East Aurora High School

Last updated
East Aurora High School
East Aurora High School.jpg
Address
500 Tomcat Lane

Aurora
,
Illinois
60505

United States
Information
School type Public high school
Opened1867;157 years ago (1867)
(1957 current building)
School district East Aurora Public School District 131
PrincipalMarina Kosak [1]
Teaching staff223.00 (FTE) [2]
Grades 9–12
Gendercoed
Enrollment3,972 (2018-19) [2]
Student to teacher ratio17.81 [2]
Campussuburban
Color(s)  Red
  Black
Fight song "Wave the Flag"
Athletics conference Upstate Eight Conference
Nickname Tomcats
NewspaperThe Auroran
YearbookSpeculum
Website easthigh.d131.org

East Aurora High School, (also known as EAHS or Aurora East High School), is a public, four-year high school located in Kane County, at the corner of Smith Boulevard and Fifth Avenue in Aurora, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois. It is the only high school in East Aurora Public School District 131.

Contents

History

According to "The Educational History of Illinois", private subscription schools were taught by various teachers on the East Side of Aurora starting in 1834. The first class from East Aurora High School - four girls - graduated in 1867. The first high school was built on Center Street, and torn down in the 1960s.

In August 1912, East Aurora High School opened a new, larger building on Jackson Street. The dedication ceremony was attended by the U.S. Commissioner of Education and Illinois Schools Superintendent Francis G. Blair. The total cost of the structure was $225,000, including $25,000 to buy the land. That building is now K.D. Waldo Middle School.

The present East Aurora High School campus opened in 1957. The address for East Aurora High School is 500 Tomcat Lane, in Aurora, IL. Additions were made to the new high school sometime after 1989 school year, adding three stories to the East side of the school for math, science and English. Previous to 1989 there were three stories however a new addition was not put on until after 1988. The new addition is now the freshman classrooms, gym and cafeteria. Currently, construction is being done on the west side of the campus, where the Roy E. Davis stadium will replace the original field.

Tomcats nickname

Through the 1920s, the East High teams did not have an official mascot or nickname. The teams were often referred to as the “Red and Blacks", “East Warriors” or simply “East High”. But by 1934, the high school yearbook referred to the football team as the “Tomcats”. By 1945, all the high school teams had adopted the name. An article in the September 30, 1931, East High Auroran hints that the name was in honor of legendary varsity football coach Glen Thompson, who was known more often as “Tommy”. Thompson had come to East Aurora High School in 1925, and proceeded to resurrect the football team. He was a successful basketball and track coach, and his football teams regularly won conference championships. For decades, the high school teams have been known as the Tomcats and nearly all the East Aurora middle and elementary schools use some sort of cat for their logo and nickname. [3]

Academics

There are Honors and Advanced Placement classes offered in one or more of the following subjects: foreign language, math, science, language arts, social studies and fine arts.

According to the 2012 Illinois State report card, East Aurora had an average composite ACT score of 16.6 and graduated 60.1 percent of its senior class. The average class size is 22.8 students. East Aurora has not made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, a state test part of the No Child Left Behind Act. [4]

The staff is 178 teachers, of whom 60 percent hold an advanced degree. Approximately 250 semester courses by eight major departments are taught at East Aurora. [5]

Athletics

East Aurora has 23 athletic teams - 11 for boys and 12 for girls - which compete in the Upstate Eight Conference and Illinois High School Association. East Aurora's mascot is the Tomcat. Teams include football, tennis, badminton, baseball, softball, bowling, cross country, volleyball, track and field, basketball, soccer and cheerleading.

The following East Aurora teams have finished in the top four of an IHSA-sponsored state tournament or meet:[ citation needed ]

The rivalry between the East Aurora and West Aurora High School football teams is considered the oldest football rivalry in the state, and the sixth-oldest in the nation.[ citation needed ] The teams first met on November 18, 1893. East High won the game 28-0. By 1895, the game was drawing 2,000 fans to Hurd's Island, the neutral area of the Fox River where the two teams played. The game was not played in 1894 or 1897, but the teams met twice in 1896 and 1898. Through 1951, the teams traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day.

The 1938 Tomcats football team is considered the school's best ever. That year, the team went 9-0, and outscored opponents 188-6. West High was the only team to score against East that year.

Activities

East Aurora offers dozens of opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities. Activities include art club, book club, card club, chess club, conservation club, computer gaming club, cooking club, drama, film club, Gay-Straight Alliance, guitar club, heavy metal club, key club, literary magazine, mathletes, music club, National Honor Society, photography, Peace Jam, Scholastic Bowl, student council, Speculum (yearbook), The Auroran (school paper),

The school also offers a wide spectrum of clubs and organizations, including: Literary Magazine, GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), NHS (National Honor Society), GHS (German Honor Society), Music Club, Art Club, FCCLA and DECA.

NJROTC

Navy JROTC Insignia Seal of the Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps.svg
Navy JROTC Insignia

East Aurora is well known for its involvement in the Navy Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps, or NJROTC. The high school has more than 900 students enrolled in the program, making East Aurora largest in the nation.

East Aurora's NJROTC has been the Area 3-West Champions for the past several years. East Aurora has gone to Navy Nationals held in NAS Pensacola, Florida, for the past seven years. East Aurora has won many honors including, Distinguished Unit and 2006 National Color Guard Champions. The East Aurora NJROTC Rifle Team has also had successful years traveling and competing in Colorado, Tennessee and Ohio.[ citation needed ]

Notable alumni

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockhurst High School</span> Private, all-male school in Jackson County, Missouri , USA

Rockhurst High School is a private, Jesuit, all-boys preparatory school founded in 1910 along with Rockhurst College in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. It moved away from the College in 1962 to a campus on State Line Road in Kansas City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moeller High School</span> School in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Archbishop Moeller High School, known as Moeller, is a private, all-male, college-preparatory high school in the suburbs of Cincinnati, in Hamilton County, Ohio. It is currently one of five all-male Catholic high schools in the Cincinnati area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington High School (Fremont, California)</span> Public high school in Fremont, California, United States

Washington High School (WHS) is the oldest of the five comprehensive public high schools in Fremont, California, United States. It was established in 1893. It is a part of the Fremont Unified School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saguaro High School</span> Secondary school in Scottsdale, Arizona

Saguaro High School is a former Arizona A+ and Blue Ribbon Schools Program certified high school in the Scottsdale Unified School District in Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. Saguaro was opened in 1966.

Taft High School is a public four-year high school located in the Norwood Park neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Taft serves communities on the far northwest side, specifically Norwood Park, Edison Park, Jefferson Park, Forest Glen and O'Hare. Taft is operated by the Chicago Public Schools district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutchtown High School (Louisiana)</span> School in Geismar, Louisiana, United States

Dutchtown High School is a 5A school that was completed in 2003 in Geismar, an unincorporated area of Ascension Parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is within the Ascension Parish School Board. Dutchtown Middle School, Bluff Middle School and Prairieville Middle School feed into Dutchtown High. The architecture is based on that of the old Dutchtown High, which was situated across the highway at the current Dutchtown Middle School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenbard West High School</span> Public secondary school in Glen Ellyn, DuPage County, Illinois, United States

Glenbard West High School is a public four-year high school located at the corner of Ellyn Avenue and Crescent Boulevard in Glen Ellyn, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Glenbard Township High School District 87. The West campus draws students from Glen Ellyn, a small portion of Lombard, and portions of Wheaton, Glendale Heights and Carol Stream.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Bush High School</span> American public high school

George Bush High School is a public high school located in the Mission Bend census designated place and in unincorporated Fort Bend County, Texas, serving students in grades 9–12. The school has a "Richmond, Texas" postal address but is not in the Richmond city limits. The school is part of the Fort Bend Independent School District and serves several areas of unincorporated Fort Bend County, including Mission Bend. The high school is named after the forty-first president of the United States, George H. W. Bush, who attended the school's inauguration. The school colors are orange, white, and navy blue. The average annual enrollment is approximately 2,200 students.

St. Patrick High School is an all-boys college preparatory Catholic high school located in the Belmont-Cragin neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago, Illinois. Opened in 1861, it is among the oldest continuously open high schools in the Chicago area.

North Chicago Community High School, also known as North Chicago and NCCHS, is a public four-year high school located in North Chicago, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago, in the United States. It is part of North Chicago School District 187. Due to its proximity to the Naval Station Great Lakes, the school serves military families, resulting in a slightly higher than average mobility rate.

Palma School is a grade 6-12 Catholic school located in Salinas, California, United States. Located in the Diocese of Monterey, its motto is "Palma Merenti," which translates in English as "Palms to the Victor."

The Chicago Catholic League (CCL) is a high school athletic conference based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. All of the schools are part of the Illinois High School Association, the governing body for Illinois scholastic sports. While some of the schools are coeducational institutions, the conference only supports athletics for male teams.

Marmion Academy is a grade 9–12 Roman Catholic high school for boys in Aurora, Illinois, United States. It is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockford.

Memorial High School is a public, co-educational secondary school located in Port Arthur, Texas, United States. It was established in August 2002 after a merger of three previous high schools: Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Stephen F. Austin. Since then, Port Arthur Memorial High School has been the only high school in the Port Arthur Independent School District. It serves most of Port Arthur and a portion of Groves. Initially, the school used the former Lincoln and Jefferson campuses; its new facility opened for the 2009–10 school year on the northern side of Port Arthur. It also has a 9th Grade Center in the Port Acres area of Port Arthur, on the former Austin Middle School campus.

West Aurora High School, or WAHS, is a public four-year high school located in Aurora, Illinois. It is part of West Aurora Public School District 129. The school is also referred to as "West," and "West High,".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benedictine College Preparatory</span> Military, day, college-prep school in Richmond, Virginia, United States

Benedictine College Preparatory is a private Roman Catholic military high school in Goochland, Virginia. It is owned and operated by the Benedictine Society of Virginia, part of the American-Cassinese Congregation. Benedictine offers education through a private military institute model, which has long been a traditional form of education for young men in Virginia.

Thibodaux High School (THS) is a public high school serving students in grades 9–12 in Thibodaux, Louisiana, United States about 75 miles southwest of New Orleans. It is one of three high schools in the Lafourche Parish Public Schools.

Waxahachie High School is a public high school in the city of Waxahachie, Texas, United States and classified as a 6A school by the University Interscholastic League (UIL). It is a part of the Waxahachie Independent School District located in central Ellis County. In 2015, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hobart High School (Indiana)</span> Public high school in Hobart, Lake County, Indiana, United States

Hobart High School is located in Hobart, Indiana. It is part of the School City of Hobart district. U.S. News & World Report ranked it 163rd within Indiana, and 7,137 in National Rankings. Their ranking was based upon performance on state-required tests, graduation and college preparation. Their college Advanced Placement participation rate is 31%.

References

  1. ↑ "East Aurora High School - High School Leadership". easthigh.d131.org. Retrieved Jul 12, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 "East High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  3. ↑ "About - East Aurora High School". d131.org. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  4. ↑ "Illinois School Report Card" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-10-08. Retrieved 2006-08-11.
  5. ↑ "About East Aurora High School". Archived from the original on 2006-07-15. Retrieved 2006-08-11.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.