Ware County High School

Ware County High School
Ware County High School in 2015
Address
700 Victory Drive Waycross , Georgia 31503-8856 United States
Coordinates	31°12′07″N82°22′59″W / 31.202°N 82.383°W / 31.202; -82.383
Information
Type	Public
Established	1958
School district	Ware County School District
Principal	Buford Kellogg
Teaching staff	116.90 (FTE) [1]
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	1,618 (2023–2024) [1]
Student to teacher ratio	13.84 [1]
Color(s)	Green and Gold
Athletics conference	GHSA Class AAAAA Region 1
Mascot	Gator
Team name	Gators
Rivals	Coffee High School
Yearbook	Echo
Website	ware.k12.ga.us/ware-county-high-school

Ware County High School is the only public high school in Ware County, Georgia, United States. It is located in the city of Waycross.

History

Ware County High School was formed in 1958 by the merging of Waresboro High School and Wacona High Schools. Expansion occurred in 1993 when the Waycross City Schools dropped their charter and Waycross High was absorbed by Ware County Senior High. In 1994, the doors were opened to a new high school in Ware County. It is located on Victory Drive, and is home to more than 1500 students and 110 faculty members.

Extracurricular activities

• Academic Quiz Bowl Team
• Alpha Delta Science Club
• BETA Club/National Honor Society
• Concert Bands (Wind Ensemble (advanced), Symphonic Band (intermediate), and Concert Band (beginning))
• Chorus (Advanced, Women's, Mixed, and Acappella)
• Drama (One-Act Play and Musical Theatre)
• FBLA
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes
• FCCLA
• FEA (Future Educators of America)
• FFA
• HOSA
• Jazz Band
• JROTC
• Marching Band - with Majorettes, Flag Line, and Dance Team
• Model UN
• Student Council
• TSA (Technology Students' Association)
• Yearbook Staff

Sports offered

• Baseball
• Basketball
• Competitive cheerleading
• Cross country
• Drill team
• Football
• Golf
• Raiders (dissolved for the 2020–2021 school year - reinstated 2021–2022 school year)
• Rifle
• Soccer
• Softball
• Swimming
• Tennis
• Track
• Volleyball
• Wrestling

Sports history

The Ware County Gators high school football team made it to the state AAAA championship game during the 2007 season and the AAAAA championship game during the 2012 season. The Gators lost 20–14 to Northside Warner Robins High School Eagles in 2007 and lost 49–13 to the Gainesville High School Red Elephants in 2012. They challenged Charlie Grisham's Carrollton Trojans for the 1961 A championship, but lost 21–0. It was a rare weekend in that their cross-town rivals, the Waycross Bulldogs, had won the AA State Championship the night before, defeating Rossville 23–7. Head coach Jason Strickland lead the Gators to a GHSA Class 5A state championship in 2022 over the Warner Robins Demons 38-13.

The Gators play at Memorial Stadium.

State titles

• Girls' Basketball (1) - 1964 (2A) ^[2]
• Girls' Golf (1) - 2015(5A), 2022(5A) ^[3]
• Riflery (5) - 1997 (Open), 2017 (Open), 2018 (Open), 2019 (Open), 2022 (Open) ^{[4] [5]}
• Football (1) - 2022(5A) ^[6]

Army program

The school's Army JROTC program is run by SFC Rena Rivere and CW2 Johnson

Notable alumni

• Thomas Castellanos - quarterback for Boston College football
• Leodis McKelvin - former professional football player
• Ernest Jones - professional football player

References

1. "Ware County High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 15, 2024.
2. GHSA Girls Basketball Archive ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
3. GHSA Girls Golf Archive ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
4. GHSA Riflery Archive
5. GHSA 2022 Riflery State Champions
6. GHSA 2022 Football Champions