South Medford 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 ...

in Medford,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, United States.

History

The South Medford campus was originally built in 1931 as Medford High School. Then in the 1960s, the school was divided between two campuses. Medford High became Medford Mid High, serving grades 9 and 10, with grades 11 and 12 going to a newly constructed campus, known as Medford Senior High, which is the current

North Medford High School North Medford High School is a public high school in Medford, Oregon, Medford, Oregon, United States. It is part of Medford School District (Oregon), Medford School District, and its nickname is the Black Tornado. The school enrolls 1,750 student ...

campus. This system was primarily used to allow Medford's football team to compete against schools in large cities such as Portland. The Panther mascot and school colors were chosen by a 1985 vote of the students in the 549-C school district. Panthers won out over Cyclones and Lions among other choices. The school colors were originally "Blue and Silver-Grey". The campus was also home to

Spiegelberg Stadium Spiegelberg Stadium, sometimes called Spieg, is a multipurpose sports stadium in the northwest United States, located in Medford, Oregon. Known as Medford Stadium until 1983, it is the home venue for both the North Medford High School and S ...

(9,250 seat capacity). Both South Medford and North Medford High School share the stadium for football. In 2004, FieldTurf, a state-of-the-art surface commonly used on professional and college fields, was installed, and the surrounding track was resurfaced. The $700,000 privately funded project was spearheaded by Ed Singler, president of the Linebackers Club. In 2010 the campus (referred to as "Old South Medford High School") became home to

Central Medford High School Oakdale Middle School (OMS) is a public middle school serving grades 6—8 in Medford, Oregon, United States. It is the third and newest middle school in the Medford School District, but is the only school in the district to be registered as a m ...

. In 2020, Central High moved to new location making way for Oakdale Middle School.

Small School Initiative

In 2004–2005 school year, the

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation The Gates Foundation is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was launched in 2000 and is reported to be List of wealthiest charitable foundations, the third largest char ...

selected South Medford High as part of their Small School Initiative program. Over the course of the next three years, the staff of South Medford toured various other high schools across the nation to determine the exact manner in which to implement the program. Starting in the 2006–2007 school year, South Medford began the SSI with the "Freshman Academy." The following year adding the small schools "BACH" (Bridging the Arts, Communications and Humanities), "CHAMPS" (Community Health and Medical Professions School), and The Discovery School.

Academics

In the 2008–09 school year, 81% of the school's seniors received their

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 441 students, 355 graduated, 44 dropped out, and 42 stayed in high school. In the 2009–10 school year, 78% of South's Seniors received a diploma. Of 470 students, 374 graduated, 96 dropped out, and 7 stayed in high school. South Medford High School offers 15

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

(AP) courses and opportunities for college credit through Rogue Community College and

Southern Oregon University Southern Oregon University (SOU) is a public university in Ashland, Oregon. It was founded in 1872 as the Ashland Academy, has been in its current location since 1926, and was known by nine other names before assuming its current name in 1997.Kre ...

Athletics

The South Medford Panthers participate in Oregon's 6A Southwest Conference.

State Championships

*Boys Soccer: 1997, 2003 *Boys Basketball: 2007 *Girls Basketball: 2012, 2024 *Cheerleading: 1987

Notable alumni

Jeff Barry Jeff Barry (born Joel Adelberg; April 3, 1938) is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer. Among the most successful songs that he has co-written in his career are " Tell Laura I Love Her" (written with Ben Raleigh and a ...

, former pro baseball player, selected in 4th round of 1990 MLB Draft *

Steve Bechler Steven Scott Bechler (November 18, 1979 – February 17, 2003) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles. After starring for the South Medford High School baseball tea ...

, baseball player *

Bill Bowerman William Jay Bowerman (February 19, 1911 – December 24, 1999) was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic Games, Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 2 ...

, co-founder of

Nike, Inc. Nike, Inc. (stylized as ''NIKE'') is an American athletic footwear and apparel corporation headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon. It is the world's largest supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and a major manufacturer of sports equipment, ...

and

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 ...

track coach *

Dick Fosbury Richard Douglas Fosbury (March 6, 1947 – March 12, 2023) was an American high jumper, who is considered one of the most influential athletes in the history of track and field. He won a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics, revolutionizing t ...

, athlete in

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

, inventor of

Fosbury Flop The Fosbury flop is a jumping style used in the track and field event of high jump. It was popularized and perfected by American athlete Dick Fosbury, whose gold medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City brought it to the world's attention. ...

, two-time NCAA champion,

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

gold medalist *

Les Gutches Leslie Lyle Gutches (born February 21, 1973) is an American former wrestler and coach. His accomplishments include becoming a World Champion in freestyle wrestling at the 1997 World Wrestling Championships, the Dan Hodge Trophy as the nation's ...

, wrestler, NCAA champion, 1997 world champion, 1999 Pan-Am Games gold medalist, member of U.S. team in

1996 Atlanta 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, ...

* Jacob Melton, baseball player, selected in the 2nd round of 2022 MLB draft *

E. J. Singler Edward J. Singler (born June 6, 1990) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Oregon. As a senior at Oregon, he was named to the All-Pac-12 first team. High school career Singler a ...

, basketball player, current free agent *

Kyle Singler Kyle Edward Singler (born May 4, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player. Singler was a four-year starter for the Duke men's basketball team and was instrumental in their 2010 NCAA championship run, and was named the NCAA Tou ...

, basketball player for Liga's ACB Monbus Obradoiro, 2010 NCAA champion with

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

* Jonathan Stark, tennis player, 1994 French Open men's doubles champion and 1995 Wimbledon mixed doubles champion *

Justin Baldoni Justin Louis Baldoni (born January 24, 1984) is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing Rafael Solano on the CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast tel ...

, actor and director

References

External links

{{authority control High schools in Jackson County, Oregon Education in Medford, Oregon Educational institutions established in 1961 Public high schools in Oregon 1961 establishments in Oregon