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Horace Greeley High School

Coordinates: 41°10′28″N 73°45′24″W / 41.17444°N 73.75667°W / 41.17444; -73.75667
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Horace Greeley High School
Address
Map
70 Roaring Brook Road

,
Westchester
,
New York
10514

United States
Coordinates41°10′28″N 73°45′24″W / 41.17444°N 73.75667°W / 41.17444; -73.75667
Information
School typePublic Public high school
Motto"The Lifelong Joy of Learning"
School districtChappaqua Central School District
SuperintendentChristine Ackerman
School code331315 (ACT/SAT/AP)
PrincipalSandra Sepe
Faculty112.98[1]
Grades912
Number of students1,152 (2022–23)[1]
Student to teacher ratio10.20[1]
LanguageEnglish
Hours in school day6 hrs, 50 minutes
Color(s)Blue and orange
Athletics conferenceSection 1 (NYSPHSAA)
MascotQuaker
Team nameQuakers
NewspaperThe Greeley Voice
Communities servedNew Castle, New York (part)
Websitegreeley.chappaquaschools.org
(1) Originally located on the site of Robert E. Bell Middle School, serving grades 1–12. The school was relocated to its present site, in its current configuration, in 1957.

Horace Greeley High School is a public, four-year secondary school serving students in grades 912 in Chappaqua, New York, United States. It is part of the Chappaqua Central School District.

It is consistently ranked among the top high schools in America. In 2015, it was listed as the No. 1 best public high school in the US by Best Colleges.[2]

Distinctions

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Greeley was ranked No. 46 nationally in the 2008 U.S. News & World Report rankings of "America's Best High Schools,"[3] and No. 7 among those with open enrollment. It currently offers 21 advanced placement courses.

Recent years have seen approximately one-tenth of graduating seniors recognized by the National Merit Scholarship committee. The class of 2004 included 25 National Merit semi-finalists, the class of 2005 had 16, and the class of 2007 had 22. The mean SAT and ACT scores among graduating seniors for the Class of 2022 were 1368 and 29, respectively.

The school offers several extracurricular programs. Its academic challenge team won the National Academic Championship in 2003, 2013, and 2023 and finished third in 2009 and 2010.[4] Chip Beall, the organizer of the tournament, noted in 2007 that Greeley's team had "the most airline miles logged at the National Academic Association's expense", a nod to their placement in the final rounds of the tournament more times than any other team in the tournament's history.[5]

The Horace Greeley Debate Team has sent debaters to the state competition every year since its inception in 2002.

The Madrigal Choir, a select group of students auditioned from the full chorus, has attended the Disney Honors festival in Orlando, Florida and has performed with other choirs at such venues as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. In 2011, the Madrigal Choir received a gold award and came in second place at the Boston Heritage Festival.

Programs at Horace Greeley include the LIFE (Learning Independently From Experience) school, an alternative school for grades 11–12 located on campus,[6] independent study, and senior project options. Language classes are offered in four foreign languages: Spanish, French, Latin, and Chinese. In the 2004–2005 school year, Ancient Greek was taught for the first time, as an independent study. Students have the opportunity to take Syracuse University Project Advance (SUPA) Forensic Science. Students may take Business Law for college credit from Mercy College.

Administration

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The principal is Sandra Sepe, and there are four assistant principals.[7]

History

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The school is named for Horace Greeley, the editor of The New York Tribune who made his home in Chappaqua late in life. The school's main publication is The Greeley Voice.

Athletics

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Among the diverse offerings are varsity programs in baseball, basketball, bowling, field hockey, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, cross country, volleyball, and wrestling.

The school's most successful sports team historically has been their boys' swim team. More recently, the boys' swim team has achieved even greater success, winning the NYSPHSAA New York State Swimming Championship for three years in a row from 2022-2024.[8] Their success is due to the training of the year round swimmers on club teams in the area. The school's first state championship came in 2002 and was won by the boys' cross country team.[9] In 2001 the school's football team finished with a record of 11–2, losing 22–15 to Rochester's Aquinas Institute in the New York State Class A State Championship game.[10]

Greeley's boys' indoor track and field team won leagues, counties, and sectionals three years in a row, 2022, 2023, and 2024.[11][12][13]

Campus

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The school campus is made up of 11 buildings, all are named by letter. Buildings such as the Gym (A Building), Cafeteria (H Building), and Auditorium (B Building) are referred to as such and not by their letter name. Although the building letters span A through L, there is no I Building, for unknown reasons. Multiple athletic fields and a tennis court are also on campus. Horace Greeley High School originally opened in 1928 as part of the K-12 Horace Greeley School, which was located on the present-day site of Robert E. Bell Middle School. The high school's current campus opened in 1957.

L Building

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L Building (L) is located towards the back of the high school, connected via a bridge to J building. Social Studies, Foreign Language, and English classes are all taught in L. There are 4 department offices located in L. L is split into two levels, called Upper L and Lower L. Prior to spring and summer 2020, L had normal size classrooms. When all Horace Greeley faculty and students were virtual in spring 2020, L was renovated to have open space and open classrooms. There are now "breakout rooms" and multiple common areas for students. The new classrooms were smaller and some had no doors, they are open to the hallway. The renovation of L coincided with the policy change that teachers would no longer have their own classroom. Instead, the teachers would be based in their respective department office.

Lowest L (The Bunker)

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Lowest L, as dubbed by the school's teachers, is located below L Building. The school's servers are located there as well as storage and a loading dock. It is connected to the interior of lower L through only one door and connected to the outside through one door and two garage doors. Lowest L is effectively a bunker.

Controversy

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In September 2001, the school received a flurry of press coverage over the football team attending a party where a stripper was hired for entertainment purposes. [14][15] In 2015, drama teacher Christopher Schraufnagel resigned[16] and was charged with the sexual abuse of three 15-year-old students.[17] The crimes were alleged to have occurred between 2011 and 2015 on campus.[18] The parents of three students subsequently filed a lawsuit against the school district.[19] On November 7, 2016, Schraufnagel pled guilty.[20] On December 21, 2017, Schraufnagel was classified as a level 3 Sex Offender.[21] On December 30, 2022, Schraufnagel died of cancer.[22]

Notable alumni

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "HORACE GREELEY HIGH SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  2. ^ "Best High Schools in America". www.bestcolleges.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  3. ^ U.S. News & World Report – "America's Best High Schools," 2008
  4. ^ "Varsity Statical - The Finest In Academic Competition ... Since 1978". June 19, 2023. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  5. ^ "National Academic Championship highlights". Qunlimited.com. Retrieved April 20, 2010.
  6. ^ "The LIFE School". sites.google.com. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  7. ^ "Leadership". Horace Greeley High School. Chappaqua Central School District. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  8. ^ Zacharias, Sidney (March 12, 2024). "Horace Greeley Boys Secure Third Consecutive New York High School State Title". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
  9. ^ "Horace Greeley High School – Chappaqua, New York/NY – Public School Profile". Publicschoolreview.com. Retrieved April 20, 2010.
  10. ^ Mike Connell. "New York State High School Football State Playoffs Results". section4football.com. Retrieved January 13, 2014.
  11. ^ "Track: Greeley and Lakeland/Panas capture Westchester team titles". June 19, 2023. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  12. ^ "Track: Horace Greeley and Ursuline won their first section team titles". June 19, 2023. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  13. ^ "Track: Greeley boys, Suffern girls win Class A team titles; Scarsdale sweeps girls relays". The Journal News. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  14. ^ Kilgannon, Corey (September 16, 2001). "COMMUNITIES; Soul-Searching After Stripper Party". New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  15. ^ "The Party – Shoe Leather". shoeleather.podcasts.library.columbia.edu. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  16. ^ Kramer, Peter (September 5, 2015). "Greeley drama teacher resigns amid police probe". lohud.com. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
  17. ^ Kramer, Peter; Bandler, Jonathan (October 28, 2015). "Former Greeley teacher Christopher Schraufnagel charged with sex abuse". lohud.com. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
  18. ^ Khimm, Suzy Drama at an Elite High School New York Magazine. October 6, 2016
  19. ^ Fitz-Gibbon, Jorge (May 20, 2016). "Chappaqua ex teacher named in sex-drugs lawsuit". lohud.com. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
  20. ^ Kramer, Peter; Fitz-Gibbon, Jorge (November 7, 2016). "Schraufnagel pleads guilty in sex abuse case". lohud.com. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  21. ^ Bandler, Jonathan (December 21, 2017). "Ex-Chappaqua teacher must register as a Level 3 sex offender". lohud.com. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  22. ^ "Schraufnagel obituary". Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  23. ^ Cohan, William D. (February 2013). "Billionaire Bill Ackman's Ill-Fated Bike Ride: "His Mind Wrote a Check That His Body Couldn't Cash"". Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  24. ^ Alexander, Leigh. "In-depth: Mechner on creation, from Karateka through The Last Express". Gamasutra. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  25. ^ {{cite news|last1=Markowitz|first1=Dan|title=Singer With Insights Honed in Chappaqua|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/18/nyregion/singer-with-insights-honed-in-chappaqua.html%7Caccess-date=March 1, 2015|date=February 18, 1996}}
  26. ^ Pacheco, Patrick (July 17, 1994). "THEATER: Untangling the Web: With 'Kiss of the Spider Woman,' Vanessa Williams can add 'Broadway star' to a resume once most notable for the term 'deposed Miss America.' Which is not to say she's finished setting the record straight". Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  27. ^ Eady, Brenda (October 3, 1983). "She's Black and Miss America, but Vanessa Williams Is Most of All Her Own Woman". Retrieved March 1, 2015.
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