Traverse City Central High School

Traverse City Central High School
Address
1150 Milliken Drive Traverse City , Michigan 49686 United States
Coordinates	44°46′4″N85°35′19″W / 44.76778°N 85.58861°W / 44.76778; -85.58861
Information
Other names	Central, Traverse City Central, TCC, TCCHS, CHS
Type	Public, coeducational high school
Established	1853;172 years ago (1853) (as the Central School) 1959 (Traverse City Senior High School) 1997 (Central High School)
School district	Traverse City Area Public Schools
Superintendent	John VanWagoner
Principal	Ben Berger
Staff	57.79 (on an FTE basis) [1]
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	1,324 (2023-2024) [1]
Student to teacher ratio	22.91 [1]
Color(s)	Black   Gold
Fight song	"Come On, Fight!"
Athletics	MHSAA Class A; D-2
Athletics conference	Big North Conference Saginaw Valley League (football only)
Team name	Trojans
Rival	Traverse City West Senior High School
Accreditation	AdvancED commission [2]
Publication	Front & Central
Newspaper	Black & Gold Quarterly (BGQ)
Yearbook	Pines
Feeder schools	Elementary schools: Central Grade Cherry Knoll Courtade Eastern Traverse Heights Middle school: Traverse City East
Website	www.tcaps.net/schools

Traverse City Central High School (also known as Central High School, TC Central, or simply TCC) is a public high school in Traverse City, Michigan. It is one of two comprehensive high schools in the Traverse City Area Public Schools district. ^[3] It is the second-largest high school in Northern Michigan, behind rival Traverse City West Senior High School.

History

The first public school in Traverse City opened in 1853. In 1877, it was moved to a new building called the Central School, built at Seventh and Pine Streets, which was rebuilt as a brick building in 1886. ^{[4] [5] [6]} In 1934, the Central school building burned down, ^{[7] [8]} and students were relocated to the nearby Perry Hannah House while the school was being rebuilt. ^{[9] [10]}

In 1959, grades 10 through 12 moved into a new building called Traverse City Senior High School ^{[11] [12]} at its present-day location, on grounds formerly owned by the Northwestern Michigan College.

In 1978, 1985 and 1988, the Trojans of Traverse City Senior High School won the MHSAA Class A football championships. ^[13]

In 1997, because of overcrowding at the school, which had become one of the largest high schools in Michigan, a second high school was built, and opened in early 1998. The new high school became Traverse City West Senior High School, and the existing one was renamed to Traverse City Central High School. ^[14]

From 1997 to 2022, Traverse City Central's athletic programs were part of the Big North Conference, which was founded as a collection of Northern Michigan's largest public high schools after Traverse City's school split. However, in 2021, both Central and rival West made the decision to move football programs to the Saginaw Valley League in 2022, but remain in the Big North for all other offered sports. ^[15]

In 2021, a group of white students at Traverse City Central held a mock slave auction on Snapchat where they sold fellow students of color. An attempt by the school board to pass an equity resolution condemning racism met with a fierce backlash from white parents, who falsely claimed that it was a means of indoctrinating students with critical race theory. ^[16]

In October 2023, construction began on a new "Innovation & Manufacturing Center" at the school, focusing on STEM education. The new wing is expected to open by the end of 2024. ^{[17] [18]}

The original Traverse City High School from 1937 to 1959. Today, this building houses Central Grade School, a TCAPS elementary school.

Demographics

The demographic breakdown of the 1,324 students enrolled in 2023-24 was: ^[19]

• Male – 52.9%
• Female – 47.1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native – 1.5%
• Asian – 1.3%
• Black – 1.2%
• Hispanic – 3.4%
• Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander – 0.2%
• White – 88.9%
• Multiracial – 3.5%

Additionally, 361 students (27.3%) were eligible for reduced-price or free lunch.

Athletics

Traverse City Central's sports teams are known as the Trojans. The school is part of the Big North Conference for all sports except football, which plays in the Saginaw Valley League and is considered a Class A school by MHSAA. ^[20]

In 1978, 1985 and 1988, the Trojans of Traverse City Senior High School won the MHSAA Class A football championships. ^[13] In 2021, the Trojans made it to the MHSAA Division 2 Championship round at Ford Field, but ultimately lost to the Warren De La Salle Pilots. ^[21]

Rivalries

Traverse City Central has had an intense crosstown rivalry with the Traverse City West Titans since 1997. ^[22] Prior to then, the Traverse City Trojans had an intense rivalry with the Alpena Wildcats. ^[23]

Notable alumni

• Mark Brammer, former NFL tight end ^[24]
• Demas T. Craw, United States Army Air Force officer ^[25]
• Eric Daigh, artist ^[26]
• Kevin Elsenheimer, judge and politician ^[27]
• Alden G. Glauch, former major general of the United States Air Force ^[28]
• Tom Kozelko, former NBA player ^[29]
• Andrea Lynn Kritcher, nuclear engineer and physicist ^[30]
• Dan Majerle, former all-star NBA player ^[31]
• William Milliken, former Governor of Michigan ^{[32] [33]}
• Suzy Merchant, MSU Girls Basketball Coach ^[34]
• Andy Pascoe, baseball player and coach ^[35]
• Thomas G. Power, judge ^[36]
• Autumn Rademacher, assistant basketball coach at University of Nebraska Omaha ^[37]
• Zach Redmond, Colorado Avalanche Defenseman ^[38]
• Alma Routsong, lesbian fiction novelist ^[39]
• Scott Schwenter, professor of Hispanic linguistics at Ohio State University
• Harold Sherman, author ^[40]
• Ezra Winter, muralist ^[41]
• Joshua Burnham, football player for the University of Norte Dame

References

1. "Central High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved January 12, 2025.
2. NCA-CASI. "NCA-Council on Accreditation and School Improvement". Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
3. "TC Central High School - High Schools - Schools - District Home". www.tcaps.net. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
4. Sprague, Elvin L.; Smith, Mrs. George N. (1903). Sprague's History of Grand Traverse and Leelanau Counties, Michigan. B.F. Bowen. pp. 267–271.
5. "Historical Photo". www.record-eagle.com. September 19, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
6. "TCAPS Alumni Network Newsletter". web3.tcaps.net. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
7. "Traverse City's Biggest School Fire: When and Where?". July 9, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
8. "Looking Back On Education History In Traverse City". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
9. "The Awesome Mitten-The Perry Hannah House". Awesome Mitten. July 27, 2012. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
10. "Rolling The Clock Back 125 Years At The Perry Hannah House". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
11. "1959 Traverse City High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
12. "1960 Traverse City High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
13. "Traverse City Central Trojans Michigan High School Football Scores, Schedules, and Analytics". michigan-football.com. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
14. "When Trojans Became Titans". The Ticker: Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
15. "TC West, Central Set to Join Saginaw Valley League for Football". MISportsNow. September 15, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
16. Natanson, Hannah (July 28, 2021). "It started with a mock 'slave trade' and a school resolution against racism. Now a war over critical race theory is tearing this small town apart". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved October 10, 2024.
17. "Why TCAPS Is Investing Millions Of Dollars In New High School STEM Facilities". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
18. Newsroom, UpNorthLive (October 29, 2023). "TCAPS seeks to expand STEM programs with new innovation centers". WPBN. Retrieved February 10, 2024.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
19. "Search for Public Schools - Central High School (263387006949)". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
20. "MHSAA > Schools". www.mhsaa.com. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
21. Wilson, Wright. "Michigan high school football Division 2 final: Warren De La Salle cuts down T.C. Central". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
22. Cook, James (October 20, 2022). "TC Patriot Game between Central and West a not-so-regular season finale". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
23. [e-mail], BRETT A. SOMMERS (December 20, 2017). "'Tis the Givens season". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
24. "Mark Brammer Stats". pro-football-reference.com.
25. "Colonel Demus T. Craw Medal of Honor Memorial – Military History of the Upper Great Lakes" . Retrieved August 22, 2020.
26. "The Push-Pin Man". www.northernexpress.com. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
27. "Michigan Legislator Details - Kevin Elsenheimer". Library of Michigan.
28. "MAJOR GENERAL ALDEN G. GLAUCH > U.S. Air Force > Biography Display". www.af.mil. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
29. "Tom Kozelko". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
30. "TC Native Named One of TIME's 100 Most Influential People". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
31. "Dan Majerle". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 24, 2009.
32. [e-mail], Patti Brandt Burgess (January 4, 2020). "Newsmakers: Longest-serving Michigan Gov. William Milliken dies". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
33. "Michigan Legislative Biography". Library of Michigan.
34. "Suzy Merchant". msuspartans.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
35. "Andy Pascoe Player Card - The Baseball Cube". www.thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
36. "Grand Traverse County, MI". www.grandtraverse.org. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
37. "Autumn Rademacher - Assistant Coach - Staff Directory". University of Nebraska Omaha Athletics. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
38. "Zach Redmond". ferrisstatebulldogs.com/. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
39. "Elma L Routsong" in the U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999 (School Name: Traverse City Senior High School; Year: 1942).
40. "biography – Harold Sherman" . Retrieved August 22, 2020.
41. "Detroit's Guardian Building - The Record-Eagle". photos.record-eagle.com. Retrieved August 22, 2020.

External links

• Central High School Website