- Edina High School is a three-year public high school located in Edina, Minnesota, a first-tier suburb of Minneapolis. The school was founded in 1949 and has a current enrollment of approximately 2,000 students.
- Edina High School is identified as a "Five Star School" by the Minnesota Department of Education and a "National School of Excellence" by the U. S. Department of Education. Newsweek ranked the school #89 in their "List of the 1200 Top High Schools in America", and the Grammy Foundation selected it as one of forty-two "Signature Schools" recognizing Edina's contributions to music education. Ninety-six percent of seniors go onto college and eighty-six percent finish in five years. A recent survey conducted 10 years after graduation showed that 45% of Edina graduates completed graduate school degrees or were pursuing graduate degrees.
- Following a review of over 30,000 U.S. High Schools, Sports Illustrated ranked the Edina High School athletic program 8th in the U.S for 2005. (Sports Illustrated, May, 2005).
- History teacher Lonni Skrentner was selected Minnesota History Teacher of the Year in 2004 by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. She is currently running for School Board against four incumbents in the fall of 2009. 72% of Edina High School teachers hold advanced, specialist, or doctoral degrees.
- A second high school, Edina West High School, opened in 1973 adjacent to Valley View Junior High. At that time, what was known as Edina High School was renamed Edina East High School. However, due to declining enrollment Edina East was closed in 1981 and became the Edina Community Center while Edina West became Edina High School.
- In November 2003, city of Edina residents passed an $85.8 million bond referendum to renovate all school facilities in the district, with the high school undergoing major renovations. Construction began on the high school in May 2004 and was completed in 2007.
- History
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Before a high school opened in Edina, students looking to extend their education past eighth grade had to find their way down to the old Central High School at 4th Avenue and South 11th Street in Minneapolis. By the 1940s some Edina students in grades 10 through 12 attended private high schools. Of those who could not afford to attend a private high school, some were enrolled at St. Louis Park High School while many others were being "farmed out" to West and Southwest High Schools in Minneapolis. In 1941, Minneapolis schools raised their tuition for out-of-city students, and despite the increase, Edina residents voted to pay the increased tuition rather than build their own high school.
- During the mid-1940s, support for an Edina-Morningside junior and senior high school was increasing. However, World War II and the resulting shortage of building materials delayed construction of the Edina-Morningside Junior and Edina-Morningside Senior High School. But after the war, support for the new school began to resurface. Two sites for the new school had the most support. One was on the property that is currently occupied by the Edina Country Club near 50th Street and Wooddale Avenue and the other was at West 56th Street and Normandale Road. Although the 50th and Wooddale site was the center of the village's population at the time, the 56th and Normandale site was nearer to the school district's geographic center and was the eventual site chosen to build the new school.
- The first high school to open in Edina, later known as Edina East, is now the site of the Edina Community Center and Normandale Elementary School. It was built as a combination high school/junior high. A $1.25 million school bond issue was passed in 1946 by the residents of Edina and ground was broken in October 1947. A year later the school was dedicated. It was not until the fall of 1949 that classes began and it was at that time that the student body chose the school colors (green and white) and the school mascot, the Hornet. The school had 28 classrooms, 11 special rooms and laboratories, a library and a special radio room. In 1952, one year after the first class graduated, a gymnasium and auditorium were added to the building.
- In the 1960s, the high school was becoming overcrowded. As a result, on October 20, 1970, a $9.255 million bond issue was approved by voters to construct a new high school attached to Valley View Junior High School. Construction of the new high school began on May 24, 1971 and the school was opened in the fall of 1972. The Edina East High School retained the "Hornets" and Edina West High School became the "Cougars."
- In 1981, due to declining enrollment, Edina East was closed and Edina West was renamed Edina High School. Part of the old high school building was converted to the Edina kindergarten center in 1987 and the Edina Senior Center. Today the building is used as a community center, housing the French Immersion K-5 elementary school, the school district's main offices and the school district's Welcome Center.
- Extracurricular
- The school newspaper is Zephyrus, and is a member of the High School National Ad Network.
- The school has a student-published literary magazine entitled Images.
- The school yearbook is titled Windigo.
- The school has a remarkable theater program.
- Athletics
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In the May 16, 2005 issue of Sports Illustrated, Edina High School's athletic program was ranked #8 among all United States high schools.
- Edina High School is a member of the Classic Lake Conference in the Minnesota State High School League. Edina claims 126 high school state championships, most of them earned in tennis, swimming, and boys hockey. In 2000, the school was recognized as the first school in the state of Minnesota to win more than 100 state championships. The boys' hockey team has won a state-record nine championships, eight under Willard Ikola alone. Six of the championships were won under Edina and three were won under Edina East when the district was split into two different schools, Edina East and Edina West. However, the Minnesota State High School League does not count Edina East and Edina as the same school. Edina holds the record for most consecutive state championships in girls tennis with fifteen from 1978 to 1992.
- Key: E = Edina East, W = Edina West
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- - Denotes state record
- The 1999 state championship was a tie between Eden Prairie High School and Edina High School; this was the first tie at a state championship in Minnesota
- 1969 Before playoffs existed, 1969 undefeated Edina Hornets were ranked #1 in the state. Team was mentioned in Sports Illustrated.
- Notable alumni
- Chris Perry, professional golfer with one PGA Tour victory
- Dave Ostlund (1999) Professional World's Strongest Man competitor
- Ric Flair (1967), Former pro wrestler of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and American Wrestling Association (AWA).
- Paris Bennett (through 11th grade), contestant on the television show American Idol. She finished 5th in the 5th season
- David Bloom (1981), reporter
- Roy J. Bostock (1958), business executive
- Tom Brown (1978 West) Professional Boxing Matchmaker - Goossen Tutor Promotions
- Robert Bruss (1958), lawyer, real estate broker, author, and newspaper columnist
- Brian Burke (1973), General Manager and executive VP, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Barbara Peterson Burwell 1972), Miss USA 1976
- Joseph Cavanaugh (1977) Founder of Youth Frontiers
- Sheila Maley Ellison (1978 West) is an author, and nationally recognized speaker on successful parenting.
- Stan Freese (1962), tuba player, band director, and talent booking & casting director with The Walt Disney Company
- Sam Gill (2001), Edina's first Rhodes Scholar recipient, 2006
- Adam Goldberg (1998), NFL player
- Gord Hampson (1977), retired National Hockey League player.
- Karl Mecklenburg (1978 West), NFL Pro-Bowl linebacker with the Denver Broncos
- Bill Nyrop (1970), a professional hockey player who played for the Montreal Canadiens. Member of 2 Stanley Cup winning teams.
- Greg Olson (1979), former catcher for the Atlanta Braves.
- Mary Anderson Pawlenty (1979) Wife of Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty
- Paul Ranheim (1984), professional hockey player who played for Calgary, Hartford, Carolina, Philadelphia, and Phoenix from 1988 to 2003.
- Kaylin Richardson (2003), 2006 Olympic skier
- Jeff Wright (1967), former defensive back with the Minnesota Vikings.
- Jonathan Yuhas (1988) Television Meteorologist for NBC Affiliate KARE 11 TV Minneapolis/St.Paul
- Ryan Holiday (1982), A professional AFL football who won the MVP in 1989
- See also
- Valley View Middle School
- External links
- Edina High School website
- Edina School District 273
- Edina High Class of 1970
- Edina High Class of 1992
- Source: Wikipedia; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.
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