Orange High School (North Carolina)

Orange High School is a high school in the northern area of Orange County, North Carolina.

Students and faculty

Founded in 1963, Orange High School educates 1274 students^[1] from the area around Hillsborough, North Carolina.

Orange High is one of two high schools in the Orange County Schools, the other being Cedar Ridge High School. Like most high schools, Orange High serves grades 9 through 12 offering academic, co-curricular, career and technical, and extracurricular opportunities. The student-teacher ratio is 16.3:1.

The faculty for the North Carolina school includes 75 licensed classroom teachers, four school counselors, one career development coordinator, one media specialist, one instructional technology resource teacher, two associate principals, one principal, one AIG Resource Teacher, one social worker, one school psychologist, and one school nurse.^[2] Nine of the teachers National Board Certified Teachers,^[3] and 32 (over 50 percent) hold master degrees.

In Spring of 2007, it was announced that Jeff Dishmon would not be returning as principal of Orange High for the 2007-2008 school year, where he would be moved to a Central Office position. Roy Winslow became principal, until January 2010 when it was announced that he would be moving to a school in Granville County. Stephen Scroggs, a former Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Assistant Superintendent, was assigned the position of interim principal until a new principal was found. One of the assistant principals, Armond Hankins, was selected for the position, effective July 1, 2010. Hankins was demoted in 2012, and former Gravelly Hill Middle School principal Jason Johnson replaced him.

Athletics

The Cross Country team has made it to state championships with both girls and boys for six consecutive years, starting in 2006. In 2011, the Cross Country team also got fourth in the 3A state championships for boys and sixth for girls. In 2012, Orange's men's team placed 7th in the state at the 3A state championships, and also sent 2 girls individually; Indy Reid-Shaw and Devon Allen. The unofficial (due to it not being a school-endorsed event) 5k record for the school was set in 1997, with Bradsher Wilkins running a 15:19, winning the Foot Locker South Regional. The official school record is held by Will Henderson, who ran a 16:24 at the 2012 adidas Cross Country Challenge, placing 33rd.

The Men's Tennis Team in 2006 got to the 2A State Dual team playoffs and made it to the second round. This was further than ever before in Panthers history.

In 2005 the wrestling team won the 3A state title. Orange pulled off back to back state championships in winning both the Dual Meet and Individual titles in 2008 as well as in 2009. In 2008, senior, Nick Walters, won the state 145 weight division state championship. Coach Bobby Shriner earned his 400th career win as Orange defeated Newton-Conover in the final round of the 2009 state duals. Orange had three individual state champions in 2009. Chris Johnson, James Norman and Remington Jarrett earned state titles at the 125, 130 and 145 pound respective weight classes. In 2010, seniors Chris Intehar (189) and Chris Johnson(130) won the individual state championships for their weight classes. In 2012, senior Zachary Rimmer won the individual championship for the 152 weight class. In 2011 and 2012 the team won the duel-team state championships consecutively (something their mothers are very proud of).

The baseball team finished the 2008 season as 2A state champions with a record of 27-3.

The school's athletic director is Earnie Price, former C.W. Stanford middle school athletic director.

2006 school shooting

On August 30, 2006, former student 18-year-old Alvaro Rafael Castillo blew past the security shack at the entrance to the student parking lot, stepped out of his van, set off 3 smoke bombs, and then proceeded with gunfire towards the school.^[4] He shot out part of a window in the hallway in front of the cafeteria. A girl was injured by a bullet grazing her and a young man was injured by flying glass.

At this time students with the second lunch period were eating out on the outdoor patio, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department. All of the students were quickly rushed inside and the school was locked down for 4 to 5 hours, along with the rest of the Orange County District Schools. A bomb squad was then called in to search the campus because of pipe bombs found in the man's van. Local news helicopters hovered over the school to get the breaking news.

Later that day it was discovered that Castillo had killed his father to "put him out of his misery." He also made the statement "Columbine, remember Columbine," while entering a patrol car.,^[4] referring to the attack at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999. He also sent a written letter and videotape to the Chapel Hill News prior to the shooting, acknowledging the murder of his father and the subsequent attack that followed.

On August 21, 2009, Alvaro Castillo was found guilty in Orange County Superior Court following a trial that lasted three weeks. He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.^[5]

References

External links

Coordinates: 36°05′23″N 79°05′41″W / 36.0895849°N 79.0947347°W / 36.0895849; -79.0947347