Bemidji High School is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

Bemidji, Minnesota Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, Minnesota, Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. According to 2022 census estimates, the ci ...

, United States. The school is situated on a campus two miles (3 km) west of downtown Bemidji. The

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

runs behind the high school. Constructed in 2000, Bemidji High School is the largest in northern Minnesota in terms of student enrollment. The high school received fame when it was featured on

Larry the Cable Guy Daniel Lawrence Whitney (born February 17, 1963), known professionally as Larry the Cable Guy, is an American stand-up comedy, stand-up comedian, actor, and former radio personality. He was one of the members of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, a ...

's new show, ''

Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy ''Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy'' is an American travel documentary series that aired for three seasons from 2011 to 2013 on History. It premiered on February 8, 2011. Premise In the series, Larry the Cable Guy Daniel Lawrence W ...

''. The show emphasized the fact that BHS is the only high school in the world to offer a

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide #Curling stone, stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area that is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take t ...

class. BHS was named a Silver Medal School by the ''

US News ''U.S. News & World Report'' (''USNWR'', ''US NEWS'') is an American media company publishing news, consumer advice, rankings, and analysis. The company was launched in 1948 as the merger of domestic-focused weekly newspaper ''U.S. News'' and ...

'' and ranked 29th out of 786 Minnesota high schools.

Construction

Prompted by aging facilities and an increasing student population, the district hired an architect to examine the district’s facility needs and develop solutions. The result is a new high school on 260 heavily wooded acres bordered by the Mississippi River. The educational spaces are arranged in academic clusters, each featuring general-purpose classrooms, labs, spaces, a special project center and teacher planning centers. The project was officially completed in April 2001.

Athletics

Bemidji High School's mascot is the Lumberjack. The school offers boys' and girls' soccer, swimming, basketball,

Nordic skiing Nordic skiing encompasses the various types of skiing in which the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the binding in a manner that allows the heel to rise off the ski, unlike alpine skiing, where the boot is attached to the ski from toe to heel. Re ...

, hockey, golf, tennis, baseball, softball, dance line,

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...

, curling, cheerleading, wrestling, football, gymnastics, and

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

School Day

Bemidji High School operates on a block schedule. On Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday students have only four classes that are 90 minutes long. With this schedule, students can take more classes throughout the year. Effective for the 2024-2025 school year, a five-period per day schedule was introduced.

Academics

Bemidji High School offers over 200 different class options. BHS encompasses several

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

courses as well as Project Lead the Way courses in the school.

Activities

Bemidji High School offers a variety of different activities: * Art Club * Environmental Club *

FIRST Robotics Competition FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) is an international high school robotics competition operated by ''FIRST''®. Each year, teams of high school students, coaches, and mentors work to build robots capable of competing in that year's game. Robots c ...

Team * GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) * FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) * Interact Club * JROTC * Knowledge Bowl * Link Crew * Math League * Mock Trial * Model UN * National Honor Society * Outdoor Adventure Club * Science Olympiad * Speech Team * Student Congress * Student Council * Yearbook

Arts

Bemidji High School is home to two

show choir A show choir (previously known as a "swing choir") is a Ensemble (musical theatre), musical ensemble that combines choral singing with choreographed dance, often integrated into a narrative story or overarching theme. Origin Show choirs have been ...

organizations, La Voce Ballo (Women's, grades 9-12) and, Vocalmotive (mixed, grades 9-12).

Notable alumni

Bronko Nagurski Bronislau "Bronko" Nagurski (November 3, 1908 – January 7, 1990) was a Canadian-American professional football player who was a fullback and defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). Renowned for his strength and size, Nagurski ...

(1926), Hall of Fame NFL player *

Mike Falls Michael Lee Falls (born March 3, 1934) is an American former professional American football, football Guard (American football), guard in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at the University of ...

(1952), former NFL player *

Gary Burger Gary Burger (June 7, 1942 – March 14, 2014) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and vocalist for the rock band the Monks. Biography Burger joined the U.S. Army immediately after graduating from Bemidji High School and was sta ...

(1960), lead singer of

The Monks The Monks, referred to by the name monks on record sleeves, were an American rock band formed in Gelnhausen, West Germany, in 1964. Assembled by five American GIs stationed in the country, the group grew tired of the traditional format of ro ...

* Gary Sargent (1972), former NHL player * Bill Israelson (1975), former PGA Tour golfer * Bryan Hickerson (c. 1982), former MLB pitcher * George Pelawa (1986), 1986 Minnesota Mr. Hockey * Joe Motzko (1998), former NHL player * Frank Mays (c. 2009), indoor professional football player *

Ber (musician) Berit Dybing (born April 7, 1998), known as Ber, is an American indie pop singer-songwriter. She has released three EPs: ''And I’m Still Thinking About That'' (2022), ''Halfway'' (2023), and ''Room For You'' (2024). Early life and education Dyb ...

, Indie pop musician

References

{{authority control Public high schools in Minnesota Schools in Beltrami County, Minnesota