Highland Park High School (University Park, Texas)

In 1999, Dallas police issued 200 alcohol and curfew violations citations to Park Cities teens partying in a Deep Ellum warehouse. CNN picked up the story, and after it emerged that parents had rented the facility and contracted a bus company to safely deliver high school students to and from the party, the Alliance on Underage Drinking (ALOUD) started the "Parents Who Host, Lose the Most" campaign, which informs parents about health, safety and legal ramifications of serving alcohol to underage individuals.[15]

In late 2004, Simon & Schuster published young adult author Francine Pascal's The Ruling Class, a teen drama set at Highland Park High School. The school's newspaper The Bagpipe published community reactions to the book and online reviews are mixed.[16]

In late 2005, The Dallas Morning News published a story about the Friday of Highland Park's homecoming spirit week, on which several seniors dressed as thugs, Mexicans, maids and other caricatures of racial minorities. Some pointed to this as support for the general perception of Highland Park High School and the Park Cities as a "bubble" (as the area is known in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex). The article ignited a storm of letter-writing and editorializing to and in the Morning News. Soon after the article was published, two swastikas were spray-painted on a sign in front of the school.

In 2005 and 2006, Highland Park students received a multitude of state and national awards, and established several new records in Texas.[17] The UIL Science Team, under the leadership of AP Chemistry teacher Wenzen Chuang, won state for the second time in the history of the high school. The Bagpipe newspaper received the Gold Crown Award for excellence in journalism in 2005 and later that year was one of 15 high schools in the country to win an NSPA Pacemaker. The same year, the school's yearbook, The Highlander, was chosen as a finalist for the NSPA Pacemaker award and Highland Park Television was chosen as a finalist for the NSPA Broadcast Pacemaker; Highland Park Television won the award the following year. The Bagpipe received a second Gold Crown Award in 2011, for the previous year's newspaper.

In the winter of 2012 and the early spring of 2013, numerous bomb threats were found across the campus. Students and faculty were released early three times, and eventually the FBI was called in. An arrest was made in April 2013.

In 2013, the stage of the high school's auditorium (Palmer Auditorium) was honorarily named after Linda Raya, a longtime drama teacher at the school. Raya's 40+ year career at Highland Park oversaw the production of countless theatrical productions, which now continue to be produced on the newly named Linda Raya Stage.[18]

HPISD, Highland Park High School, and Superintendent Dawson Orr received national attention in September 2014 for the controversial banning of seven books previously used in high school English studies, after a group of parents protested the contents of these books.[19] The seven books were: "The Art of Racing in the Rain," by Garth Stein; "The Working Poor: Invisible in America," by David K. Shipler; "Siddhartha," by Hermann Hesse; "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," by Sherman Alexie; "An Abundance of Katherines," by John Green; "The Glass Castle," by Jeannette Walls; and "Song of Solomon" by Toni Morrison.

September 29, 2014, Orr reversed his decision to suspend the books, stating in an email to parents, "I made the decision in an attempt to de-escalate the conflict, and I readily admit that it had the opposite effect. I take full responsibility for the decision, and I apologize for the disruption it has caused."[20]

In 2015, Orr retired and was replaced by Dr. Tom Trigg who had previously served as the superintendent of Blue Valley Unified School District in Overland Park, Kansas. Dr. Trigg's salary upon hiring was notable for its size, coming in at a base of $325,000 (compared to Dallas ISD's superintendent salary of $306,000).[21]

The baseball team's games are held at Scotland Yard (Highland Park), a cleverly named baseball field immediately north of the high school campus.

The Highland Park Girls Swimming and Diving team holds the record in all of UIL history for ten consecutive state titles.

As of the end of the 2018 season, the school's tennis team has won 19 state titles, making it the school's most successful sport.[23] From the start of the 2008 season until November 2015, the team kept an unbroken winning streak of 174 consecutive matches won. The streak was broken on 11 November 2015 when Highland Park lost to New Braunfels in the 6A semi-finals, marking the first time since 1999 that Highland Park would not compete in the state championship.[24] From 2008 through 2014, the team won 8 consecutive state titles. The team returned to win the 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 state titles.

In 1920s, Bryan Street High School players called Highland Park's football team the "silk stocking boys." Games between the two caused so many riots between the spectators that they were banned from playing each other. Coach H. B. Howard was the football coach at the time.[6] Dr. Shirley Hodges, a local Dallas pediatrician, served on the HPISD School Board and was the first team doctor for the football team.[7] Coached by Rusty Russell (1942–45) and led by Doak Walker and Bobby Layne, the Scots made it to the championship game two consecutive times in 1944 and 1945. After losing 20-7 to Port Arthur in 1944, Highland Park battled Waco to a 7-7 tie in the 1945 state championship in front of a record 45,790-person crowd at the Cotton Bowl[25] to become co-champions. In 1947, Highland Park lost the state final 22-13 to San Antonio Brackenridge, while in 1957 they defeated Port Arthur 21-9 under the guidance of Thurman Jones.

The Highland Park football team is currently coached by Randy Allen, who holds a 361-86-6 record as of 2016, making him the second winningest active high school football coach in Texas and the fourth winningest of all-time in Texas.[26][27] In January 2014, Allen was chosen as recipient of the 2013 Grant Teaff Fellowship of Christian Athletes Lifetime Achievement Award, joining such coaching greats as Tony Dungy and Bobby Bowden. As of the end of the 2018 season, Allen has led the Scots to four state titles under his coaching (2005, 2016, 2017,and 2018).

In 2005, Matthew Stafford led Highland Park to an undefeated season for the 4A Division I state championship. The 2005 season was Highland Park's only undefeated, untied season in program history. After a highly successful college career at the University of Georgia, he was drafted first overall by the Detroit Lions at the 2009 NFL Draft. The team beat Marshall 59-0, the largest margin-of-victory ever in a UIL 11-man state championship football game.

In 2007, the Scots went undefeated into the state final against Austin Lake Travis, but lost 36-34. As of 2007, Highland Park Scots football teams had made a state-record 49 playoff appearances.

In 2016, the Scots won the Division I 5A state final against Temple, Texas, 16-7.

In 2017, the Scots won the Division I 5A state final against Manvel, Texas, 53-49 on 22 December 2017 in front of 24,975 people in AT&T Stadium.[28] The Scots overcame a 10-point deficit in the final three minutes of the game and won the game just as Manvel was one yard from scoring again.[29] Together with the 2016 title, marked the school's first ever back-to-back state championship wins. The 2017 season broke the school record for the most points scored in a single season by the Scots with 732 points in 16 games. As of 2017, they have had eight state finals appearances (and won five of them).

In 2018, Highland Park won their 3rd straight state championship in a game against Shadow Creek and completed a perfect 16-0 record.[30]

In 2019, the Scots were the Division I 5A divisional champions.

The Highland Park girls cross country team has set numerous records throughout the years; having sent a runner to the state meet every year since the first year the program was created. This cross country team has won more state championships than any other cross country team in the state of Texas.[31][32][33]

As of the close of the 2017 season, the Highland Park boys lacrosse team has won 7 Division I and 4 Division II Texas High School Lacrosse League (THSLL) state championships. This includes two years (2012 and 2015) in which both the DI and DII teams won their respective state titles simultaneously.[34] DII titles are notable for the reason that many Texas high schools do not compete at the DI level, making DII titles the highest achievement for many schools. The team has included 23 US Lacrosse All-Americans since 2004.[35]

The DI team was coached by Derek Thomson through the 2017 season. Thomson led the team to all 7 DI titles and won the THSLL Coach of the Year award twice. Upon his retirement, Thomson was also awarded the Earl Bill Award by the THSLL commissioner. Beginning in the 2018 season,

Highland Park has fostered the development of a total of 28 players who went on to play Division I NCAA lacrosse in college.[36]

Of the 7 DI state titles, it is notable that 3 have been in victories over St. Mark's School of Texas (2009, 2010, and 2012) and 2 have been in victories over the Episcopal School of Dallas (ESD) (2005 and 2008). St. Mark's and ESD are both located in Dallas near to Highland Park. Other rivals include Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas (another Dallas-based team) which beat Highland Park in the 2016 and 2017 state DI title games.

Unique among Highland Park High School's sports, the lacrosse team is not school-run because lacrosse is not a UIL-sanctioned sport. The team runs as a private organization.

The drill team at Highland Park High School is called the Highland Park Belles. They perform dance routines at halftime during football games and during pep rallies, as well as attending other events. The Belles were founded in 1983–84 with Cathy Wheat as director. Wheat is a member of the National Drill Team Directors Hall of Fame. She was director of the Irving High School Toy Tigers for 10 years before founding the Belles for whom she served as director for 23 years.[37] Angie Harmon, a Highland Park graduate, credits Wheat with inspiring her to have confidence as an actress.[38] The Belles hold an annual fundraiser named "Spaghetti Supper." They sell tickets to Highland Park students and staff and to the rest of the Highland Park community. All of the money raised goes to fund the team's needs.[39] A girl must go through and pass a rigorous tryout process to become a member of the Belles.

• Baseball[40]
  • 1998(4A)
• Girls Cross Country[31]
  • 1981(5A), 1982(5A), 1988(4A), 1989(4A), 1992(4A), 1997(4A), 1998(4A), 1999(4A), 2001(4A), 2002(4A), 2004(4A), 2010(4A), 2011(4A), 2012(4A)
• Football[41]
  • 1945(All), 1957(ALL), 2005(4A), 2016 (5A DI), 2017 (5A DI), 2018 (5A D1)
• Boys Golf[42]
  • 1950(2A), 1951(2A), 1977(4A), 1989(4A), 1990(4A), 1991(4A), 1992(4A), 1993(4A), 2001(4A), 2002(4A), 2003(4A), 2005(4A), 2006(4A), 2008(4A), 2010(4A), 2013(4A), 2019(5A)
• Girls Golf[43]
  • 1998(4A), 1999(4A), 2000(4A), 2008(4A)
• Boys Lacrosse[35]
  • Division I: 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015
  • Division II: 2008, 2012, 2015, 2018
• Girls Soccer[44]
  • 1994 (All), 1996 (All), 2000 (4A), 2002 (4A), 2012(4A), 2016 (5A)
• Boys Swimming[45]
  • 2000(4A), 2017(5A), 2018 (5A)
• Girls Swimming[46]
  • 2001(4A), 2002(4A), 2003(4A), 2004(4A), 2005(4A), 2006(4A), 2007(4A), 2008(4A), 2009(4A), 2010(4A)
• Team Tennis (19)[47][48][49]
  • 1982–83 (5A), 1989–90 (4A), 1990–91 (4A), 1991–92 (4A), 1997–98 (4A), 2001–02 (4A), 2003–04 (4A), 2004–05 (4A), 2005–06 (4A), 2006–07 (4A), 2008–09 (4A), 2009–10 (4A), 2010–11 (4A), 2011–12 (4A), 2012–13 (4A), 2013–14 (4A), 2014–15 (6A), 2016–17 (5A), 2018–19 (5A)
• Boys Track[50]
  • 1940(All)
• Boys Wrestling[51]
  • 1999(All), 2000(All), 2003(All), 2005(All), 2006(All)

Highland Park holds the UIL record for most athletic state titles by one school: 77 (in all classes).

Students at Highland Park take the PSAT in grades 10 and 11 and thus qualify for National Merit Scholarship Program awards. The following table summarizes recent years' awards:

About 99% of Highland Park students take the SAT or ACT.[52] The average SAT score in 2015–16 was 1833 (out of 2400) compared to a national average score of 1243. The average ACT score in 2015–16 was a 27.6 (out of 36) compared to a national average score of 20.6.[5]

Most Highland Park students choose to take AP courses; Highland Park High School does not offer IB courses. The high school offers open enrollment for more than 20 AP courses. All students enrolled in AP courses are required by the high school to take the relevant AP exam. Of the students at Highland Park, 78.6% choose to take an AP class and the ensuing exam in May 2015 compared to the state average of 24.9%.[52][53] To illustrate how many students take exams, in May 2017, 1,093 Highland Park students took a combined 2,900 AP exams.[5] In May 2015, 78.9% of exams taken were also passed, meaning the student received a score of 3 or higher.[5][52][53] That compares to a state passing rate of 49.1% in May 2015[53] and a national passing rate of 67% in May 2017.[54]

Highland Park High School has a graduation rate that is consistently above 98%, compared to the state average of 89.0% in 2015. The 6-year longitudinal graduation rate was 99.8% compared to the state average of 90.9%.[53] 86.0% of HPHS graduates in 2015 were rated college-ready in both English Language Arts and Mathematics by the TEA compared to a state average of 35.0%.[53] Scholarships offered to the graduating class of 2016 exceeded a comparable monetary value of $14,500,000—almost $30,000 per senior.[5] After graduation, 94% of the graduating class of 2016 matriculated to a four-year college, including Harvard, Stanford, West Point, and Air Force.[5] Other Highland Park graduates have studied at Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, and other institutions.

The Highlander Band's performance includes making its first-ever UIL State Marching Band finals appearance in 2017 where the band made the top ten.[55] Their success continued into 2019 when they earned 2nd place in the UIL State Marching Band finals, marking the highest state placement of the band in its history.[56] The Highlander Band is currently under the direction of Reagan Brumley and Corey Parks.[55]

In the September 1981 issue of Money Magazine, Highland Park was ranked as one of the top twelve public high schools in the United States, and in January 1984 Parade Magazine listed Highland Park as among the top fifteen schools in the United States.[57] In 2008, Highland Park was ranked 15th in Newsweek Magazine's list of the top public high schools in the United States,[58] based on the Challenge Index by Jay Mathews. Highland Park High School has been named a National Blue Ribbon School on two occasions, in 1984-85[59] and again in 2007.[60] In 2012, Highland Park was ranked 8th out of the top 10 high schools in North Texas by Children at Risk, a research and advocacy institute dedicated to helping children. In 2016, Highland Park was named one of "America's Best High Schools" by Newsweek Magazine and earned a spot on U.S. News & World Report's Gold Medal list of top high schools.[5] In 2019, U.S. News & World Report ranked Highland Park the 210th best high school in the U.S. and 35th in Texas.[4]

In 1995, the first Highland Park Literary Festival began as a collaboration between interested parents and the English Department. The event has become an annual festival where HPHS students have enjoyed meeting, working with, and learning from distinguished writers, including George Plimpton, Doug Wright, Michael Chabon, Marion Winik, Scott Simon, Tim O'Brien, Russell Banks, Anchee Min, Billy Collins, Tobias Wolff, and Jamie Ford.[61]

The Park Cities (Highland Park and University Park) are often referred to as "The Bubble."[62]

The Texas Education Agency campus profiles state that the funds spent per student at Highland Park are similar in amount to those spent per student at Woodrow Wilson High School.[63]

The average teacher's salary at HPHS is $60,770 compared to the state average of $51,891.[53]

According to The Dallas Morning News, in 2005 the high school's ethnic makeup was about 99% white.[62] By 2014, that number dropped to 90.3% of the graduating class being white. In 2015, 89.1% of the graduating class was white.[64] In the 2015–16 school year, 88.4% of the Highland Park High School student body was white.[53]

In the 2010–11 school year HPHS had no low income students.[65] By the 2015–16 school year, that number remained at 0.0% economically disadvantaged students for the entire District.[52] In 2010–11, 7.9% of the students were considered "at risk,"[65] but in 2015–16 that rose to 11.4%.[52] About 80% of students partake in extracurricular activities, and over 50% partake in athletic teams.

By 2011 a The Dallas Morning News report stated that 93% of HPHS students were "college-ready" (ready to attend post-secondary educational institutions).[65]

Although students are only required to complete 50 hours of community service to graduate, the graduating class of 2017 averaged 150 hours per senior.[5]

• Pierce Brown, science fiction author
• Donald D. Clayton, prize-winning astrophysicist, SMU Distinguished Alumnus, American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellow
• James Cronin, 1980 Nobel Prize-winning physicist
• Carol Hall, composer and lyricist
• Angie Harmon, actress, star of TV series Rizzoli & Isles, Law & Order
• Robert H. Jackson, Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer of Lee Harvey Oswald's assassination
• Wendy Kopp, founder of Teach for America
• Dorothy Malone, actress, 1956 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
• Jayne Mansfield, actress, star of films including Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, Promises! Promises!
• L. Lowry Mays, Chairman of the Joint Board, National Association of Broadcasters, Chairman, Board of Regents, Texas A&M University
• Stephanie March, actress, star of TV series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
• Holland Roden, actress, star of TV series Teen Wolf[66]
• Megan Mylan, 2008 Academy Award-winning documentarian
• Willis Alan Ramsey, Class of 1969, singer/songwriter
• Phillip Sandifer, 1977 singer/songwriter
• Stark Sands, film, stage and television actor
• Elliot See, Gemini Project astronaut, killed in the 1966 NASA T-38 crash
• Doug Wright, Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning playwright
• Robert M. Young, Darwin scholar and Kleinian psychotherapist[67]

• Fred Benners, quarterback for NFL's New York Giants
• David Browning, 1952 Olympic gold medalist in 3-meter springboard diving
• Harrison Frazar, professional golfer
• Mike Heath, swimmer, three gold medals and one silver at 1984 Olympics
• Shaun Jordan, two-time Olympic gold medalist with 400-meter free-relay teams at 1988 Olympics and 1992 Olympics
• Clayton Kershaw, World Series Champion (2020) pitcher for Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-time Cy Young Award winner (2011, '13, '14), National League MVP (2014)[68]
• Hank Kuehne, PGA Tour golfer and 1998 U.S. Amateur champion
• Kelli Kuehne, LPGA golfer and two-time U.S. Women's Amateur champion
• Trip Kuehne, 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur Golf champion and 3-time NCAA golf All-American
• Bobby Layne, quarterback, 3-time NFL champion, Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
• Lance McIlhenny, winningest quarterback in Southern Methodist University and Southwest Conference history
• Richard Quick, Auburn University swim coach and 5-time U.S. Olympic coach
• Dave Richards, NFL offensive lineman
• John Roach, quarterback, defensive back and punter for NFL's Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys
• Nick Rose, American football placekicker
• Kyle Rote Jr., NASL soccer star, son of Kyle Rote
• Scottie Scheffler, PGA golfer[69]
• Anthony Schlegel, former linebacker for NFL's New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals
• Bo Schultz, baseball pitcher[68]
• Daniel Sepulveda, two-time Ray Guy Award winner, punter for Pittsburgh Steelers
• Matthew Stafford, former quarterback for Georgia Bulldogs, starting quarterback for Los Angeles Rams, highest-paid player in NFL history (as of August 2017)
• Doak Walker, 1948 Heisman Trophy winner, College and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
• Kyle Williams, offensive tackle for Seattle Seahawks
• Chris Young, MLB pitcher for 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals

• James A Baker, Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, 1995–2002.
• Chris Bell, US House of Representatives, 25th Congressional District, 2003–05
• Bill Clements, Governor of Texas, 1979–83, 1987–91
• John N. Leedom, Texas state senator from Dallas County, 1981–96
• Tom Price, judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, 1997–2015; judge of the Texas 282nd Court, 1987–97[70]
• Starke Taylor, Mayor of Dallas, 1983–87, cotton investor

• John Hinckley, Jr., would-be assassin of President Ronald Reagan[71]
• Trevor Rees-Jones, billionaire founder and chairman of Chief Oil and Gas[72]
• George Seay, businessman, co-founder and CEO of Annandale Capital, philanthropist and conservative political activist