Omaha Benson High School Magnet, Benson High Magnet, or Benson High, is located at 5120 Maple Street in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest c ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, United States, in the Benson community of Omaha. The original site of Benson High was the current building that houses Benson West Elementary School. Founded in 1904, Benson High is one of the oldest high schools in the state. Its enrollment is approximately 1,500 students. As of 2018, the principal was Tom Wagner. The school mascot is the Bunny. A full renovation of the school was completed in the mid-1990s. Additions included a new science classroom wing, an auditorium for the performing arts, a gymnasium, a student commons area and a track and football field. The football field and track were redone once again during the 2006 summer. Benson is currently participating in NASA's Student Launch Initiative program. Omaha Benson High School is also one of the Omaha area schools that participates in the yearly Day of Silence event.

Athletics

State championships

"The N-Word" controversy

In April 2007, the student newspaper published a four-page special feature entitled "The N-Word" examining the use of the racial epithet " nigger" within the school community. It included factual reporting, editorial content, and a transcript of a round-table discussion on the topic in one of the school's ethics classes. Community response was mixed. Many students and parents, and the school's principal, were supportive of the newspaper's coverage, but the school district received many phone calls expressing concern or offense at the content. The school district, Omaha Public Schools, put the principal on temporary administrative leave and denounced the publication. The principal was later reinstated.

Notable alumni

* Tom Becka, talk radio personality * Jackie Brandt, MLB player and 1961

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

All-Star * Walter Holden Capps, U.S. Representative from California * Hal Daub, U.S. Representative from Nebraska * Terry Goodkind, fantasy author *

Dave Hoppen David Dirk Hoppen (born March 13, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other leagues. Hoppen played college basketball for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and is the progr ...

(born 1964), NBA player *

Floyd Kalber Floyd Kalber (December 23, 1924 – May 13, 2004) was an American television journalist and anchorman, nicknamed "The Big Tuna." Life and career Born in Omaha, Nebraska, he spent two years in the army during World War II and began his televis ...

, television journalist * David Karnes, U.S. Senator from Nebraska, 1987 through 1989 *

Kenton Keith Kenton Jermaine Keith (born July 14, 1980) is a former American football running back. He was signed by the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL) in 2003 Then the National Football League Colts (NFL) in 2007. He played ...

, professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

player *

Nile Kinnick Nile Clarke Kinnick Jr. (July 9, 1918 – June 2, 1943) was an American naval aviator, law student, and college football player at the University of Iowa. He won the 1939 Heisman Trophy and was a consensus All-American. He died during a trainin ...

, football player and 1939

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...

winner * Nick Nolte (born 1941), film actor *

Robert Reed Robert Reed (born John Robert Rietz Jr.; October 19, 1932 – May 12, 1992) was an American actor. He played Kenneth Preston on the legal drama '' The Defenders'' from 1961 to 1965 alongside E. G. Marshall, and is best known for his role as the ...

, science fiction author *

Amber Ruffin Amber Mildred Ruffin (born January 9, 1979) is an American comedian. She hosts her own late-night talk show titled ''The Amber Ruffin Show'' on NBC and Peacock. She has been a writer for ''Late Night with Seth Meyers'' since 2014. When she joined ...

, writer, Late Night With Seth Meyers, The Detroiters (Comedy Central), The Amber Ruffin Show * Khyri Thomas (born 1996), American basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl ( he, ליגת העל, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional competition in Israeli club basketball, making it Israel's primary basketball c ...

and the EuroLeague, former NBA player * Tony Veland, NFL safety *

Andre Woolridge Andre Woolridge (born November 11, 1973) is an American former basketball player. He was an All-American college player at the University of Iowa and played professionally for 12 years in nine different countries. In 2005, he was the Israeli P ...

, professional basketball player, All American at the University of Iowa

References

External links