Hastings High School (Minnesota)

A new multimillion-dollar facility was established in 2001. The construction of the new school was centered on a bridge connecting the athletic portion of the school to the academic. Not only does the bridge show this important connection between academics and athletics, it also illustrates the school's dedication to "connect students to other students, and students to teachers, staff and administrators"[3] The school is known for its strong music program, a freshman orientation program called "Link Crew", athletics, National Honor Society, and service to the community. It is also known for its national placing show choir, Riverside Company. Hastings has a special education program in the school and works with students of all abilities.

The school's philosophy is revolved around a liberal arts education in which students must take core classes to fulfill graduation requirements including English, social studies, mathematics, sciences, languages, and the arts, though they can also choose from a variety of business, physical education, horticulture, family studies, and industrial technology classes.[4]

Hastings enrolls about 1,800 students in grades 9–12 and has a graduation rate of 97 percent. The school is positioned on over one hundred acres near the bluffs of the Mississippi River, and is home to one of the oldest active alumni associations in the country, which hosted its 131st annual meeting in 2014.

Hastings High School offers many creative course options in performance and fine arts. Courses include drawing, painting, band, orchestra, choir, speech, and theater arts.[5] The art instructors are advisers for the school's Art Club, and coordinate different activities and projects that coincide with different seasons and holidays. Art is displayed throughout the school through student-made projects, including large murals and intricate mosaics. Musical talents are cultivated through an active and lively choir/band/orchestra wing. The school has an award-winning show choir that has competed on a national level numerous times throughout the years with the help of Lin Warren and his replacement after retirement after his last year of teaching in 2016–17, Luke Warren. Hastings is also home to the Hastings Raiders Marching Band, which has competed in summer parades and fall field shows throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota, and as far as Colorado and Massachusetts. They have also won awards in the Youth in Music Band Championships.

• George Conzemius - Minnesota state senator and educator
• Leon J. Endres - businessman
• Craig Kilborn - original host of The Daily Show, a former anchor on ESPN's SportsCenter, and former host on CBS' The Late Late Show
• Larry LaCoursiere - professional boxer
• Derek Stepan - professional ice hockey player for the Arizona Coyotes
• Ben Utecht - former NFL tight end; singer
• Mark Doten - novelist