Omaha Central High School

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Omaha High School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location: Omaha, Nebraska
Built/Founded: 1900
Architect: Latenser,John,Sr.
Architectural style(s): Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Other
Added to NRHP: October 11, 1979
NRHP Reference#: 79003684

[1]
Governing body: Omaha Public Schools

Omaha Central High School, originally known as Omaha High School, is located at 124 North 20th Street in North Omaha, Nebraska. Designed by John Latenser, Sr. and built between 1900 and 1912, the current building is the reportedly the oldest active high school building in the city.[2]

With an enrollment of around 2,500 students, today Central High School is a four-year high school with a traditional college preparatory curriculum, an honors and advanced placement program, and a diverse student body which includes international students from all over the world. Co-curricular activities such as athletics, clubs, honor societies, student government, drama, art, musical groups, speech, and debate are offered.[3]

Contents

[edit] History

Founded in 1859, Central is among the oldest high schools in Omaha, and was the city's first public high school.[4] The second Omaha High School was completed in 1872 at a cost of $225,000,[5] and was purportedly built on the site of the notorious first picnic held by the founders of Omaha City.[6] The current building was completed in 1912 on the site of the Nebraska Territorial Legislature building.[7] The current Central High school was built between 1900 and 1912 for $848,045, and when it was finished was considered one of the "finest school buildings in the country."[8] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Omaha High School in 1979.[9]

There are two Nobel Prize winners among Central's alumni.[10]

In 1986, Quill and Scroll named the Central High Register the oldest continually published high school newspaper west of the Mississippi River.[11]

Central has long been a source of contention over youth-led media. Starting in 1923, the school had a radio station for five years. First, KFCZ operated during the 1923-24 school year. In 1925 the call letters changed to KOCH, and the Central High School Radio Club presented shows throughout the school day and special events on the weekends. The station was ordered discontinued by the Federal Communications Commission in 1928, as they devalued the purpose of school-affiliated radio stations and rescinded their licenses across the United States.[12]

The staff of Central's student newspaper, the Omaha Central High School Register, was awarded the Student Press Review's Edmund J. Sullivan Award in 2002 after they wrote a series of articles exposing several controversial topics throughout the school.[13] After administration threatened the paper with closure, the students won reprieve through the support of professional journalists across the country.[14]

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] Former principals

The list of principals of Omaha High School/Central dates from 1870 to present.[15]

  • John Kellom, 1870-1875
  • W. H. Merritt, 1875-1877
  • C. H. Crawford, 1877-1881
  • Charles Hine, 1881-1882
  • Homer Lewis, 1882-1896
  • Irwen Leviston, 1896-1899
  • A. H. Waterhouse, 1899-1908
  • E. U. Graff, 1908-1911
  • Kate McHugh, 1911-1914
  • Clayton Reed, 1914-1915
  • Joseph G. Masters, 1915-1939
  • Fred Hill, 1939-1944
  • J. Arthur Nelson, 1944-1968
  • Gaylord “Doc” Moller, 1968-1995
  • Gary L. Thompson, 1995-2002
  • Jerry F. Bexten, 2002-2006
  • Gregory Emmel, 2006-

[edit] Athletics

Omaha Central High has experienced much success in athletics over the years. Many college and professional standouts started their careers as "Eagles". In recent years the boys' basketball team has proved to be one of the state's finest, winning three straight State Championships (2006, 2007, 2008) under the direction of Head Coach Eric Behrens. On November 16, 2007 Omaha Central won the state football championship. It was the school's first football title since 1984. By winning the football title this fall, Omaha Central has completed the "Central Slam" by currently holding titles in track, football, and basketball. No other team in Nebraska Class A athletics has ever held titles in these three sports at the same time before. On March 09, 2008 Omaha Central won their third straight boys basketball championship to keep the "Central Slam" alive.

[edit] Newspaper

The high school's newspaper The Register is an award winning paper. The publication has won 11 NSPA/JEA Best-of-Shows. The paper also won the Pacemaker National Award. The journalism program has won seven straight State Titles. The staff and the paper came under fire from administration after running a controversial story. The story reported on a football player continuing to play, despite 2 assault charges. The charges, as stated in the school's handbook, should have led to a dismissal from the team. The paper ran the story, written by Editor in Chief Matt Wynn, and came under fire, even being threatened to be shut down. Advisor Matt Deabler received an outpouring of support from media outlets on the local and national level. This support stopped the paper from being stopped, and first amendment rights protected. Principal Gary Thompson instituted a curfew for the newspaper staff, known to stay late and work on the paper, and even went as far to call the group "a cult".

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
  2. ^ Gerber, Kristine; Jeffrey S. Spencer (2003). Building for the Ages: Landmarks in Omaha.. Landmarks, Inc., pp. 84-85. ISBN 0-9745410-1-X. 
  3. ^ (2005) Central High Newsletter. Central High School. Retrieved 2007-05-17.
  4. ^ (2004) Timeline: Omaha History KETV.com. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
  5. ^ (nd) Omaha High School. Omaha Public Library. Retrieved 2007-03-10.
  6. ^ (nd) A Short History of Omaha. HistoricOmaha.Com. Retrieved 2007-05-16.
  7. ^ (nd) Walking Tour of Downtown Omaha. HistoricOmaha.Com. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
  8. ^ (nd) Omaha High School.
  9. ^ (nd) National Register of Historic Places in Douglas County. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
  10. ^ (nd) Central High School Baseball. Retrieved 2007-05-16.
  11. ^ History
  12. ^ Frost, S., Frost, E. (1977) Education's Own Stations: The History of Broadcast Licenses Issued to Educational Institutions. National Advisory Council on Radio in Education Committee on Research. pp299-300.
  13. ^ (2003) Edmund J. Sullivan Award to two newspaper staffs Student Press Review. Retrieved 2007-05-16.
  14. ^ Wynn, C. (2002) Threat of censorship has chilling effect: High school journalists try to continue work after clash with administration. The Quill. Retrieved 2007-05-16.
  15. ^ (2006) Annual Report. Central High School Foundation. Retrieved 2007-05-16.

[edit] External links

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