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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Allen High School (Texas)
Allen High School is a public, co-educational secondary school in Allen, Texas (United States). It is the only high school in the Allen Independent School District.

Allen High School serves most of the city of Allen. Until fall 2006, when Lovejoy High School opened, Allen High School served high school students in the Lovejoy Independent School District, which includes the city of Lucas, most of Fairview, a portion of Parker and a small portion of Plano.

History

The first Allen High School, built in 1910 at the corner of Belmont and Cedar, was a two-story brick building housing six classrooms and an auditorium, and saw the first graduating class of eight students in 1914.

The second Allen High School was established in 1959 on land donated by Mr. Harris Brown on the corner of Jupiter and Main Streets.

August 1999 saw the opening of Allen High School "2000," a new facility (at the corner of Greenville and Rivercrest) which opened to 2,200 students in grades 10 through 12. The former high school was converted into the Becky Lowery Freshman Center, named in honor of a former middle school teacher and school counselor. In 2018, the building was partly demolished and replaced with a new building on an adjacent plot of land on Greenville Ave. The southernmost part of the school was renovated into the Dillard Special Achievement Center, while the northern section became a parking lot. The football stadium still stands. The new building started serving grade 9 students during the 2018–19 school year, and had an enrollment of 1,634 in 2015–16. A major expansion of the school was completed in 2011. This expansion included a new 1,500 seat performing arts center, an expansion of band hall space and a Career and Technology Education center featuring a student-managed restaurant open to the public, a student-managed apparel store with student-designed items, multiple new Mac labs, Mac-equipped rooms for the photojournalism, yearbook, commercial photography, audiovisual, radio, and newspaper classes as well as learning-classrooms for the medical education programs. The final expansion was completed in 2018. This expansion included an auxiliary gymnasium and an expanded fine arts hallway. This expansion also included renovations to the gymnasium, cafeteria, library and academic-hallways, which include "huddle spaces" for collaborative learning.

Location

  • Freshman Center (9): 368 N Greenville Ave, Allen, TX 75002
  • Main campus (10–12): 300 Rivercrest Blvd. Allen, TX 75002
  • CTE campus (10-12) 1680 Ridgeview Dr, Allen, TX 75013

Academics

National Blue Ribbon Schools

Allen High School offers the International Baccalaureate program to its students, with the class of 2002 being the first to graduate Full Diploma. AHS also provides Advanced Placement, Dual Credit, and elective courses. AP course enrollment at AHS is 52%.

Allen uses a modified block schedule, utilizing five standard periods per day. Tenth grade students are required to be present for four of these, while juniors and seniors are only required to attend three.

Allen High School was named a 2001–02 National Blue Ribbon School and a 2004 TEA Pathfinder School. For the 2021-2022 school year, the school was given an "A" by the Texas Education Agency.

STEAM Center

Allen High School features a Career and Technical Education (CTE) campus known as the STEAM Center, which opened in 2019 at a cost of $40 million. The 111,000-square-foot facility supports various CTE programs for the high school, and hosts educational field trips for elementary and middle school students. The STEAM Center can accommodate over 500 students simultaneously and includes a range of advanced amenities, such as an OmniGlobe, a large maker space, and a lake. Additionally, it features a dedicated K-8 center specifically designed for field trip activities. The STEAM Center operates on a schedule separate and independent from the main high school campus.

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

As of 2021 Allen High has the largest University Interscholastic League (UIL) athletic program of any Texas high school.

Programs include:

Football

For over twenty years, the Allen Eagles football team has been one of the top high school football programs in Texas, qualifying for post season play in every season from 1999 to 2023. During this time, the team won five state championships (2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017), appeared in ten final fours (2003, 2006, 2008, 2012-2018), won 16 district titles in a row (2006-2021), and achieved a won-loss record of 234-28 from 2004 through 2022. Thirteen players from Allen have made their way to play professionally in the NFL.

Football Records Table
State champion
State finalist
State final four
State quarterfinalist
Season Conf Dist Coach Overall
record 		District
record 		Playoff
record 		UIL
Ref
1936 C 3 Frank Smith
(4-10)		 2-4
1937 0-5
1938 10 2-0
1939 0-1
1940 6-Man 4 Jack Murray
(10-0)		 9-0
1941 1-0
1942 11 No season
WW II
1943
1944 9
1945 W.H. Moseley
(23-4)		 0-1
1946 10 4-1 0-1
1947 4-1 0-1
1948 12 9-0 1-0
1949 6-1 0-1
1950 15 Gene Curtis
(33-4-1)		 9-1 0-1
1951 7-1
1952 14 8-1-1 0-1
1953 9-1
1954 Lee Roundtree
(14-6)		 10-1 1-1
1955 4-5
1956 15 Max Vaughn
(68-21-6)		 7-2-1 0-1
1957 7-2
1958 8-Man 7 10-0 1-0
1959 10-0 1-0
1960 12-0 2-0
1961 8-2-2
1962 B 12 9-2-1 1-1
1963 0-9-1
1964 10 5-4-1
1965 Bob Painter
(25-27)		 6-5 0-1
1966 9 4-6
1967 3-7
1968 12 5-5
1969 7-4 0-1
1970 1A 13 Pete Turman 1-9
1971 Jim Clark
(23-16-3)		 2-5-3
1972 16 6-4
1973 8-4 0-1
1974 15 7-3
1975 John Pearce
(50-21-1)		 6-4
1976 2A 12 6-4
1977 2-8
1978 8-2
1979 9-1
1980 3A 11 11-1 1-1
1981 8-1-1
1982 4A 5 Ken Purcell
(69-66-2)		 6-4
1983 10-1 0-1
1984 7 1-9
1985 3-7
1986 5 10-3 1-1
1987 10-3 1-1
1988 9 6-4
1989 5-5
1990 6-4
1991 3-6
1992 5A 30 5-5
1993 2-7
1994 5A I 5 2-8
1995 Todd Graham
(35-30-1)		 4-5-1
1996 5A I 10 7-5 1-1
1997 4-7 0-1
1998 5A II 9 3-7
1999 8-3 0-1
2000 9-3 1-1
2001 Joe Martin
(31-9)		 10-3 2-1
2002 8-4 1-1
2003 13-2 4-1
2004 5A I 8 Tom Westerberg
(150-17)		 9-3 6-1 1-1
2005 9-3 6-1 1-1
2006 5A II 9 13-2 7-0 4-1
2007 10-1 7-0 0-1
2008 5A I 8 15-1 6-0 6-0
2009 12-2 6-0 1-1
2010 10-2 6-1 1-1
2011 11-1 7-0 1-1
2012 5A II 10 15-1 5-0 6-0
2013 16-0 5-0 6-0
2014 6A I 6 16-0 8-0 6-0
2015 14-1 8-0 4-1
2016 Terry Gambill
(65-4)		 14-1 7-0 4-1
2017 16-0 7-0 6-0
2018 6A II 9 14-1 7-0 4-1
2019 11-1 7-0 1-1
2020 6A I 5 10-1 6-0 2-1
2021 Chad Morris 11-3 5-1 3-1
2022 Lee Wiginton
(16-9)		 7-4 5-2 0-1
2023 9-5 5-2 3-1
Totals 628-256-14 126-8 79-36

Additional table references: MaxPreps, Texas High School Football History, and Lone Star Football.

  1. ^ District record since 2004. Research into prior records is ongoing.

Football stadium

Main article: Eagle Stadium (Allen, Texas)
Eagle Stadium in 2012

Due to the program's popularity and student population, the school was authorized, via an approved April 2009 referendum, to build an 18,000-seat stadium for the team. The stadium cost nearly $60 million, and opened for the 2012 football season. It is the fifth largest high school stadium in the state, but the largest designed for the use of only one team. The facility houses a weight room, wrestling practice facility, and indoor golfing facility.

Basketball

  • Boys
    • 2018 6A state champions
    • 2014 5A state semi-finalist
  • Girls
    • 2019 6A state semi-finalist

Girls golf

  • State champions: 2005, 2006, 2012, 2014

Wrestling

  • State champions
    • Boys team (13): 2009-2010, 2010-2011, 2011–2012, 2012-2013 5A, 2013-2014 5A, 2014-2015 6A, 2015-2016 6A, 2016-2017 6A, 2017-2018 6A, 2018-2019 6A, 2019-2020 6A, 2020-2021 6A, 2021-2022 6A
    • Boys individual (49): 2006-2007 (1), 2008-2009 (1), 2009-2010 (2), 2010-2011 (3), 2011-2012 (4), 2012-2013 5A (6), 2013-2014 5A (1), 2014-2015 6A (2), 2015-2016 6A (4), 2016-2017 6A (5), 2017-2018 6A (6), 2018-2019 6A (5), 2019-2020 6A (3), 2020-2021 6A (3), 2021-2022 6A (3)
    • Girls team (2): 2020-2021 6A, 2021-2022 6A
    • Girls individual (7): 2012-2013 5A (1), 2014-2015 6A (1), 2015-2016 6A (1), 2016-2017 6A (1), 2017-2018 6A (1), 2020-2021 6A (2)

Bowling

  • State champions
    • Girls team (3): 2004, 2005, 2009
    • Girls individual (2): 2005, 2021
    • Boys team (3): 2002, 2008, 2015
  • State finalists
    • Girls team (1): 2010
    • Girls individual (1): 2004
    • Boys team (2): 2003, 2013

Hockey

  • State champions
    • 2006–07, 2008–09, 2016–17
  • State finalist
    • 2009-2010, 2019-2020
  • Rocky Mountain Regional Champions
    • 2009
  • National Championship
    • 2009 quarterfinalist

Soccer

  • Girls
    • State semi-finalist: 1989, 1990, 1998, 2019
  • Boys
    • State semi-finalist: 2021, 2023

Other sports

  • 2014 - Texas Archery state champions
  • 2015 - Texas Archery state champions
  • 2014 - Scholastic Clay Target Program overall national champions

Band

The Allen Escadrille claims to be the country's largest high school marching band, with a membership of over 800 students. They perform at pre-game and halftime of all Allen varsity football games, participate in Texas UIL competitions, and perform in parades and at other venues. The band was invited to perform in the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 2009, and performed in the 2006 and 2016 Rose Parades in Pasadena, California. The band received the Sudler Shield Award from the John Philip Sousa Foundation in 2004. The band won the 4A State Marching Band Competition two years in a row, 1987 and 1988.

Notable performances:

  • 1994 St. Patrick's Day Parade in Dublin, Ireland (the only high school band chosen to play at the Dublin Lord Mayors Ball)
  • 1995 Texas Gubernatorial Parade
  • 1997 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City
  • 1999 Texas Gubernatorial Parade

Other programs

  • 2011 - 1st place in Culinary at the Texas ProStart Competition in Austin, TX. 17th place at the National ProStart Competition.
  • 2011 – Named a Grammy Signature Gold School, recognizing Allen as a U.S. public high school making an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year.
  • 2011–2012 - Chorale Choir was invited to perform at the Texas Music Educators Association's annual convention. A recording of their performance was published om Spotify in 2012. The TMEA event invites by audition only the top 5 schools in the state.
  • News Media - The broadcast program, KGLE 3 Teen News. Between 1996 and 2006, the program was awarded five first places, two-second places, and one-third place in Best of Shows at the National Scholastic Press Association's biannual competition. It has also been a five-time Pacemaker finalist. The KGLE program includes a radio broadcast.
  • Orchestra - The orchestra was invited to perform at The International Midwest Clinic and Convention in 2006.
  • Photography - Association of Texas Photography Instructors (ATPI) Top Program Contests
    • 2002 – 3rd place Photojournalism/Sports
    • 2003 – 2nd place Architecture
    • 2004 – 2nd place Architecture, Honorable Mention Sports
    • 2005 – 3rd place Landscape/Nature, Honorable Mention Sports and Architecture
    • 2006 – 1st place Top Award; 1st place in Architecture, Landscape, and Thematic categories, and 2nd place in portrait
    • 2007 – 5th Place Top Award; 1st place Thematic, 3rd place portrait, and Honorable Mention in Architecture and Landscape/Nature
    • 2008 – 2nd Place Architecture, 3rd Place Portrait, Honorable Mention Landscape/Nature
    • 2009 – 2nd Place Top Award; 1st Place Documentary/Photojournalism, 2nd Place Architecture, Portrait, and Thematic
    • 2010 – 1st Place Top Award (tie); 1st Place Landscape/Nature and Portrait, 2nd Place Documentary/Photojournalism and Still Life
    • 2011 – 2nd Place Top Award; 1st Place Portrait and Thematic, 3rd Place Still Life
    • 2012 – 3rd Place Top Award; 1st Place Landscape/Nature, 2nd Place Still Life, 3rd Place Architecture, Honorable Mention Portrait
    • 2013 – 2nd Place Top Award; 1st Place Architecture and Thematic, 2nd Place Landscape/Nature and Portrait
    • 2014 – 3rd Place Top Award; 1st Place Portrait, 3rd Place Architecture and Landscape/Nature, Honorable Mention Thematic
    • 2016 – 2nd Place Top Award; 1st Place Portrait, 2nd Place Still Life, 3rd Place Architecture and Landscape/Nature
    • 2017 – 3rd Place Top Award; 1st Place Still Life and Thematic, 3rd Place Architecture
    • 2018 – 2nd Place Commercial/Advertising, Honorable Mention Architecture and Portrait
    • 2019 – 3rd Place Top Award; 1st Place Commercial/Advertising, 2nd Place Thematic, 3rd Place Portrait
    • 2020 – 2nd Place Portrait and Thematic, 3rd Place Landscape/Nature
    • 2021 – 1st Place Landscape/Nature, 2nd Place Architecture
    • 2022 – 1st Place Architecture, 2nd Place Commercial/Advertising
  • German folk dancing
    • First place in the 2005 state finals.
    • Third place in 2006 state finals.
  • Rugby - 2011 Division 2 state runner-up at the Championship in Houston, Texas.
  • UIL Academics Team
    • 2022 6A state runner-up
    • 2023 6A state champions
    • 2024 6A state runner-up

Notable alumni