Hershey High School (Pennsylvania)

Hershey High School is a comprehensive four-year public high school located in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The high school is one of four buildings which comprise the campus of the Derry Township School District and serves students in ninth through twelfth grades. Along with Hershey Middle School, the high school is nationally recognized as a Blue Ribbon School.

Hershey High School
Address
550 Homestead Road

Hershey
,
Pennsylvania
17033

United States
Coordinates40°16′36″N 76°38′28″W
Information
TypePublic
Established1905
School districtDerry Township School District
PrincipalJeff Smith
Faculty83.48 (FTE)[1]
Grades9 to 12
Enrollment1,229 (2018–19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio14.72[1]
LanguageEnglish
CampusSuburban
Campus size201,000 square feet (18,700 m2)
Color(s)Blue and Orange    
Team nameTrojan
RivalLower Dauphin High School
NewspaperThe Broadcaster
Communities servedDerry Township, Hershey
Feeder schoolsHershey Middle School
WebsiteSchool website

As of the 2018–19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,229 students and 83.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.7:1. There were 198 students (6.2% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 16 eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

Awards, recognition and rankings

Hershey High School ranks consistently as one of the top public schools in the state of Pennsylvania. U.S. News & World Report ranks it as the number one rated school in the Harrisburg metropolitan area, and the tenth best high school in Pennsylvania.[2][3] Niche ranks the high school as the 14th best in the state.[4]

Nationally, Hershey High School is ranked as the 471st best high school in the United States according to U.S. News & World Report,[2] and the 599th best high school according to Newsweek.[5]

In 1996, the school was nationally recognized as a Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education for its academic excellence.[6]

Curriculum

The English Department includes courses in journalism, speech, composition (language), literature, and other concepts of the English language. The Mathematics Department offers courses in geometry, algebra, trigonometry, precalculus AB calculus, BC calculus, advanced calculus, finance, statistics, and computer science. The Social Studies department has courses in American and world history as well as courses which focus on aspects of society such as law and money. The Science Department offers classes in biology, chemistry, physics, environmental science, and biotechnology. There are elective courses offered in foreign languages, music, drama, engineering and AutoCAD, accounting and business, and computers. Health courses include physical education, strength and conditioning, health, and driver's education.

The school's graduation rate in 2011 was 97%.[7]

Dual enrollment

The high school offers a Dual Enrollment program. This state program permits high school students to take courses, at local higher education institutions, to earn college credits. Students remain enrolled at their high school. The courses count towards high school graduation requirements and towards earning a college degree. The students continue to have full access to activities and programs at their high school. The college credits are offered at a deeply discounted rate. The state offers a small grant to assist students in costs for tuition, fees and books.[8] Under the Pennsylvania Transfer and Articulation Agreement, many Pennsylvania colleges and universities accept these credits for students who transfer to their institutions.[9]

For the 2009-10 funding year, the school district received a state grant of $1,628 for the program.

Extracurricular activities

Hershey High School has a drama program which produces a musical each year, in addition to smaller productions throughout the year. The pit orchestra for Hershey's musicals has won the Hershey Theater Apollo Award for Best Student Orchestra in four of the last six years.

There are a number of clubs such as Future Business Leaders of America, Key Club, Youth and Government, Young Democrats, Young Republicans, C.A.L.L., Student World Action Committee, and other organizations available for students. A student-produced online newspaper, the nationally-accredited "Broadcaster", is updated throughout the year. A literary magazine, "Nexus", is also produced with works by students.

Athletics

Hershey High has football, ice hockey, cheerleading, boys and girls basketball, wrestling, powerlifting, field hockey, boys and girls golf, boys and girls volleyball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, track, cross country, swimming and diving, boys and girls lacrosse, and boys and girls tennis. Hershey High is a member of the Mid-Penn Conference of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, or PIAA. It is a AAAAA school. Hershey High has a marching band and pep band, which support athletics throughout the year along with the cheerleaders. The bands perform songs that can be coordinated with a dance put together by the cheerleading squad.

Swimming and diving

In the 2009-2010 season the boys team went 13-0 in their duel meets and moved on to win both their district championship meet and the PIAA State championship. At the state meet David Nolan set a national age group record for high school boys going a time of 1:43.43 in the 200 yard IM, as well as setting the state record in the 100 yard freestyle. The medley relay set the national age group record with a time of 1:30.27. They earned 7 gold medals out of a possible 12 and had 17 swimmers qualify and participate at the meet. Hershey also set the record for the highest points ever scored at a PIAA state meet with 416. The Hershey High School boys swim team was the top-ranked boys' public high school team in the United States in 2010 according to Swimming World Magazine.[10]

For the 2010-2011 season, both the Hershey boys and girls swimming and diving teams remained undefeated, winning the Commonwealth division 13-0 each, the Mid-Penn conference meet (seven combined meet records for swimming and one for diving) and the District III meet (seven first place and three district records for girls; nine first place and five records for the boys).

At the 2011 PIAA state championship meet, the women's 400 yard freestyle relay team set the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) public school record (3:22.85). The boys' 200 yard freestyle relay team set the NFHS and NISCA national records (1:21.01) as the fastest high school team to that time in any class, public or independent. The boys 400 yard freestyle relay team also set the National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association (NISCA) public school record (3:00.71) as well as the individual 100 yard national freestyle record (42.34) and two other individual national records during the state meet: 45.49 in the 100 yard backstroke, and 1:41.39 in the 200 yard IM. As of the end of 2015, both the boys and girls teams remain undefeated.

Both the boys and girls swim teams won their 2011 state meets, with nine first-place finishes and eight state records combined (including the national records). The girls team accumulated a state record 269.5 points. By the end of the season, the boys team had produced ten NISCA All-America swimmers and one diver, and the girls team seven All-America swimmers, for a total of 56 event honors. In addition, four swimmers were also named Academic All-America. Swimming World magazine chose the Hershey High School men's swim team as the best in the nation in 2011 (Swimming World magazine, September 2011, 52(9):14).[11]

School symbols
  • Hershey High's school colors are blue and orange. The mascot is the Trojan, and on November 16, 2007, a costumed mascot made its debut.
  • Hershey's principal rivals are Lower Dauphin High School, Milton Hershey School, and Palmyra Area High School, all of which are in the vicinity of Hershey.
  • Every year, Hershey plays a football game against the Milton Hershey School, which is called the "Cocoa Bean Game". This, along with homecoming, is generally the best-attended game each year.[12]
  • The fight song is "Onward Trojans", which is sung to the tune of "On, Wisconsin."

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:[13]

  • Jeff Smith, Principal
  • Peter Ebert, Assistant Principal
  • Laurie Wade, Assistant Principal

Notable alumni

References
  1. "School Data for Hershey High School". NCES. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  2. "Hershey High School". US News and World Report. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  3. "What are the best high schools in Pennsylvania? U.S. News and World Report releases state, U.S. rankings". pennlive. 12 June 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  4. "2020 Best Public High Schools in Pennsylvania". Niche. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  5. "Best STEM Schools - 501 to 1000". Newsweek. 4 November 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  6. "Blue Ribbon Schools Program 1994-1996 Secondary Schools Selected for Recognition". US Department of Education. 1996. Archived from the original on 2006-12-05. Retrieved 2007-01-07.
  7. "Hershey High School Data" (PDF). Derry Township School District. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
  8. Pennsylvania Department of Education (2010). "Dual Enrollment Guidelines". Archived from the original on 2014-10-17.
  9. Pennsylvania Transfer and Articulation Agreement. site accessed March 2010. http://www.patrac.org/
  10. , www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/SwimmersOfTheYear.asp.
  11. http://www.rodfrisco.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/PIAA-G-SWIM-TEAM.pdf
  12. Kiner, Deb (6 September 2019). "Cocoa Bean football game is a longstanding Hershey tradition". pennlive. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  13. "Administration / Meet the Principals". Hershey High School. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  14. "Athletic Hall of Fame: 2005 Inductees". Derry Township School District. Archived from the original on August 25, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2019.
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