St. Petersburg High School

St. Petersburg High School
Address
2501 5th Avenue North St. Petersburg , Florida United States
Information
Type	Public secondary
Motto	Loyalty and Service to God, Country and Home
Established	1898
School district	Pinellas County Schools
Principal	Darlene Lebo
Teaching staff	83.00 (FTE) [1]
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	1,710 (2023-2024) [1]
Student to teacher ratio	20.60 [1]
Color(s)	Green & White / Black (unofficial)
Mascot	Green Devil
Accreditation	Florida State Department of Education
Yearbook	No-So-We-Ea
Website	Official website

St. Petersburg High School, founded in 1898, is a secondary school in the Pinellas County School District in St. Petersburg, Florida. The school's current building, a historic landmark, was built in 1926. It was designed by Missouri architect William B. Ittner. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The school was billed as the nation's first million dollar high school. ^[2] The school previously occupied several other historic locations around St. Petersburg, including a location at Mirror Lake (1919–1926). ^[3]

The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme at St. Petersburg High School is the oldest in Florida, IB school number 250 in the world. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

Effective July 1, 2017, former assistant principal Darlene Lebo was promoted to principal, succeeding Al Bennett who was promoted to become the Pinellas County School District's Director of Athletics, Pre-K-12 Physical Education, Health Education Programs, and School Wellness.

The school currently has 2,013 students enrolled.

Academics awards

Central High School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	St. Petersburg, Florida
Coordinates	27°46′40″N82°40′6″W / 27.77778°N 82.66833°W / 27.77778; -82.66833
Built	1926
Architect	William B. Ittner
NRHP reference No.	84000946
Added to NRHP	August 1, 1984

• A 2003 Newsweek magazine survey of the top 100 high schools in the United States placed St. Pete High as #25. In 2005 (based on 2004 numbers), the survey ranked the school as #35. In 2006 (based on 2005 numbers), the Newsweek survey ranked the school as #63. The ranking is based on the number of IB or Advanced Placement (AP) exams given at a school divided by the number of graduating seniors.
• Was ranked as the #2 high school in the Tampa Bay area by the Tampa Bay Times in 2013, behind only Pine View School. ^[7]

Traditions

The campus of the school is also host to a weekly fresh market event. The Kenwood Sunday Market is held from 10 am - 2pm each Sunday, year round. The event is brought to you by Tampa Bay Markets. The focus for the market is fresh, green, renewable and hand made.

School renovations

Fire

On August 31, 2012, around 4:00 AM, a fire started on the roof above the Auditorium (Theatre). The Fire later spread into the Auditorium and then crept into an equipment room. The School incurred over one million dollars worth of smoke and water damage. The school's auditorium was reopened to all students on December 11, 2012, after all damage was either replaced or repaired. ^{[8] [9]}

Renovation project

During 2019–2020 school year, the entire campus was upgraded as part of the $32-million project. ^[10]

Notable alumni

Zac MacMath

• Jacob Barnes – Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher
• Charlie Crist (1974) – 44th governor of Florida (2007–11), Florida's attorney general from 2003 to 2006, a U.S. Representative from Florida's 13th district from 2017 to 2022.
• Jim Haslam (1948) – founder of Pilot Corporation
• Ben Hayes (1975) – MLB pitcher ^[11]
• Charles Horton – football player
• Joe S. Lawrie (1932) – U.S. Army major general ^[12]
• Zac MacMath – goalkeeper in Major League Soccer
• Milt May (1968) – MLB player ^[13]
• David Mendelblatt – yachtsman and ophthalmologist
• Mark Mendelblatt – yachtsman, silver medalist at 1999 Pan American Games and 2004 Laser World Championships
• Shannon O'Donnell, (2002) – National Geographic Traveler of the Year
• Will Packer – American film producer ^[14]
• Grady Sutton – actor ^[15]
• Bill Young – U.S. Congressman from 1971 to 2013

Former principals

• Al Bennett (2006–2017) ^[16]
• Dr. Julie Janssen (2003–2006)
• Linda Benware (2000–2003) ^[17]
• Thomas Petit (1995–1999)
• Barbara Broughton (1991–1995)
• William Grey (1983–1991)
• Vyrle Davis Davis (1973–1983) (also first African-American area superintendent in the United States). ^[18]
• Ronald R. Hallam (1969–1973)
• Fred "Doc" Geneva (1967–1969)
• Douglas McBriarty (1964–1967)
• Dr. Albert J. Geiger (1934–1947)

References

1. "St. Petersburg High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
2. "Urban Design & Historic Preservation Division: Local Historic Landmarks – St. Petersburg Central High School". City of St. Petersburg. Archived from the original on November 11, 2007. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
3. "Urban Design & Historic Preservation Division: Local Historic Landmarks – St. Petersburg High School at Mirror Lake". City of St. Petersburg. Archived from the original on September 14, 2008. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
4. Winchester, Donna (September 1, 2005). "Baccalaureate leader heads to NYC offices". St. Petersburg Times . p. 1, North Pinellas.
5. "St. Petersburg High School International Baccalaureate Program".
6. "St. Petersburg High School". International Baccalaureate Organization.
7. "The Complete List of the 1,000 Top U.S. Schools". Newsweek . August 5, 2005. Archived from the original on August 10, 2005.
8. "Fire cancels classes, does over $1M damage at St. Petersburg High School". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
9. "Classes canceled after fire at St. Petersburg High". www.suncoastnews.com. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
10. "Groundbreaking to Kickoff St. Petersburg HS Renovation Project".
11. Banks, Don (April 22, 1985). "Coming around". St. Petersburg Times . p. 4. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
12. "Joe Lawrie Will Attend Louisiana State Next Fall". St. Petersburg Times . St. Petersburg, FL. April 22, 1932. p. Section 2, Page 1 – via Newspapers.com.
13. Topkin, Marc (March 31, 2002). "Meet the Rays". St. Petersburg Times . p. 6X Sports; Baseball 2002: Play Time; Rays 2002.
14. Thornton, Cedric 'BIG CED' (May 29, 2014). "Will Packer Wiki: 10 Facts About the Movie Producer". Black Enterprise. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
15. "OBITUARY: Grady Sutton". The Independent. September 25, 1995. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
16. Wright, Colleen (May 22, 2017). "Controversial Pick for Next Principal of St. Petersburg High Put on Hold". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved May 23, 2017.
17. "Neighborhoodtimes: A fond farewell for a favorite principal". www.sptimes.com. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
18. Pioneer, educator honored. Tampa Bay Times. September 7, 2013. 1B.

External links

• School homepage
• Satellite Photo 2004
• St. Pete High history