Bridgeport High School (West Virginia)

Bridgeport High School
Address
515 Johnson Ave. Bridgeport , Harrison County , West Virginia 26330 United States
Coordinates	39°17′25″N80°15′47″W / 39.29028°N 80.26306°W / 39.29028; -80.26306
Information
School type	Public, high school
Motto	Roll Tribe
Founded	1969 (present location)
School district	Harrison County Schools
Superintendent	Dora Stutler
Principal	Matthew Egbert DeMotto
Assistant Principals	Mark James Jones Renee Mathews
Staff	69
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	822 (2019–20) [1]
Language	English
Color(s)	Red and white
Athletics conference	Big Ten Conference
Mascot	Indian
Rival	Robert C. Byrd High School, Fairmont Senior High School
Feeder schools	Bridgeport Middle School
Website	www.harcoboe.net/o/bhs

Bridgeport High School (BHS) is a comprehensive four-year public high school located in the city of Bridgeport, West Virginia, United States, in Harrison County. It operates as part of the county of the Harrison County School District.

The current BHS building opened in 1969 and sits on the 21-acre (8.5 ha) campus. Several major additions have since been added to accommodate the increasing enrollment. The first was completed in 1981. The second addition was completed in 1992, and included the two state of the art computer labs. That brought the building to the total 98,000 square feet (9,100 m²) it occupies.

The current principal is Matthew Egbert Demotto

Awards and recognition

During the 2005–06 school year, the Bridgeport High School was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, ^[2] the highest award the American school system can receive. ^{[3] [4]}

In the academic competitions for the 2006–2007 school year, the BHS took the first place (in some form) in the state for the Science Bowl, the Quiz-Bowl and the Scholastic Chess.

In 2007 the Science Bowl team won the first-place position in the National Science Bowl Hydrogen Fuel Cell Model Car Challenge King of the Hill administered by the United States Department of Energy. ^[5]

During the 2007–2008 school year the school was ranked as the number one high school in the state of West Virginia by the WV Report, and had eight National Merit Scholars. ^[6]

Feeding pattern

Bridgeport High School students come from a three-feeder school area. Johnson Elementary School and Bridgeport Middle School are located adjacent to BHS on a campus, and the third feeder is Simpson Elementary. Students enrolled in these four schools live in Bridgeport, Anmoore, and surrounding unincorporated areas, such as Quiet Dell, Johnstown, Maple Lake, Corbin Branch, Oral Lake, Brushy Fork, and Romines Mills.

Athletics and academics

Bridgeport High School has a total of 50 state championships in academics and athletics, and one national championship. It has three state championships in academics in Science Bowl, which also won Nationals, T.E.A.M.S (1), and Quiz Bowl (1). It has 47 state championships in athletics in football (10), boys' golf (5), cheerleading (4), girls' swimming (3), boys' basketball (2), baseball (8), boys' cross country (3), girls' soccer (1), girls' basketball (1), boys' swimming (2), girls' tennis (1), boys' tennis (1), boys' track and field (2), girls' track and field (3), and girls' volleyball (2).

Bridgeport has also placed state runner-up a total of 38 times.

The school also participates in softball, danceline and wrestling, but it is yet to win or place runner-up in any of these sports.

Bridgeport was scheduled to move from competing in the AA to the AAA class starting in the 2020–2021 school year. ^[1]

State championships

Bridgeport West Virginia state championship history [7] [8] [9]
Boys' sports	State titles	Girls' sports	State titles
Baseball	1993, 2000, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019	Softball
Basketball	1993, 2001	Basketball	2013
Cross country	2013, 2014, 2016	Cross country
Golf	1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2003	Cheerleading	1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2019, 2021
Football	1955, 1972, 1979, 1986, 1988, 2000, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019	Volleyball	2018, 2024
Soccer		Soccer	2012
Swimming	2010, 2019	Swimming	1999, 2000, 2008
Tennis	2015	Tennis	1995
Track & field	2014, 2018	Track & field	2014, 2016, 2018
Lacrosse †
Wrestling		Danceline
Boys' total	33	Girls' total	15
†Lacrosse is yet to be a sanctioned sport.

Boys' track and field (2):

2014 (AA) 2018 (AA)

Girls' track and field (3):

2014 (AA) 2016 (AA) 2018 (AA)

Football (10):

2019 (AA) - 21–14, Bluefield
2015 (AA) - 39–0, Tolsia
2014 (AA) - 43–7, Frankfort
2013 (AA) - 14–13, Wayne
2000 (AA) - 14–6, Wayne
1988 (AA) - 29–28, Winfield (4OT)
1986 (AA) - 10–7, Tucker County
1979 (AAA) - 20–7, St. Albans
1972 (AAA) - 16–14, Dupont
1955 (A)* - 39–13, Webster Springs

* 1955-1957 WV divided schools into three classes, AA, A, & B. These were changed in 1958 to AAA, AA, A. The BHS 1955 title is often confused to be a small school title, when in fact it was a medium-sized school title.

Quiz Bowl (1):

2013

Boys' cross country (3):

2013 (AA-A)
2014 (AA-A)
2016 (AA-A)

Girls' soccer (1):

2012 (AA) 3–2, Fairmont Senior

Girls' basketball (1):

2013 (AA) 44–27, Westside

Boys' swimming (2):

2019
2010

Girls' swimming (3):

2008
2000
1999

Science Bowl (2):

2007 2010 ^[10]

Golf (5):

2003 (AA)
1994 (AA-A)
1993 (AA-A)
1992 (AA-A)
1990 (AA-A)

Cheerleading (5):

2019 (AA)
2001 (AA)
1998 (AA)
1996 (AAA)
1995 (AA)

Boys' basketball (2):

2001 (AA) - 68–57, Tug Valley
1993 (AA) - 59–50, Oceana

Baseball (8):

2019 (AA) 5–2, Frankfort
2018 (AA) 17–15, Wayne
2017 (AA) 14–3, Weir (6 innings)
2016 (AA) 9–4, Pike View
2015 (AA) 5–0, Chapmanville
2014 (AA) - 5–2, Independence
2000 (AA) - 7–2, Wyoming East
1993 (AA) - 11–4, Pineville

Girls' tennis (1):

1995 (AA-A)

Boys' tennis (1):

2015 (AA)

Girls' volleyball (2):

2018 (AA) defeated Philip Barbour in 5 sets.

2024 (AAA) defeated Herbert Hoover in 4 sets.

Runner's up

Baseball (3):

2010 (AAA) - 0–6, Nitro
1994 (AA) - 0–1, Wayne
1992 (AA) - 1–2, Wayne

Boys' Basketball (1):

1994 (AA) - 61–68, Oceana

Boys' cross country (1):

2015 (AA-A)

Girls' cross country (1):

2018 (AA)

Girls' basketball (1):

2012 (AAA) 47–52, Greenbrier East

Cheerleading (11):

2014 (AA)
2013 (AA)
2007 (AAA)
2006 (AAA)
1999 (AA)
1997 (AA)
1995 (AA)
1994 (AA)
1993 (AA)
1992 (AA)
1991 (AA)
1990 (AA-A)

Football (2)*:

2001 (AA) 7-21, Poca
2020 (AAA)

* Bridgeport was scheduled to play South Charleston for the AAA state championship, but COVID-19 numbers were high in Harrison County and the game was cancelled. South Charleston was awarded the title by forfeit.

Golf (3):

1989 (AA-A)
1988 (AA-A)
2014 (AA)

Girls' soccer (2):

2013 (AA) 0–1, Sissonville
2014 (AA) 0–5, Charleston Catholic

Boys' swimming (5):

2013
2012
2011
2009
2008

Girls' swimming (3):

2019
2007
2002

Boys' tennis (1):

2013 (AA)

Girls' tennis (1):

2013 (AA)

Girls' track and field (3):

2019 (AA)
2015 (AA)
2013 (AA)

Volleyball (1):

2016 (AA) (Philip Barbour, 3 sets)

Controversy

The school was the subject of controversy over a print of artist Warner Sallman's portrait, Head of Christ, that has hung outside the principal's office since the 1970s. Two parents filed a lawsuit against the school in federal district court in Clarksburg, charging the principal, superintendent, and school board with endorsing Christianity over other religions. The parents were represented by the West Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The school board accepted an offer from the Alliance Defense Fund to represent the school board and the school's superintendent and principal. ^[11]

The portrait was stolen from the school on August 17, 2006, after someone broke a window and snatched the picture. The person broke through a window located in the Tech Ed department of the building. The portrait had not been located and the perpetrators were not identified as of November 2006, despite fact that video surveillance footage, fingerprints and DNA evidence were identified at the scene. ^[12]

On October 6, 2006, the Harrison County School District Board of Education agreed to drop their defense of the case and settle with the case with the ACLU. The settlement ensured that school officials would not restore the portrait or post any other unconstitutional pictures, paintings, posters or other items with religious content. ^{[13] [14] [15]}

The school also gained national attention in February 2009 when a theater production of the high school version of the musical Rent was canceled due to homosexual content and other mature themes. ^[16]

Notable alumni

• Babe Barna, former Major League Baseball outfielder ^[17]
• Nancy Jacobs, Maryland State Senator ^[18]
• Tim Lindsey, former long snapper for the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL
• Harrison Musgrave, baseball player ^[19]
• Kelli Ward, former Arizona Republican Party chairwoman ^[20]

References

1. Gaudet, Dillon (22 November 2019). "New WVSSAC classifications will send Bridgeport to AAA starting in 2020". wboy.com. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
2. 2006 Blue Ribbon Schools, accessed December 9, 2006
3. CIBA cited as one of the best by Education Department Archived August 19, 2007, at the Wayback Machine , Journal Inquirer , November 16, 2006. "The Blue Ribbon award is given only to schools that reach the top 10 percent of their state's testing scores over several years or show significant gains in student achievement. It is considered the highest honor a school can achieve."
4. Viers Mill School Wins Blue Ribbon; School Scored High on Statewide Test; The Washington Post , September 29, 2005. "For their accomplishments, all three schools this month earned the status of Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor the U.S. Education Department can bestow upon a school."
5. "High School Teams from Connecticut and West Virginia Win DOE’s National Science Bowl Hydrogen Fuel Cell Model Car Challenge" Archived 2009-07-18 at the Wayback Machine , United States Department of Energy press release dated April 30, 2007. Accessed October 17, 2007. "Teams of high school students from Edwin O. Smith High School in Storrs, Connecticut and Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, West Virginia won first place in their events today at the annual U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Science Bowl Hydrogen Fuel Cell Model Car Challenge at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center."
6. "Hotmail, Outlook en Skype inloggen - Laatste nieuws - MSN Nederland".^{[ dead link ]}
7. WVSSAC Archived 2010-09-06 at the Wayback Machine
8. WV Lacrosse
9. "Welcome to the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission's Home Page". Archived from the original on 2010-09-06. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
10. "Office of Science" (PDF).
11. ‘Why can’t other people respect my religion?’ - Queen: Battle over Jesus portrait about religious liberty, Times-West Virginian , August 20, 2006
12. No arrests made three months after Jesus painting theft Archived 2011-06-11 at the Wayback Machine , Charleston Daily Mail , November 30, 2006
13. W.Va. board abandons fight for Christ portrait, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , October 7, 2006.
14. Americans United Succeeds In Challenge To Religious Display At West Virginia School: Watchdog Group Lauds School Officials For Agreeing Not To Display Picture Of Jesus Or Other Unconstitutional Religious Displays Archived 2006-11-20 at the Wayback Machine , Americans United for the Separation of Church and State press release dated October 6, 2006
15. ACLU Calls Bridgeport High School Settlement a Victory For Freedom of Religion Archived 2007-08-05 at the Wayback Machine , American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia, press release dated October 20, 2006
16. Tamer ‘Rent’ Is Too Wild for Some Schools, The New York Times , February 20, 2009.
17. SABR Biography of Babe Barna, by Bill Nowlin
18. Nancy Jacobs profile, Maryland Senate. Accessed June 21, 2007. "Born in Charleston, West Virginia, October 27, 1951. Attended Bridgeport High School; West Virginia University, B.S. (journalism & speech), 1973."
19. Carey, Greg. "Musgrave's rehab going well after Tommy John surgery" . Retrieved March 27, 2017.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
20. "Former Bridgeport High School valedictorian hopes to unseat Senator John McCain". 30 May 2016.

External links

• Bridgeport High School web page
• National Center for Education Statistics data for Bridgeport High School
• Bridgeport High School online paper
• Cross country and track team official site for Bridgeport High School