Center High School (Texas)

Center High School
Center High School
Address
	658 Roughrider Drive; Center, Texas 75935; United States
Coordinates	31°45′25″N 94°04′43″W / 31.7569°N 94.0786°W
Information
School type	Public High School
School district	Center Independent School District
Principal	Amanda Clark
Staff	55.62 (FTE)
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	677 (2019–20)
Student to teacher ratio	12.17
Color(s)	Purple & Gold
Athletics conference	UIL Class AAAA
Mascot	Roughriders
Rival	Carthage High School
Newspaper	The Lariat
Website	http://www.centerisd.org

Center High School is a public, 4-year high school located in Center, Texas and is classified as a 4A school by the University Interscholastic League. It is part of the Center Independent School District and is located in central Shelby County, Texas. In 2015, the school was rated Met Standard.^[2]

In 2013, U.S. News & World Report gave Center High School a bronze medal and named the school one of the best high schools in the nation.^[3]

History

Center High School dates back prior to 1900 as "Center School".^[4] The earliest graduating class dates back to 1903 with a graduating class of six people.^[5]

The original high school building is the current alternative school building, known as Roughrider Academy. The school was built in 1939. The building also caught fire in 1963, but was extinguished.^[6]

The current high school building has a new wing specifically designed for career learning opportunities such as culinary, graphic design, business, etc.

Athletics

The school is home to the Center Roughriders. The team name comes from the Rough Riders, but is spelled without a space.

The Center Roughriders compete in the following sports:

Key: * - has been to state within the past decade.

The current Athletic Director for Center is Coach Ponder. The previous being Barry Bowman.

The Pride of Shelby County

The Roughrider Band, more commonly known as The Pride of Shelby County, is a band program currently under the direction of Chris Smith and Patrick Conn.

The band also participates in the National Association Of Military Marching Bands|National Association of Military Marching Band (NAMMB) competition where the school competes against other 4A schools to place.

Theater arts

The Center High School theater department is active in the UIL One Act Play competition. The director of the theater department is Kearsten Humber.

The theater department also puts on an annual Christmas play as well as a traditional production called "Center Stage". The earliest documented Center play dates back to 1930.^[7]