Wilbur Cross High School
| Wilbur Cross High School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
|
181 Mitchell Drive New Haven, Connecticut 06511 United States | |
| Information | |
| School district | New Haven Public Schools |
| Principal | Edith Johnson |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Color(s) | Red and White |
| Team name | The Governors |
| Website | http://schools.nhps.net/wcross/ |
Wilbur Cross High School is a four-year high school in New Haven, Connecticut serving ninth through twelfth grades. It is located in New Haven's East Rock neighborhood. The school is named for Connecticut Governor Wilbur L. Cross. It is the largest school in the New Haven School District in number of students as well as teachers.
The school operates with two semesters and four marking periods.
Advanced Placement
Wilbur Cross High School currently offers 15 Advanced Placement (AP) Classes: Biology, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Government & Politics: U.S., English Language & Composition, English Literature & Composition, Music Theory, Physics 1, Psychology, Spanish Language, Statistics, and U.S. History. In 2011 the school administered 360 exams to 180 students. Students are required to take the exams. The exam fee is covered by the New Haven School District.
Athletics
Wilbur Cross's mascot is the Governors, in recognition of the school's namesake. They compete in the Oronoque Division of the Southern Connecticut Conference. These sports are offered:
Fall
- Football
- Boys' Soccer
- Girls' Soccer
- Girls' Volleyball
- Boys' Cross Country
- Girls' Cross Country
Winter
- Boys' Basketball
- Girls' Basketball
- Boys' Indoor Track
- Girls' Indoor Track
Spring
- Baseball
- Softball
- Coed Lacrosse
- Tennis
- Golf
- Boys' Outdoor Track
- Girls' Outdoor Track
Basketball
The school's teams have a long tradition of success on the basketball court. At one time, Cross teams were regular participants in the New England Tournament, an event at the Boston Garden in which high school teams played before crowds of up to 15,000. However, Connecticut withdrew from the tournament after riots broke out in 1958 during the tournament final between Wilbur Cross and a Somerville, Massachusetts team. New Haven high schools dominated Connecticut high school basketball in the 1960s, when games were televised or held at the old New Haven Arena because the high school gyms were too small to accommodate the fans. Cross High School and cross-town rival Hillhouse High School won the state championship in nine of ten years of the decade of the 1960s.[1] One of the stars of the late 1960s teams, John "Super John" Williamson, averaged nearly 40 points per game for the Governors in 1970 and went to play college ball at New Mexico State University and star as a pro in the American Basketball Association.[2] In the 1973-1974 season The Washington Post ranked Cross the No. 1 high school team in the nation and a headline in the New York Post proclaimed Cross "The Best High School Team in the World" after the Governors defeated New York City's DeWitt Clinton High School team.[1][3] The 1999-2000 team was considered the state's best, with a 24-0 record, until being upset by Bridgeport Central High School in the quarterfinals of the state tournament.[1]
The 2007-2008 team had an undefeated regular season, going 20-0. The Governors won the division, the SCC tournament, and the BABC Holiday Classic, but lost to Lyman Hall by three points in the quarter-finals of the state tournament.[4]
Other Sports
The boys' soccer team won its division and advanced to the final 16 of the state championship in 2007. The boys' indoor track team finished second in Connecticut, also in the 2007-2008 year.
The football team plays Hillhouse High School every year on Thanksgiving in the Elm City Bowl.
Notable alumni
Casimir Loxsom, Olympic 800m specialist.
- Ben Allison, jazz bassist and composer
- Lauren Ambrose, actress
- Lubbie Harper, Jr. (1961), Connecticut Appellate Court judge[5]
- John Williamson (1970), star in the American Basketball Association, 1973–1981
- Dom Perno, former basketball coach at the University of Connecticut
- Earl Kelley (1982), former basketball player at the University of Connecticut, highest scoring high school basketball player in the country his senior year. Big East Rookie of the Year. [6]
- Scott Michaud (1982), speechwriter in Washington, DC. Former White House staffer during the Clinton Administration. Former senior speechwriter for US Office of Personnel Management, US Postal Service, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, MCI/Worldcom, Walmart, Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.
References
- 1 2 3 Wilbur Cross hoops brings back the magic by Kate Moran, Yale Herald, March 24, 2000
- ↑ New Haven's superstar: Williamson never left past too far behind, by Ken Davis, The Hartford Courant, 1999
- ↑ Paul Levy, THE BEST HIGH SCHOOL TEAM IN AMERICA, published in Connecticut Magazine, 1974; retrieved from ct-hs-hoops.com, April 14, 2008
- ↑ Boys Basketball, Southern Connecticut Conference website
- ↑ See http://www.jud.ct.gov/external/supapp/appjudge14.html and http://www.jud.ct.gov/external/news/press212.htm
- ↑ http://www.nhregister.com/article/NH/20121222/NEWS/312229953
External links
Coordinates: 41°19′27″N 72°54′31″W / 41.3243°N 72.9085°W