Hewitt-Trussville High School

From Bhamwiki
Revision as of 09:21, 25 September 2015 by Ugaindc (talk | contribs) (updated enrollment)
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Hewitt-Trussville High School
HTHS Logo.gif
Established 1925
School type Public
District Trussville City Schools
Grades 9-12
Principal Tim Salem
Enrollment 1,396 (2014)
Colors Red, white, & gray
Mascot Huskies
Location 6450 Husky Parkway
Trussville
Website www.trussvillecityschools.com/HTHS/

Hewitt-Trussville High School, or simply HTHS, is a four-year public high school in the Birmingham suburb of Trussville located at 6450 Husky Parkway. It is the lone high school in the Trussville City Schools. The "Hewitt" moniker comes from the early local educator Robert Hewitt. School colors are red, white, and gray. The athletic teams are called the "Huskies". The current facility was opened October 14, 2008.

Enrollment in grades 9-12 for the 2013-14 school year was approximately 1,396 students. The principal is Tim Salem.

History

1925 building

1925 building in January 2009

The high school was originally located at 301 Parkway Drive in the Cahaba Homestead Village. This served as Trussville's high school from its construction in 1925 through the opening of a new facility in 1982. The building was originally intended to be a community center, but during construction the Jefferson County School Board asked that it be converted into a high school to serve the area's students.

Jack Wood Stadium was used until 2013 for both football and track and field athletic teams. Additionally, the annual commencement exercises were still held in the stadium. In 2014 a new stadium was opened on Husky Parkway.

1982 building

1982 building in July 2006

A new school building was officially dedicated on July 22, 1982, as the newest building within the Jefferson County School System. Located two miles north of the original facility, it was designed by Adams/Peacher/Keeton/Cosby, Inc. with Moore Engineering & Construction serving as the general contractor. In 1996 the large, illuminated signage visible from I-59 was added to the southern facade.

The front wing contains the gymnasium, auditorium, cafeteria, band room and administrative offices. The rear wing contains academic classrooms with the five hallways being distinguished by color (the red, orange, green, yellow & grey). The interior features a pair of outdoor courtyards.

Although the overcrowding issue was temporary resolved with the construction of Clay-Chalkville High School in 1996, the continued rapid growth within Trussville resulted in the need for a new building which opened in October 2008. It was converted into the Hewitt-Trussville Middle School, which moved from the 1925 building.

2008 building

HTHS in January 2009

The current Hewitt-Trussville High School building is located on a 127-acre site on Husky Parkway between Trussville-Clay Road and Deerfoot Parkway, across from I-59 where the previous facility is located. The Trussville Civic Center was also built as part of the project.

The final design for the school was approved by the Trussville Board of Education in September 2006. The $70 million school was designed by Davis Architects and encompasses 285,000-square feet. Its design includes white columns and a clock tower.

During its construction, all construction vehicles used a newly created access road almost a mile long connecting the school with Deerfoot Parkway. This was necessary to have construction vehicles avoid the heavily congested Chalkville Mountain Road exit off I-59. This access road became Husky Parkway upon the school's completion, with access solely from Deerfoot Parkway. Husky Parkway was extended and connected to Trussville-Clay Road north of the Civic Center upon completion of the new stadium.

The new school is able to accommodate about 1,600 students, with room to grow to 2,400 students in the future. The school also includes a fine arts center, auditorium, field house and multiple athletic fields. Jack Wood Stadium served as the schools football and track facility until 2014 with the completion of Hewitt-Trussville Stadium.

On Tuesday, November 14, 2006, the Trussville City Council unanimously rezoned the parcels at 5601 and 5555 Trussville-Clay Road from agricultural to institutional use to allow for the construction of the new building.

Originally estimated to cost $55 million to complete, in early January 2007, Doster Construction submitted the lowest bid to complete the school at $75 million. Due to the $20 million increase in overall costs, the school board reevaluated its plans and determining where costs can be cut. Some of these cost saving measures included the elimination of some of its masonry and landscaping elements. Its final cost of $70 million made the school the most expensive high school ever built in Alabama upon its opening in October 2008.

The 1982 facility was converted into a middle school and the 1925 building is currently unoccupied, with plans to convert it into an elementary school to help alleviate overcrowding at the Paine Primary and Intermediate campus.

Block scheduling

Beginning in fall 1997, block scheduling was introduced at the high school. With block scheduling, students had four classes in the fall semester and four different classes in the spring semester instead of seven classes over the course of the entire year. The purpose of the scheduling was to better prepare students for collegiate coursework. This policy was discontinued after the spring 2006 semester with the traditional period schedule being again implemented for the 2006-2007 academic year.

Student activities

Sports

Jack Wood Stadium in July 2006

Sports offered at HTHS that compete in the AHSAA 6A level include:

  • Baseball
  • Basketball (both boys and girls)
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross Country (both boys and girls)
  • Football
  • Golf (both boys and girls)
  • Soccer (both boys and girls)
  • Softball
  • Tennis (both boys and girls)
  • Track
  • Volleyball
  • Wrestling

Facilities include the HTHS gymnasium, baseball stadium, softball field, soccer field and Jack Wood Stadium

Hewitt-Trussville High School has won several AHSAA state championships in a variety of sports including competing at the 6A level:

  • 2005 Girls Golf (Class 6A)
  • 1999 Girls Track (Class 6A)
  • 1988 Wrestling (Class 6A)
  • 1987 Wrestling (Class 6A)

Band

The Hewitt-Trussville Marching Husky Band has a reputation for excellence. They have performed in multiple parades times and receive high marks in competitions during the fall semester.

The Band has been under the direction of Scott Waid since 2002 after Mike Jones retired after leading the band since the early 1980s.

Other clubs & organizations

  • Student Council
  • National Honor Society - All students with a GPA of 3.5 and greater are eligible for this academic honor
  • National Vocational-Technical Honor Society - All vocational students with a 3.5 GPA in all vocational courses and a 2.75 overall GPA are eligible for this honor.
  • Mu Alpha Theta - Mathematics honor society open to all students who have completed 5 years of math with at least a 3.5 GPA in all math classes.
  • Scholar’s Bowl - Academic competition team that competes in county, regional, and state matches.
  • Math Team
  • Science Olympiad
  • Yearbook Staff - Student organization dedicated to the design and production of the annual yearbook.
  • International Thespian Society
  • Peer Helpers - Student organization designed to have students who are available to assist other students with personal or academic problems.
  • Service Association - Club made up young women who set a good example of character and leadership.
  • Serteen Club - Club that carries out service projects for the school and the community that is organized by the Jefferson East Sertoma
  • Jr. Civitans
  • DECA or Distributive Education Clubs of America
  • FBLA or Future Business Leaders of America
  • FHA or Future Homemakers of America
  • TSA or Technical Students of America
  • Additional academic clubs for Art, Computer, French, Photography and Science

Alma mater

The of Hewitt-Trussville is sung to the tune of God of Our Fathers, an English hymn. The lyrics are:

Dear Hewitt-Trussville, proudly now we stand
For the finest high school in our noble land.
Our hearts beat high with pride at Hewitt's name,
And cherish too her glory and her fame.

Principals

Notable Alumni

External links

References

Locate with
Google Maps

  • Leech, Marie (August 03, 2008) "Four new schools, renovations will greet students in Birmingham-metro area". The Birmingham News
  • Debro, Anita (January 03, 2007) "$75 million bid accepted on new high school". The Birmingham News
  • Debro, Anita (July 03, 2006) "Trussville set to issue school bonds". The Birmingham News
  • Debro, Anita (September 27, 2006) "New high school design gets OK; bids due in November". The Birmingham News
  • Debro, Anita (November 16, 2006) "Government roundup". The Birmingham News
  • Dedication plaque viewed on-site by User:Patriarca12 in July 2006.
Retrieved from "http://bhamwiki.com/w/index.php?title=Hewitt-Trussville_High_School&oldid=120477"