Allen High School is a public, co-educational secondary school in Allen, Texas (United States). It is one of the high schools in the Allen Independent School District. Student enrollment in 10th through 12th grade for the 2016â€"17 school year is 6,450, making Allen the largest high school in the state of Texas.
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, and a small portion of Allen.
History
The first 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 “2000â€, 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. It serves all 9th-grade students, with an enrollment of 1599 in 2016. The final expansion of the school was completed in 2011. The 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.
Location
- Main campus (10â€"12): 300 Rivercrest Blvd. Allen, TX 75002
- Freshman Center (9): 601 E. Main St. Allen, TX 75002
Academics
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 and elective courses.
Allen uses an 8:15Â a.m. to 3:35Â p.m. modified block schedule. The period schedule includes five standard periods per day, though students are required to be present for only four in 10th grade, and only three in 11th or 12th grade.
Allen High School was named a 2001â€"02 National Blue Ribbon School and a 2004 TEA Pathfinder School.
Extracurricular activities
Athletics
Football
The Allen Eagle football program has become one of the top football programs in Texas over the past decade, with playoff berths in every season since 2001, and a district title every season since 2006 In 2014, Allen became the fourth high school in state history to win the state championship 3 years in a row while being the first to do so in the state's largest classification.
2003 was the first season for Allen to make it to the State semi-finals, losing to Southlake Carroll.
In 2006 the varsity football team finished its season as the District 9-5A Champions by beating Plano East in the last game of the regular season, 22â€"17. Its only loss was to Garland in the season opener. In the playoffs the Allen Eagles beat Rowlett, Mesquite, Round Rock, and Spring Westfield, and made it to the state semifinals where they lost to Southlake Carroll. The team's regular season record was 9â€"1 with an overall record of 13â€"2.
The Eagles had a perfect (10â€"0) regular season in 2007, followed by a first-round playoff loss to Rowlett to end the season.
After finishing the 2008 regular season with a record of 9â€"1, the Eagles beat South Grand Prairie, Coppell, Odessa Permian, Euless Trinity, Round Rock Stony Point, and Fort Bend Hightower in the state championship to earn their first-ever state title, making them Texas' Class 5A Div I State Champions. Upon winning the championship, the Allen Eagles were ranked #2 in the nation by both ESPN Rise and Yahoo! Rivals High School rankings and they were ranked #5 by MaxPreps poll.
In the 2011 season, the Eagles went undefeated in the regular season with a perfect record (10â€"0), won the first-round playoff game against Keller Central but lost to Euless Trinity for the second year in a row.
The 2012 season marked the beginning of a record-setting win streak for the Eagles. Allen went 15â€"1 on the season, only losing to Coppell early in the season.
Allen won the Class 5A Division I football state championship game 35â€"21 against Houston Lamar, at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, on December 22, 2012.
Allen won the Class 5A Division I football state championship game 63â€"28 against Pearland High School at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, on December 21, 2013.
Allen won the Class 6A Division I football state championship game 47â€"16 against Cypress Ranch High School at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, on December 20, 2014.
Allen went 10â€"0 in the 2015 regular season but lost in the Division I State semi-final to Westlake High School (Texas), snapping a program-best 57-game winning streak, the 2nd longest ever in the state of Texas (the longest being 68 games, set by Celina High School.)
Allen went 10â€"0 again in the 2016 regular season but lost the Division I semi-final to The Woodlands High School.
Allen was named national champs by High School Football America after the 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons.
New stadium
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 (Allen Eagle Stadium) for the team. The stadium (which cost nearly $60 million) 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 new facility houses a weight room, wrestling practice facility, and indoor golfing facility.
On February 27, 2014, the stadium was closed due to cracking in concrete making it unsafe to use. The 2014 varsity football season played every game on the road, and still managed to go undefeated and win their third consecutive title earning the nickname "Road Warriors" by the local media.
After about $10 million in structural and design repairs by Pogue Construction and PBK (neither the district nor the Allen citizens having to pay anything extra), Allen's stadium was officially reopened on June 5, 2015, for its Class of 2015 graduation and allowed the varsity football team to once again host home games.
Rivalries
Allen has been in the same district with all three Plano Independent School District Senior High Schools (Plano East, Plano Senior, and Plano West) for two decades. Geographical neighbors, the schools make up four of the top 5 largest schools in the state, with Allen being the largest, and Plano West the second largest. While the two districts have a long history with one another, Allen's recent success has diminished the old-time rivalry. Over the past ten seasons, Allen has a 28â€"2 combined record against the Plano schools, with the last loss coming in 2005 against Plano Senior. Allen has a football winning streak against Plano East that began in the 1999 season, despite being a smaller school for most of those years. This success has allowed Allen to capture the District Title eight consecutive seasons.
Outside of district, Allen has had a rivalry with other notable state powerhouse programs:
- Coppell High School and Allen has had several intense games, with Allen's last regular season loss dating back to 2012 when they fell to Coppell 27â€"24 in OT. Both teams are 6A powerhouses, with Coppell reaching the state quarterfinals in 2010 and continuing to qualify for the playoffs while Allen had a three-peat from 2012 to 2014, with their lone loss in 2012 being to Coppell. In 2016 Allen traveled back to Coppell for the first time since their loss in 2012 and defeated Coppell by a score of 42â€"20, pulling away in the fourth quarter after the score was 21â€"20 Allen in the third quarter.
- Southlake Carroll has become a rival program for the Allen Eagles. Carroll ended the Eagle's playoff run four straight seasons between 2003 and 2006, twice in the state semi-finals. Allen and Carroll didn't meet again until the 2010 playoffs in the second round. On the last play of regulation, Allen scored a game-tying touchdown from 40 yards out to push the game into overtime. In the second overtime, Allen decided to go for a 2-point conversion for the win but was stopped yards short, giving Carroll the victory. This game is considered the greatest Texas high school game of the 2000s. Allen and Carroll didn't meet again until 2012, but for the first time in the regular season, as well as for the first game in their new stadium. Allen finally beat Southlake Carroll, with a score of 24â€"0, shutting out the Dragons. In 2013, the Eagles traveled to Dragon Stadium in Southlake, defeating Carroll once again.
- Euless Trinity has also become a rival of Allen over the past few seasons. Trinity and Allen first met in the 2008 regular season, when the Trinity Trojans were ranked the number one high school team in the nation. Allen lost at home (its first home loss in 4 seasons) to the Trojans 24â€"14. The two teams met again the same season, in the Area round of the 5A Division 1 state playoffs, neither has lost a game since their first matchup. This time, Allen emerged victorious, upsetting the top-ranked Trojans 34â€"21. The two teams met again in the 2009 regular season at Trinity, where Allen beat Trinity 35â€"28. The two teams met again in the 2010 state playoffs, this time Trinity overpowering Allen 37â€"35. The two teams would once again meet up in the 2014 State playoffs where Allen would emerge victorious 30â€"27.
- DeSoto has become Allen's most recent rival. Allen has defeated DeSoto in the playoffs 4 consecutive seasons; 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015.
Other athletic programs
The Allen Eagles swim & dive team regularly qualify and place swimmers in the UIL state meet.
The Allen High School girls' golf program achieved the first UIL state championship for the school by winning the state tournament in 2005. The team followed this with another state win in 2006 and also in 2012.
The Allen Eagles wrestling team won the THSCA dual state tournament in the 2008â€"09 season, defeating the defending UIL state champions Randall High School. The Eagle wrestling team also won the THSCA dual state tournament and UIL state tournament in the 2009â€"10 season, the 2010â€"11 season, the 2011â€"12 season, the 2012â€"13 season, the 2013â€"14 season, the 2014â€"15 season, and the 2015â€"16 season.
The Allen High School boys' bowling team won the 2001â€"02 and 2007â€"08 Texas High School Bowling Club Team Championships. The Allen girls' team was the state champion in 2003â€"04 and 2004â€"2005, becoming the first Texas boys' or girls' teams to repeat as state champions. The girls' bowling team won its third state championship against Plano East in the 2008â€"09 school year.
The Allen High School varsity hockey team won the 2006â€"07, 2008â€"09, and 2016â€"17 Texas State Championship, and the 2009 Rocky Mountain Regional Championship. The team placed second in the 2009â€"10 State Championship and was a quarterfinalist at the National Championships.
The girls' soccer team advanced to the state tournament in 1989, the team's inaugural season, and again in 1990 and 1998. The boys' program made it to the 1993, 1996 and 1997 regional finals.
In the 2008â€"09 school year, Allen High School was the state champion in football, hockey, girls' bowling and wrestling.
In 2011, Allen High School won 1st place in Culinary at the Texas ProStart Competition in Austin, TX. They then advanced to and placed 17th at the National ProStart Competition.
In the 2013â€"14 season Allen High School's basketball program went to the state championship for the first time in 50 years.
The Allen High School archery team has won the Texas Archery in the School state championship in 2014 and 2015.
The Allen High School shooting team won the overall SCTP national championship in 2015.
Band
The Allen Escadrille claims to be the country's largest high school marching band, with a membership of over 700 students. They play for the 6A football team, participate in competitions and perform in parades and other venues. The Escadrille was invited to perform in the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 2009, and performed in the 2006 Rose Parade as well as the 2016 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California. It received the Sudler Shield Award from the John Philip Sousa Foundation in 2004. It was also a participant in the 1994 St. Patrick's Day Parade in Dublin, Ireland, being the only high school band chosen to play at the Dublin Lord Mayors Ball; the 1995 and 1999 Texas Gubernatorial Parades; and the 1997 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. The Allen Eagle Escadrille won the 4A State Marching Band Competition in back-to-back years in 1987 and 1988.
Programs
Allen High School received the 2011 Grammy Signature School Gold Award, which recognizes U.S. public high schools making an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year.
The Allen Eagle Chorale Choir has been invited to go to TMEA this coming year, an event covering all of Texas and inviting only the top 5 schools to perform.
Allen High School also has a broadcast program, KGLE 3 Teen News. Between 1996 and 2006, the program had five first places Best of Shows, two-second places, one-third place, one-eighth place, and one not placed at the National Scholastic Press Association's biannual competition. it has also been a Pacemaker, finalist, five times. The KGLE broadcast program includes radio broadcast.
The Allen Orchestra was invited to perform at The International Midwest Clinic and Convention in 2006.
Allen High School's photography program won ATPI's Top Program contest in 2006.
The school's German folk dancing team took first place in the 2005 state competition and third place in state finals in 2006.
The Allen Clinical Rotation Program received a new technology lab.
In the spring of 2011, Allen High School's Rugby team was runner-up in the Division 2 State Championship in Houston Texas.
Notable alumni
- Jonathan Williams (2012), NFL player
- Matt "Zyos" Leto (2002), retired professional Halo player and game designer
- Matt Barr (2002), actor
- Dan Buckner (2008), CFL player
- Casey Dick (2005), college quarterback
- Amanda Dunbar (2000), artist
- Pat McCarty (2000), professional cyclist
- Julie McCullough (1983), Playboy centerfold, actress, stand-up comedian
- Kyler Murray (2015), college quarterback
- Uzoma Nwachukwu (2009), NFL player
- Cedric Ogbuehi (2010), NFL player
- Carly Patterson (2006), 2004 Olympic All-Around Champion in artistic gymnastics
- Ben Shepard (2000), musician with Uzi and Ari
- Steven Terrell (2009), NFL player
- Shawn Tolleson (2006), MLB pitcher
- J. D. Walton (2005), NFL player
- Mike Wilson (2013), Master of Youtube videos
References
External links
- Allen High School
- Allen Independent School District
