Las Cruces High School

Las Cruces High School is a public high school in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. LCHS opened in 1954 and is the oldest public high school in Las Cruces. As of the 2016–17 school year, it serves 1,661 students from grades 9–12.[2] It is a part of Las Cruces Public Schools.

Las Cruces High School
Address
1755 El Paseo Road

Las Cruces
,
New Mexico
88005

United States
Coordinates32.2916°N 106.7680°W / 32.2916; -106.7680
Information
Funding typePublic
Founded1918 (as Las Cruces Union High School), 1954 (consolidation of Las Cruces Public Schools)
School districtLas Cruces Public Schools
PrincipalMichelle Ronga
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,661[1] (2016–17)
LanguageEnglish
CampusSuburban
Color(s)Red and blue
   
Athletics conferenceNMAA, 6A Dist. 3
Team nameBulldawgs
Communities servedsouth and west Las Cruces, Mesilla, Talaveras, Mesilla Park, University Park, Tortugas
Websitelcps.k12.nm.us/schools/high-schools/las-cruces-high-school/

History

Although the school's official history dates only to the formation of Las Cruces Public Schools in 1954, Las Cruces High School (LCHS) is considered the successor to the former Las Cruces Union High School (1918), which was located at the corner of Alameda and Picacho Avenues near downtown Las Cruces. LCHS inherited the Bulldog mascot and school colors from the former school, which served as a unified high school for the several smaller school districts that existed in the area before being consolidated to form LCPS. The present campus on El Paseo Road opened in 1956, at which point the old LCHS building was converted to house Alameda Junior High School. AJHS itself closed its doors in the early 1980s and the old building sat vacant for several years before being extensively renovated to house the Third Judicial District Court. The New Mexico Activities Association considers LCUHS and LCHS to be the same school and credits LCHS with all state titles won by the previous school.

LCHS "Bulldawgs" emblem
Aerial view of the former LCHS Building
Central Hallway, "D" Wing

The current campus has undergone numerous renovations and expansions since opening its doors in 1956. Among the more recent additions to the campus a vocational arts building was constructed in 1993, a new classroom wing and central hallway ("D" wing) were built in 1997, the music wing was renovated and a new band facility added between 1996 and 1998, the cafeteria was renovated and a commons area added in 2000, and another new classroom wing opened in 2002. Beginning in the summer of 2013, the campus underwent an extensive three-phase renovation, with a proposed budget of $84 million USD.[3]

El Paseo campus renovations

A multi-phase construction program was proposed to renovate the school. The contract was awarded to Wooten-Sundt joint construction venture, and construction for Phase I broke ground in 2014.[4]

Rivalry

LCHS has a long-standing rivalry with Mayfield, the city's second-oldest public high school, with the annual football clash between the schools routinely attracting more than 20,000 fans. LCHS and MHS have combined to win 11 of the past 20 New Mexico state championships in football, with the annual year-end game between the schools almost invariably determining the district title. The Mayfield-Las Cruces high school football rivalry was voted the 9th best in the nation by rivals.com in 2008. The documentary film Cruces Divided is based on this rivalry.[5]

Athletics

LCHS competes in the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA), as a class 6A school in District 3. In 2014, NMAA realigned the state's schools in to six classifications and adjusted district boundaries.[6] In addition to Las Cruces High School, the schools in District 3-6A include: Oñate High School, Mayfield High School, Gadsden High School, Hobbs High School, and Carlsbad High School (New Mexico). From its opening until the opening of the Pan American Center, the New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team played its home games at the LCHS gym, and the West first round games of the 1959 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament were held there, one of only two high school gymnasiums to host games of the tournament (the other being Capitol Hill High School in Oklahoma City).

LCHS participates in an annual cross-town football rivalry with Mayfield High
Inside the LCHS main gymnasium
LCHS athletic fields and campus
North Commons

State championships
State championships
SeasonSportNumber of ChampionshipsYear
FallBoys cross country11972
Football9 (8 official + 1 unofficial)2013, 2012, 2008, 2002, 2000, 1999, 1975, 1959, 1925*†
Marching band31986, 1984, 1979
Boys soccer32013, 2007, 2004
Girls soccer22005, 2003
Girls volleyball52001, 2000, 1998, 1997, 1995
WinterBoys basketball92020, 2013, 1976, 1975, 1961, 1960, 1959, 1945*, 1941*
Co-Ed cheerleading52017, 2016, 2014, 2013, 2012
Girls swimming & diving11983
Wrestling21966, 1964
SpringBaseball51963, 1962, 1961, 1957, 1952*
Softball12013
Boys track and field11962
Boys tennis21996, 1995
Girls tennis21997, 1996
Total48

(*) Las Cruces Union High School

(†) Not officially recognized by NMAA, which does not recognize any state football titles before 1950.[7]

Notable alumni

References
  1. . National Center for Education Statistics https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/new-mexico/districts/las-cruces-public-schools/las-cruces-high-12961/student-body. Retrieved November 19, 2017. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. "Las Cruces High". Las Cruces High School.
  3. "Cruces High construction $10M over budget". Las Cruces Sun-News. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  4. "Wooten|Sundt Begins Construction on Las Cruces High School Project | Sundt". Sundt. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  5. http://www.crucesdivided.com/
  6. http://www.nmact.org/file/Section_4.pdf
  7. "New Mexico State Football Champions" (PDF). New Mexico Activities Association.
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