary movement was a religious and political campaign in the United States that began in the early 1980s to provide safe haven for Central American refugees fleeing civil conflict. The movement was a response to federal immigration policies ...

* Lance Deal, silver medalist for the hammer throw in the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

* Kenneth S. Deffeyes,

petroleum geologist A petroleum geologist is an earth scientist who works in the field of petroleum geology, which involves all aspects of oil discovery and production. Petroleum geologists are usually linked to the actual discovery of oil and the identification ...

* Daniel Donche, Jr., novelist, actor, and artist *

Peter Junger Peter D. Junger (1933 – November 2006) was a computer law professor and Internet activist, most famous for having fought against the U.S. government's regulations of and export controls on encryption software. The case, ''Junger v. Daley'' (6t ...

computer law Information technology law (IT law), also known as information, communication and technology law (ICT law) or cyberlaw, concerns the juridical regulation of information technology, its possibilities and the consequences of its use, including comp ...

professor * Mike Lansing, professional

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 ...

player * Mark Lee, professional baseball player *

Geoffrey Lower Geoffrey Lower (born March 19, 1963) is an American actor known for playing Reverend Timothy Johnson on ''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman''. He also played Monica Geller's boyfriend Alan in the ''Friends'' episode "The One With the Thumb". Early life ...

, television and movie actor * Joseph B. Meyer, Wyoming attorney general and state treasurer * Guy Padgett, Wyoming's first openly gay mayor * Rev. James Reeb, civil rights activist murdered in

Selma, Alabama Selma is a city in and the county seat of Dallas County, in the Black Belt region of south central Alabama and extending to the west. Located on the banks of the Alabama River, the city has a population of 17,971 as of the 2020 census. Abou ...

in 1965 * Marlan O. Scully, physicist known for work in theoretical quantum optics *

Matthew Shepard Matthew Wayne Shepard (December 1, 1976 – October 12, 1998) was an American student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten, tortured, and left to die near Laramie on October 6, 1998. He was transported by rescuers to Poudre Valle ...

, murdered near Laramie, Wyoming in 1998 * Floyd Volker, NBA player * Pete Williams, NBC news correspondent

References

External links

Official site

Natrona County High School
at the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office

{{authority control Public high schools in Wyoming School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Wyoming Educational institutions established in 1896 Works Progress Administration in Wyoming Schools in Natrona County, Wyoming International Baccalaureate schools in Wyoming Buildings and structures in Casper, Wyoming National Register of Historic Places in Natrona County, Wyoming 1896 establishments in Wyoming