Ruston High School

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Ruston High School
Front view of Ruston, LA, High School IMG 3837.JPG
Front entrance to Ruston High School in 2010.
Address
Ruston High School
900 Bearcat Drive

,
Louisiana, 71270

United States
Information
Type4-year, Public high school
MottoFirmly Founded
Established1921 building built 1939
School boardLincoln Parish School Board
DirectorAthletic Director, Jerrod Baugh
PrincipalDaniel Gressett
Staff99.97 (FTE) [1]
Years taught9-12
Enrollment1,310 (2024–2025) [1]
Student to teacher ratio12.77 [1]
Classes offeredTraditional, Project Based Learning
Hours in school day8
Classrooms350-450
CampusRuston High School
Campus sizeSmall
Color(s)Red, white and grey    
Fight song On, On You Bearcats!
AthleticsBaseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Powerlifting, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Track & Field, Volleyball
Athletics conference LHSAA District 2-5A
Mascot Bearcats
Rivals Neville High School
West Monroe High School
Ouachita Parish High School
PublicationChatterbox Newspaper,Bearcat Nation Network, Radio
YearbookThe Resume
Website RustonHigh.LincolnSchools.org
Ruston High School
USA Louisiana location map.svg
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Location900 Bearcat Drive, Ruston, Louisiana
Coordinates 32°32′05″N92°39′01″W / 32.5348°N 92.65022°W / 32.5348; -92.65022
Area7 acres (2.8 ha)
Built1939
Built byCaldwell Brothers & Hart
ArchitectJ.W. Smith & Associates
Architectural style Art Deco
NRHP reference No. 92001335 [2]
Added to NRHPOctober 8, 1992
Ruston High School Front Steps c.1970 Ruston High School main steps 1969.jpg
Ruston High School Front Steps c.1970
Ruston High School Front steps 1963-64 Ruston High School Main steps 1962.jpg
Ruston High School Front steps 1963-64
Ruston High School 1962
Ruston High School Front view Ruston High School Postcard c.1962.jpg
Ruston High School 1962
Ruston High School Front view Ruston High School 2020.jpg
Ruston High School Front view

Ruston High School is a four-year public high school located in Lincoln Parish School District of Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It was founded in 1921, and the current high school was built in 1939 near the campus of Louisiana Tech University.

Contents

Background

The 7 acres (2.8 ha) campus of Ruston High School consists of two buildings, which were added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 8, 1992. [2] [3] [4]

The mascot is the Bearcats, with the school colors being red, white, and gray.[ citation needed ] Black students were first admitted in 1970.[ citation needed ] Ruston High School also serves as a memorial to the survivors of the Gulf War. [5]

Ruston High School 1968 Ruston High School 1963.jpg
Ruston High School 1968

Athletics

Ruston High Athletics competes in the LHSAA. The Bearcats compete in the highest classification in Louisiana (5A) and participates in District 2-5A.

The Bearcats play in T.L. James Field at Hoss Garrett Stadium, located across the street from Ruston High School.

Championships

Football championships

Jimmy Childress

LHSAA Hall of Fame Head Coach Jimmy Childress (1932-2015) was head coach at Ruston High School for eleven seasons (1979 to 1990). [8] He led his alma mater to a 131–27 (.829) record and four state championships in 1982, 1986, 1988, and 1990. [8] His 1990 team also won a national championship. [8] As a player, he was on the 1947 state championship football team. [8] He was an assistant football coach at Neville High School in Monroe from 1958 to 1972 helping the school to win four state championships and was later head coach at Carroll High School in Monroe in 1973 and at the private Cedar Creek School in Ruston from 1976 to 1978. [8] He also coached at the college level at Northeastern Louisiana University from 1974 to 1976. [8] In 2001, he was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame. [8]

Childress played football and received his undergraduate degree at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, then known as Northeast Louisiana State College, and obtained his graduate degree at Louisiana Tech University. [9]

Radio

The school owns a radio station, KBNF-LP (101.3 FM, "Bearcat Radio"), founded in 2014, which broadcasts to the Ruston area with a 80s classic hits format. The broadcast license is held by the Lincoln Parish School Board. [10] Ruston High School is one of two high schools in the state of Louisiana with a student radio program broadcasting to the Ruston area.

Notable alumni

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Ruston High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
  2. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  3. "Ruston High School" (PDF). State of Louisiana's Division of Historic Preservation. Retrieved August 9, 2018. with four photos and two maps
  4. National Register Staff (June 1992). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Ruston High School". National Park Service . Retrieved August 9, 2018. With 14 photos from 1992.
  5. "Ruston High School Alumni Association". Archived from the original on January 30, 2023."History of Ruston High School." Ruston High School Alumni.
  6. Boatright, T. Scott (September 16, 2021). "Undefeated 1990 Bearcats to be honored during RHS Homecoming festivities". Lincoln Parish Journal. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
  7. Dietrich, Aaron; Murray, Megan; Fairbairn, Brendon (December 10, 2023). "Ruston wins first state championship since 1990". KNOE. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Former Ruston High football coach Jimmy 'Chick' Childress dies". nola.com. August 4, 2015. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  9. "Jimmy "chick" Childress". The Monroe News-Star. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  10. "Cade Gibson Stats & Scouting Report". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved April 20, 2025.