Northside High School (Lafayette, Louisiana)
| Northside High School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
|
301 Dunand Street Lafayette, Louisiana 70501 United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Principal | Melinda Voorhies |
| Grades | 9 to 12 |
| Color(s) | Red, Black, White |
| Mascot | Mighty Vikings |
| Website | www.northsidehs.com |
Mission statement
Northside High School is located in the North part of the city of Lafayette, Louisiana; hence "Northside". It has an excellent athletic system, and the football team was state runner up in 2005 and 6-4A district champion from 2009 and 2010. Also the Basketball team and Wrestling team won the 4A State Championship in 2006. Cross Country won 3rd in district in 2004 and 1st in District in 2010. The school itself is predominantly African American. The Female track and field team have won 3 back to back 6-4A State Championships from years 2008 to 2010, and the Males have won 2 back to back State Championships years 2009 and 2010.Ron Guidry, former pitcher and current pitching coach for the New York Yankees, is an alumnus of Northside High School. Perry Stevenson, currently a College Basketball player for the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team, is an alumnus of Northside High School. He was recruited out of Northside High School by Coach Tubby Smith at Kentucky. Dr. Toby Daspit (class of 1984) is a famous intellectual in the field of critical pedagogy, particularly relating to popular culture and postmodernism. Daspit is an Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the Co-Director of The National Writing Project of Acadiana, and a Doris B. & Mike Aderman/BOR Endowed Professor. Daniel Cormier won 3 Louisiana state championships for wrestling. After 9th grade Cormier only lost twice, both times by injury default. His final high school record was 101-9, with 89 of his victories coming by a fall. Twice he was voted the most outstanding wrestler of the state tournament. In 1995 Cormier won a bronze medal in the world championships in Greco-Roman Wrestling, in the cadet (15–16 years old) division. Cormier was also an all-state football player at the linebacker position, and had a fast 4.5 time on the 40 yard dash.[1] Cormier was offered a scholarship to play football at LSU, but declined in order to continue to pursue wrestling. Cormier is now the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.[2]
Northside is a participating school which offers The School's of Choice Program and home to The Law Studies program which includes a state of the art mocktrial room ran by Ms.Liz Tullier. The NHS Law Signature programs consist of Law 1 (Street Law), Law 2 (criminal justice and mock trial activities), Law 3 (paralegal studies, forensic psychology, and mock trial activities), and Speech/Debate for the law student.
The students participate in regional mock trial competition and host a law week for NHS social studies classes. During this week the law students perform a mock trial and conduct activities for the students. The law students also participate in a field trip to Angola and tour the federal courthouse.
The future of the program depends on recruitment for students into the program. The Young Lawyers Association in Lafayette and the Neuner & Pate Law Firm has been vital components of our program. We would also like to expand the program to include dual enrollment in the local community college in the field of criminal justice and perhaps a criminal justice training program for potential law enforcement officers.
Schools of Choice Academies
Engineering Academy Northside is the home of the Engineering Academy, which offers students across the Lafayette area to come from their freshmen year to graduation. The Academy of Engineering serves dual purposes. The main goal is to prepare students to be successful in a post-secondary field of study related to Engineering or Industrial Technology. The second goal is to help students determine which specific Engineering or Industrial Technology discipline most appeals to them and catches their interest as a possible future career. Courses include Engineering I and II, Drafting I and II, General Technology Education, and Technology Education Computer Applications.