Springfield High School (SHS) is a public secondary school located in Springfield,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

, United States. It is the oldest of the three high schools in Springfield Public Schools District 186 (the other two being Southeast High School and

Lanphier High School Lanphier High School, in the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois, Springfield, is a public high school affiliated with Springfield Public School District 186. It is also the home of the John Marshall Club, a club with open membership dedicate ...

). The school draws mainly from the west side of Springfield. While the school opened in 1857, the current building was opened in 1916. A number of notable alumni have called the school home, with the writer

Vachel Lindsay Nicholas Vachel Lindsay (; November 10, 1879 – December 5, 1931) was an American poet. He is considered a founder of modern ''singing poetry,'' as he referred to it, in which verses are meant to be sung or chanted. Early years Lindsay was bor ...

being the most associated with the town, which featured prominently in his writings.

Building history and architecture

Springfield High School opened on 4 September 1857 in a small building on Market Street, now known as Capitol Avenue. It was located in this building for only a single school year before it moved to the Academy Building on South 5th Street near Monroe until 1864. In 1865, a $65,000 school building was completed for the high school and was located on 4th and Madison Street. Due to congestion, Central High School was built in 1897, but was already overcrowded by 1915. In 1915, plans were made to erect a new school in Forest Park. Once the site of a church and Hutchinson Cemetery, the church was gone, but there were still gravestones and remains that were moved to Oak Ridge Cemetery before construction could begin. The new school was completed in 1916. There are four mosaics on the exterior walls of the building completed by Henry Chapman Mercer. The original molds are a part of the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works.

Academics

In 2008, SHS had an average composite ACT score of 22.0, and graduated 91.0% of its senior class. Springfield High School has not made

Adequate Yearly Progress Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing a ...

(AYP) on the

Prairie State Achievement Examination The Prairie State Achievement Examination (PSAE) was a two-day standardized test taken by all high school Juniors in the U.S. state of Illinois. On the first day, students take the ACT, and on the second day, a WorkKeys examination and Illinois S ...

, which with the ACT, comprise the State of Illinois' assessment as part of the federal

No Child Left Behind Act The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) was a U.S. Act of Congress that reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; it included Title I provisions applying to disadvantaged students. It supported standards-based educati ...

. The school, overall, did not meet AYP in mathematics, and two student subgroups failed to meet AYP in both mathematics and reading.

Student life

Activities

29 student clubs are hosted at SHS, ranging from academic and foreign language to school spirit and philanthropic. Among the national organizations with chapters or affiliates at the school are Junior State of America, Model United Nations, and the

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic ach ...

. The school's scholastic bowl team finished fourth at the IHSA state championship tournament in 2008, as well as second in 2021.

Athletics

Springfield High School competes in the Central State Eight Conference, and is a member of the

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National Fed ...

(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic athletics and competitive activities in Illinois. Teams are stylized as the "Senators". SHS sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

cross country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

, soccer,

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball c ...

, and

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

. Young men may compete in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

, football, and

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

, while young women may compete in

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ent ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

, and

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

. The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state championship tournaments or meets: * Baseball: 2nd place (1984–85) 2nd place (2015–16) State Champions 2020-21 * Basketball (boys'): 4th place (1915–16); 3rd place (1966–67); 2nd place (1914–15, 1918–19, 1932–33); State Champions (1916–17, 1934–35, 1958–59) * Basketball (girls'): 4th place (2008–09, 2011–12); 3rd place (2009–10, 2010–11) * Cross Country (boys'): 4th place (2007–08, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2017–18); 3rd place (2009–10); 2nd place (2010–11, 2018–19) * Cross Country (girls'): State Champions (2009–10); 3rd place (2010–11); 4th place (2011–12) * Golf (boys'): 4th place (1952–53, 1953–54, 1986–87) * Golf (girls'): 2nd place (1984–85, 1985–86) * Soccer (boys'): State Champions (1997–98); 3rd place (2014–15) * Softball: 3rd place (1991–92) * Tennis (boys'): 4th place (1949–50) * Track & Field (boys'): 4th place (1894–95, 1913–14, 1915–16, 1919–20, 1921–22); 3rd place (1892–93, 1918–19); 2nd place (1945–46, 1946–47) * Track & Field (girls'): 4th place (2013–14); 3rd place (2010–11)

Fine arts

Springfield has three choir groups and one showhchoir (Seven and Senators, Scarlet Harmony, Mixed Chorus, and IN Session Showchoir). The "IN Session" showchoir is an extracurricular activity who rehearses two nights a week. IN Session showchoir is a choir that combine choral singing with dance. Started in 2011, IN Session performs around the city of Springfield and competes around the Midwest. Since 2011, IN Session showchoir has won numerous awards and has been rank by the Nation showchoir rank system. The school has a marching band, which performs at home football games and at other local events, and two pep bands, which take turns playing at home basketball games. For the concert season there are three groups (Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Wind Ensemble). There are also two jazz bands and a flute choir, along with a clarinet choir. The school stages a play each autumn and a musical each spring. Recent musicals include ''

Cats The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

, created by

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musica ...

, ''

Legally Blonde ''Legally Blonde'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Robert Luketic in his feature-length directorial debut, and scripted by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith from Amanda Brown's 2001 novel of the same name. It stars Reese Wit ...

'', ''Hairspray,'' and "Beauty and the Beast."

PLATO (computer system)

The only remote

PLATO Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institutio ...

III terminal was at Springfield High School. It was connected to the PLATO III system by a video connection and a separate dedicated line for keyboard data.

Notable alumni

* Charles A. Bane (class of 1930) was a prominent jurist and civil rights activist. He was nominated by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was t ...

to the

United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in case citations, 7th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts: * Central District of Illinois * Northern District of Il ...

, but never confirmed. *

Thom Bishop Born Thomas Burke Bishop, Jr., Junior Burke is an American fiction writer, songwriter and educator. Fiction Burke's novel, ''Something Gorgeous ''was published in 2005. This work of speculative fiction explored the background of the era that spa ...

(class of 1969) is a songwriter, author, producer, playwright, and educator. * Thomas A. Broady (class of 1896) was a ragtime piano composer and performer. *

J. Edward Day James Edward Day (October 11, 1914 – October 29, 1996) was an American lawyer and business executive, most widely known as the United States Postmaster General under whose leadership the ZIP code was introduced. Early years and career J ...

(class of 1932) was a lawyer and political appointee who served as Illinois State Insurance Commissioner before being appointed U.S. Postmaster General (1961–63) by President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

. * Toy Dorgan (class of 1963) is a former

speed skater Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...

who placed 14th in the 3,000 meter event at the 1968 Winter Olympics. She later took up

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreatio ...

, winning the Australian national championship five times. * John Porter East (class of 1949) was a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

(1981–86). * Ruth Ellis was the oldest known open lesbian, and a

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , ...

activist. Her life was the subject of a documentary, ''Living With Pride: Ruth C. Ellis @ 100''. She formed the Ruth Ellis Center, a social service agency dedicated to helping LGBTQ teens and youth adults experiencing homelessness. *

Robert Fitzgerald Robert Stuart Fitzgerald (; 12 October 1910 – 16 January 1985) was an American poet, literary critic and translator whose renderings of the Greek classics "became standard works for a generation of scholars and students".Mitgang, Herbert (Janua ...

(class of 1928) is known for translating many Greek texts into the English versions that many consider the standard. From 1984–85, he was Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, the equivalent of Poet Laureate of the United States. * Richard Fortman (class of 1933) was a champion

checkers Checkers (American English), also known as draughts (; British English), is a group of strategy board games for two players which involve diagonal moves of uniform game pieces and mandatory captures by jumping over opponent pieces. Checkers ...

player and authority on the game.Fox, Margalit
"Richard L. Fortman, a Champion at Checkers, Dies at 93"
''The New York Times'', November 29, 2008. Accessed December 25, 2008.Staff
"Richard L. Fortman"
''

State Journal-Register ''The State Journal-Register'' is the only local daily newspaper for Springfield, Illinois, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1831 as the ''Sangamo Journal'' by William Bailhache and Edward Baker, and describes itself as "the oldest new ...

'', November 10, 2008. Accessed December 25, 2008. * Jerry Fry (class of 1974) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

player, briefly playing for the Montréal Expos in 1978. * William Howarth (class of 1958) is a writer and professor at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

. He studies the relationship between man and nature, especially as expressed in literature. * Justin Knoedler (class of 1998) was a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catcher ...

for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

(2004–06). * Andrew Lam (class of 1994) author and retinal surgeon *

(class of 1897) was a poet (''

The Golden Book of Springfield ''The Golden Book of Springfield'' is a mysticism, mystic, utopian book by American poet Vachel Lindsay. It is the only extended, narrative work of prose fiction written by Lindsay. Written from 1904 to 1918 and published in 1920, it has histori ...

'', ''

Bryan, Bryan, Bryan, Bryan "Bryan, Bryan, Bryan, Bryan" is a lyric poem by American poet Vachel Lindsay. Written in August 1919, the poem recounts the dramatic rise and fall of U.S. presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan during the 1896 presidential campaign. T ...

'', '' Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight''). *

William H. Luers William Henry Luers (born May 15, 1929) is a retired American career diplomat and museum executive. He is the director of the Iran Project. In addition to a thirty-one-year career in the United States Foreign Service, Foreign Service, Luers has se ...

(class of 1947) is a career

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...

officer who served as

United States Ambassador Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the country's diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of the U. ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...

(1978–82) and

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

(1983–86). He later served as president of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 100 ...

. * James S. Martin Jr. (class of 1938) was the

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...

Project Manager for the

Viking program The ''Viking'' program consisted of a pair of identical American space probes, '' Viking 1'' and '' Viking 2'', which landed on Mars in 1976. Each spacecraft was composed of two main parts: an orbiter designed to photograph the surface of Mars ...

. * Jared Palomar (class of 2002) is a bass player for the California-based band Augustana. *

Dave Robisch David George Robisch (born December 22, 1949) is a retired American professional basketball player in the ABA and NBA. Robisch played at the University of Kansas, where he was initiated into the Sigma Nu fraternity. He was positioned at center ...

(class of 1967) played professional basketball in both the

ABA ABA may refer to: Businesses and organizations Broadcasting * Alabama Broadcasters Association, United States * Asahi Broadcasting Aomori, Japanese television station * Australian Broadcasting Authority Education * Académie des Beaux- ...

and

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United ...

(1971–84). His uniform number 40 is retired by the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

. * Ducky Schofield (class of 1953) is a former MLB player for the St. Louis Cardinals,

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. Founded as part o ...

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one o ...

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brookly ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eig ...

, and

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. The Brewers are named for the city's association wi ...

. *

Hiram Sherman Hiram Sherman (February 11, 1908 – April 11, 1989) was an American actor. Biography Hiram Sherman was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Clifford Leon Sherman, worked in the art department of ''The Boston Globe''. He made his Bro ...

was an actor, both on television, and on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. He twice won a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

('' Two's Company'', ''

How Now Dow Jones ''How Now, Dow Jones'' is a musical comedy by Academy Award winner Elmer Bernstein, Tony Award nominee Carolyn Leigh and Max Shulman. The original Broadway production opened in December 1967. A critically acclaimed revised version premiered Of ...

''). * Edward Sternaman was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. The ...

for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...

. From 1920–32 he was the co-owner of the Bears with

George Halas George Stanley Halas Sr. (; February 2, 1895October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was an American professional football player, coach, and team owner. He was the founder and owner of the National Football League's Chi ...

. * Joey Sternaman was a professional football quarterback (1922–30), playing most of his career with the Chicago Bears. *

N. Ronald Thunman Nils Ronald "Ron" Thunman (born 26 February 1932) is a retired vice admiral in the United States Navy. Thunman is the son of Swedish immigrants, and was raised in Springfield, Illinois, where he attended Springfield High School. During high sch ...

(class of 1949) served 35 years of active duty in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, rising to the rank of vice-admiral. His work included Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Submarine Warfare and Chief of Naval Education and Training. Thunman was the commander of the first-year class of John McCain.''John McCain Report''. azcentral.com. March 1, 2007. Accessed July 14, 2008. *

Bob Trumpy Robert Theodore Trumpy Jr. (born March 6, 1945) is a former professional American football tight end who played for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1968 through 1977. He was a two-time National Football League Pro Bowler and a two-time American Footb ...

(class of 1963) is a former

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The club's home ...

(1968–77). He is currently a broadcaster with the NFL on Westwood One. *

Harlington Wood Jr. Harlington Wood Jr. (April 17, 1920 – December 29, 2008) was an American lawyer, jurist, political figure and an amateur actor. He served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 197 ...

(class of 1938) was a jurist and lawyer who served on the

United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois The United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois (in case citations, S.D. Ill.) is a federal district court covering approximately the southern third of the state of Illinois. Appeals from the Southern District of Illinoi ...

(1973–76) and

(1976–2008). While working for the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and a ...

in 1973, he led negotiations that ended the

Wounded Knee incident The Wounded Knee Occupation, also known as Second Wounded Knee, began on February 27, 1973, when approximately 200 Oglala Lakota (sometimes referred to as Oglala Sioux) and followers of the American Indian Movement (AIM) seized and occupied ...

References

External links

Springfield High School website
{{authority control 1857 establishments in Illinois Educational institutions established in 1857 Public high schools in Illinois Schools in Springfield, Illinois