1. History

2. Academics

3. Athletics

4. Music

5. Publications

6. FIRST Robotics

7. Administration
    Principals 

8. Notable alumni

9. See also

10. References and further reading

11. External links

Ithaca High School (IHS) is a public high school in Ithaca, New York, USA. It is part of the Ithaca City School District, and has an enrollment of approximately 1,675. The school is located at 1401 North Cayuga Street in the north end of Ithaca, near Stewart Park, Cayuga Lake, and Ithaca Falls. The current principal is Jason Trumble.

In 2017, U.S. News & World Report ranked IHS as the best high school in Central New York, 48th in New York State, and 401st nationwide.^[2]

History

Ithaca High School was founded in 1875 as the successor to the Ithaca Academy, a private school that had operated since the 1820s. In the late 19th and early 20th century, the school had a significant side business as a tuition-charging college preparatory school; then-Cornell University President Jacob Gould Schurman called it "one of the finest in the Northeast."^[3] A new building for the high school on the site of the former academy was built in 1885; that building burned on February 14, 1912. The renowned architect William Henry Miller, who designed many buildings at Cornell, designed the new building, which the high school occupied from 1915 to 1960. That building was later used as DeWitt Junior High school for a number of years and was saved from demolition by the local architect William Downing. Downing converted the building into an eclectic collection of shops, offices, studios, apartments, and restaurants known as the Dewitt Mall. The nationally renowned Moosewood Restaurant is also in the mall.

The new campus, which opened in 1960, is at 1401 North Cayuga Street in the north end of Ithaca, near Stewart Park, Cayuga Lake, and Ithaca Falls.^[4] Designed by the architecture firm Perkins and Will,^[5] it is a California-style campus, with 11 mostly interconnected buildings spread across a fairly wide area. Some have praised the campus as being architecturally innovative, while others have criticized it as inefficient and inappropriate to Ithaca's climate (notably as students routinely travel outdoors between classes, out of necessity or for a more direct route). The campus includes the Frank R. Bliss Gymnasium, the 840-seat Claude L. Kulp Auditorium and York Lecture Hall. Most of the Ithaca City School District's administrative offices and the Board of Education building are located on the same campus, as are the offices of the ICSD employee unions. The building is one of the few schools that use deep lake water cooling (from Cayuga Lake) for air conditioning.

From 2007 to 2009, additions were built that doubled the size of Kulp Auditorium, adding separate rehearsal, practice and office spaces for the orchestra, choir and band, as well as create a large fitness center and competition gymnasium .^[6]

Local demographics have resulted in continuing socio-economic tensions:

The [Ithaca] schools have children of professors at Cornell University and Ithaca College, who would not be rattled by a dinner-table chat about quantum physics. They also have students from Ithaca's poorer streets and from the hardscrabble farms and mobile homes in the villages that surround this Finger Lakes city.

"We have kids who live on dirt floors and go outside to the restroom and come to school to take a shower, and we have Carl Sagan's kids," said Peter Romani, a history teacher at Ithaca High School.^[7]

More recently, the school experienced difficulties in 2004^[8] and 2007. In December 2007, over 200 Ithaca residents signed a petition calling for principal Joseph M. Wilson to be fired^[9] after what they believed was Wilson's mishandling of a series of racially charged incidents.^[10]

Academics

Ithaca High School has historically had a reputation for strong academics. While today the school faces various problems, many common to most high schools, by most objective measures Ithaca High School students still score well above state and national averages. The mean SAT score in 2003 was 1169, compared to 1026 nationally. Typically, about 70% of students matriculate at four-year colleges and 20% at two-year colleges following graduation. The school traditionally sends a very large number of graduates to nearby Cornell University; from 2000 to 2004, an average of 37.6 students per class (slightly less than ten percent) matriculated at Cornell immediately following graduation.^[11]

Nineteen advanced placement courses are offered:^[12]

• Biology
• Chemistry
• Environmental Science
• Physics (1 & C)
• Calculus (AB & BC)
• Statistics
• Computer Science A
• English Language
• English Literature
• Spanish Language
• French Language
• German Language
• Latin: Vergil
• European History
• Human Geography
• Psychology
• U.S. History
• World History
• Studio Art
• Art History
• Music Theory

There are 140 professional staff members, including about 120 classroom teachers, and over 85% of the faculty has a master's degree or higher. Two Ithaca High School math teachers received the prestigious Edyth May Sliffe Award, given annually to about 25 math teachers nationally: Dave Bock (twice, in 1990^[13] and 1993^[14]), and Roselyn Teukolsky (in 1991).^[15]

Athletics

The school is part of the Southern Tier Athletic Conference (STAC). Athletic teams compete as the "Little Red", in counterpoint to the "Big Red" of nearby Cornell University. Ithaca High School has won five New York State Class A boys’ ice hockey championships (1984, 1987, 1994, 2000, 2007), as well as four Upstate New York Girls' Hockey League championships (2001, 2002, 2003, 2011). The Ithaca women's varsity swim team has had more than two decades of consecutive Section IV titles, several unofficial state titles, and countless undefeated seasons. Since 1989, the team has lost only one dual meet in 1998. The team has been coached by Roy Staley through all of these successful seasons. The Boys' Lacrosse Program has established itself as a Section IV, Class A powerhouse, winning five straight sectional championships from 2000 to 2005 and often finding itself in the state and national rankings. Little Reds lacrosse team has reached the Section IV, Class A finals in both 2010 and 2011, losing to Fairport and Farmingdale programs respectively,^[16] losses which helped to solidify its reputation as a local lacrosse hub in upstate New York and a dominant program for years to come. The boys' and girls' track and field program was undefeated in dual meets for eight years until 2005, when defeated by 70-71 by Vestal High School. The program turns out state competitors regularly in both cross country and track and field. In 2005, it produced two state and federation champions, Drew Hilker (pentathlon) and Peter Thompson (pole vault). In addition to offering most traditional school sports Ithaca offers a large array of private sports teams which are mostly made up of Ithaca High School Students. Notable among these teams are Cascadilla Boat Club, which has been undefeated in section III championships for its entire existence, and Head Over Heels Gymnastics that has had multiple state, regional, and national winners.

Music

From 1955 to 1967, the Ithaca High School Band received national recognition for its musicianship and innovation under the direction of Frank Battisti. During this time, the band commissioned 24 new compositions (many by Pulitzer Prize winners and some now important wind ensemble pieces), performed at locations such as the Eastman School of Music, the New York World's Fair and Rockefeller Center, and played with many guest soloists and conductors including Benny Goodman and Doc Severinsen. A book, One Band that Took a Chance by Brian Norcross, was later published about the IHS band of this era.^[17] On May 7, 2009, Ithaca High School held a 50th Anniversary concert in honor of Frank Battisti and the 1959 commission of Warren Benson's piece Night Song, which included a new commission by the local composer Gregory B. Rudgers, Night Fantasy.

The Ithaca High School Orchestra, meanwhile, is one of the oldest high school orchestras in the country, having been established in 1904. It celebrated its 100th anniversary with a celebration and concert that included a newly commissioned work entitled Enlightened City by composer Robert Paterson.^[18]

Publications

The Ithaca High School newspaper, the Tattler, founded in 1892, is one of the oldest high school student newspapers in the country. At times in its history (in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as more recently beginning in 2005) it has been involved in controversy over claims of unconstitutional school censorship.^[19] Paul Wolfowitz and Stephen L. Carter were both editors for the paper during their time at Ithaca High School.

FIRST Robotics

The Ithaca High School FIRST Robotics Team, Code Red Robotics (Team 639), notably sponsored by Borg Warner Morse TEC and Cornell University, has won first place in several regional competitions including the 2004 Canadian Regional, the 2013 and 2014 Cleveland Regionals,the 2016 Finger Lakes Regional, and the 2017 Hudson Valley Regional, as well as winning the GM Industrial Design Award in 2002, 2004, 2005 and 201. In the 2012 season, they won the Regional Engineering Inspiration award, the second most prestigious award given in the FIRST organization at a regional level. This award qualified the team for the World Championships where the team advanced to finals of their division with alliance partners Team 68 and Team 330.^[20]

Administration

IHS has in recent years had very high administrator turnover. Since 1988, fourteen principals have passed through IHS, and only one has stayed for longer than three years.^[21]

In February 2008, principal Joseph M. Wilson was granted tenure in return for agreeing to resign at the end of the 2008–2009 school year.^[22] Wilson had been the subject of considerable controversy in his time at IHS. In 2005 he was sued in federal court for the alleged censorship of the school newspaper, The Tattler; the case was ultimately ruled on by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. In December 2007, over 200 Ithaca residents signed a petition calling for him to be fired^[9] after what they believed was Wilson's mishandling of a series of racially charged incidents in the school.^[10] In a 2014 article in the Tompkins Weekly about the high principal turnover, Wilson said:

"A principal can be successful if there is a common set of assumptions about how students are going to progress through the school and how they are going to behave in the school." During his stint, he says, there was "no commonality among board members about how things should transpire, how things should be done and what should occur if things don’t play out as planned. Every situation and every student was some kind of exception. That simply doesn’t work," he explains. ... "Each of the nine board members gave us his or her opinion, direction, criticism. Nothing they said was consistent," Wilson says. ...

"This is an academic community more than anything else. College and graduate-level academics are used to developing their own ideas and holding fast to them. Most people in an academic community are not compelled to collaborate. They adhere to their own views and advocate for them without coming to a consensus. In the absence of consensus or compromise, that approach carries over into the decision-making process in the public arena," Wilson says.^[23]

In August 2014, Jarrett Powers announced he was leaving to become Superintendent of the Union Springs Central School District.^[24] He was replaced by longtime teacher and coach Jason Trumble.

Principals

• D.O Barto, 1890–1892
• Frank David Boynton, 1893–1912
• Frank R. Bliss, c. 1930-1962
• Dr. John Graves, 1963–1973
• ?? 1973-1979
• John Caren, 1979–1988
• Leslie Graves (interim), 1988-1989
• Randy Ehrenberg (interim), 1989-1991
• George Kiley, 1991–1993
• Dr. Mark Piechota (interim), 1993-1994
• Dr. Kathryn Hellweg, 1994–1996
• Dr. Kevin Mack, (interim), 1996–1997
• Susan B. Strauss, 1997–2000
• Ismael Villafañe, 2000–2003
• Charles LaBarbera (interim), 2003–2004
• Joseph M. Wilson, J.D., 2004–2009
• Donald Mills, 2009–2011
• Jarett Powers, 2011–2014
• Jason Trumble, 2014–present

Notable alumni

The following is an incomplete list of notable Ithaca High School alumni:

• Dustin Brown, NHL player and Stanley Cup champion with the Los Angeles Kings
• Andrew Byrnes 2001, rower in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics
• Stephen L. Carter 1972, author, commentator, and Yale Law School professor^[25]
• George Fletcher Chandler, first Superintendent of the New York State Police (1917–1921)^[26]
• Jacob Cornelius 2002, Olympic rower
• Caryn Davies 2000, Olympic rower
• Arthur Dean 1916, chief international negotiator for President Dwight Eisenhower^[27]
• Noah Feldshuh 2006, musician, former guitarist for X Ambassadors^[28]
• Daniel Mark Fogel, 1965, President of the University of Vermont, 2002–2011
• James L. Gibbs, Jr., 1948, cultural anthropologist, professor at Stanford and Harvard^[29]
• Sam Harris, 2006, musician, X Ambassadors
• Bruce Hayes 1973, linguist, professor at UCLA
• Sharon Hammes-Schiffer, professor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Member of National Academy of Sciences
• Roger Howe 1961, mathematician and Yale professor
• Mia Korf 1983, actress (The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd, One Life to Live)
• Matthew Levatich (born 1965), CEO of Harley-Davidson^[30]
• Steven Levitsky, Harvard University government professor
• Disashi Lumumba-Kasongo 2000, musician, Gym Class Heroes
• Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo 2004, rapper (better known as "Sammus")
• Daniel R. Mackesey, National Lacrosse Hall of Fame member
• Tamdan McCrory 2004, wrestler;^[31] professional mixed martial artist for the UFC^[32]
• Mary McDonnell, actress (Battlestar Galactica, Dances with Wolves)
• Alex Meyer 2006, Olympic swimmer^[33]
• John Roemer 1962, economist and Yale professor
• Hugh Troy, noted practical joker
• Maïa Vidal 2006, musician
• Paul Wolfowitz 1961, United States Deputy Secretary of Defense (2001–2005), World Bank President (2005–2007)

See also

• List of high schools in New York
• The Tattler

References and further reading

• {{cite journal

• {{cite journal

• Terzian, Sevan G. "The Founding of IHS", serialized in The Tattler, 2004–2005
• Terzian, Sevan G., & Beadie, N. "'Let the People Remember It': Academies and the Rise of Public High Schools, 1865-1890", in N. Beadie & K. Tolley (Eds.), Chartered Schools: Two Hundred Years of Independent Academies in the United States, 1727-1925, pp. 251–283. New York: RoutledgeFalmer, 2002.

External links

• Official Ithaca High School website
• Alumni & Friends of Ithaca High School
• The Tattler, online site for the school newspaper
• [https://sites.google.com/site/ihsboysvarsityhockey/ Ithaca High School Boys' Varsity Hockey]

• Utah Territorial Prison
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• Utah Territory in the American Civil War
• Utah, This is the Place
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• Utah (U.S. state)
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