Olympic High School (Charlotte, North Carolina)

Olympic High School is located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is a high school in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) system. Olympic opened in the fall of 1966, in what was then the rural outskirts of Charlotte. It joined the Coalition of Essential Schools in 2005[1] and was split into five smaller, theme-based schools. Olympic was consolidated back into one high school the 2018–2019 school year.[2] Today Olympic is a single comprehensive high school.[3]

Olympic High School
Address
4301 Sandy Porter Road

Charlotte
,
North Carolina
28273

United States
Coordinates35°09′28″N 80°57′08″W
Information
Other nameThe O
TypePublic
Established1966 (1966)
School districtCharlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
CEEB code341932
PrincipalErik Olejarczyk
Teaching staff144
Grades9–12
Enrollment2519
Color(s)Red and Columbia blue
  
AthleticsNCHSAA 4A
MascotTrojan
YearbookTrojan Torch
Websiteschools.cms.k12.nc.us/olympicHS/Pages/Default.aspx

History

Beginning

Olympic High School opened its doors to students in 1966. When the high school opened it was in the rural outskirts of Southwest Charlotte in the Steele Creek community. Olympic opened as a comprehensive high school and remained as such until 2005.

Small schools

The small schools conversion began with the securing of a grant in 2005 from the Coalition of Essential Schools' (CES) Small Schools Project, a 5-year initiative backed by the education arm of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. An initial $305,000 was received for planning. This planning process involved 5 committees of teachers, parents, and students forging out the specifics of each school of no more than 400 students, such as its themes and what part of the Olympic campus it would be located in. The hiring of principals and visits to other CES affiliated schools across the country were also covered. The results were presented at the end of the 05–06 school year to CES for a further $1.3 million for the next two years.[4]

Students, at first skeptical and not wanting to be separated from friends, have taken a liking to Olympic's more intimate atmosphere that has afforded principals to get to know them by name.[5] There have been challenges, however, like setting up channels of communication among the 5 schools.[6]

Critics say the small schools movement is new, and few schools have produced long-term academic results. They also emphasize the importance of reform not stopping at smaller settings. For instance, generic courses driven by multiple-choice tests being replaced with challenging projects linked to real-life results. This involves a certain degree of experimentation and creativity that can be hobbled by district mandates, too many teachers relying on routine, budget restraints, and a test-driven culture instituted by an array of local and national achievement exams.[7] There has been some success with project-based learning at Olympic, most notably with a 1,150-square-foot (107 m2), three-bedroom Habitat for Humanity house for a family in northwest Charlotte built on school property by advanced construction students in Olympic's METS school, with the $70,000 required for the project raised in part by students in the Business school.[8]

There has been an increase in involvement by parents and the community. Attendance for athletic events in 2006–07 was the highest since 1982,[9] and a multi-million capital campaign was started by parents and community residents for facility improvements.[10][11] The most recent incarnation of this fundraising is the Olympic High School Foundation, which raised $276,500 in 2015.[12]

Former schools
Olympic's name from 2005–2018.
  • The School of Biotechnology, Health, and Public Administration at Olympic (Biotech): 2005–2018
  • The School of Math, Engineering, Technology, and Science at Olympic (METS): 2005–2018
  • The Renaissance School of Arts and Technology at Olympic (Renaissance): 2005–2018
  • The School of Technology Entrepreneurship & Advanced Manufacturing at Olympic (TEAM): 2014–2018
  • The School of Executive Leadership & Entrepreneurial Development (ELED): 2014–2018
  • The School of International Business and Communication Studies at Olympic (Business): 2005–2014
  • The School of International Studies and Global Economics at Olympic (Global): 2005–2014

Consolidation into one school

The 2017–2018 school year was the final year of Olympic Community of Schools. In early 2018 it was announced that Olympic would be consolidated back into one high school after 13 years in the 2018–19 school year.[2] In the 2018–2019 school year, the 5 schools were consolidated back into Olympic High School. Olympic is a comprehensive high school with one principal.[3]

Students

Olympic is one of a handful of high schools in CMS that straddle the line between a comparable number of low-performing, primarily urban schools and high-performing, primarily suburban schools, and thus its student body largely mirrors the district as a whole. For comparison, Olympic has an ethnic makeup of 44.3% Black, 34.4% White, 14.2% Hispanic, 6.0% Asian, and 1.2% Other (in the 2005–06 school year).[13] CMS' demographics are 42.4% Black, 36.2% White, 13.6% Hispanic, 4.3% Asian, and 3.5% Other.[14] Its pass rate on the 2006–07 North Carolina End-of-Course tests, used to sample knowledge and mastery of subject areas most students take as freshmen and sophomores, was 63.2%, near the CMS average of 65.7%.[15] The graduating class of 2006, around 300 students, received $2.3 million in scholarships.

2019–2020 enrollment data shows that Olympic has 2,519 students. The breakdown for the school's demographics in the 2019–2020 school year are 45.5% Black, 16.0% White, 28.6% Hispanic, 6.2% Asian, and 3.7% other.[16]

Athletics and clubs

Athletics

Olympic High School is a 4A member of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) and plays in the SouthMeck 7 4A conference.[17]

In 1970, the football team was 4A state runner-up losing 14–0 to Raleigh Needham B. Broughton High School.

The basketball team won the 4A state championships in the 2013, of which Olympic finished a perfect 30–0 on the season. Olympic entered the game ranked 4th nationally by MaxPreps.

Programs

Olympic's U.S. Army JROTC has an "honor unit with distinction" gold star, which it has held for 25 consecutive years. The gold star is worn by students, and is the highest honor a high school JROTC can obtain. It is received when a 95% or more is given in what is known as the Annual Formal Inspection (AFI), which audits different areas of the JROTC program, and is conducted by a group of officers sent by the Army. It has also won fourth in the Superintendent's Cup, which is awarded to the 5 JROTC units with the highest overall combined scores from the year's competitions.[18][19]

Band

The Olympic High School Winds performs throughout the winter and spring ending their season with Winter Guard International world finals in Dayton, Ohio.

Notable alumni

References
  1. Olympic celebrates its community. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
  2. Helms, Ann. (2018, 8 February). Olympic High’s career paths have won acclaim. But CMS leader says that’s not enough. The Charlotte Observer.
  3. Russell, Dedrick. (2018, 2 February).Olympic High School will soon be one high school again. WBTV.
  4. Core Schools Project. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
  5. Helms, Ann. (2007, 31 May). Big hopes poured into small settings. The Charlotte Observer.
  6. Valle, Kirsten. (2007, 4 March). Principal: 'We have a lot of work to do'. The Charlotte Observer.
  7. Helms, Ann. (2006, 5 February). Caution urged in shift to smaller high schools. The Charlotte Observer.
  8. Valle, Kirsten. (2007, 10 May). Kids build a real house at school. The Charlotte Observer.
  9. Trojan Torch. Volume 41 (2007).
  10. Valle. Kirsten. (2007, 25 February). Residents' goal: Raise money for Olympic High. The Charlotte Observer.
  11. Valle, Kirsten. (2007, 5 April). Volunteers, money coming from Olympic. The Charlotte Observer.
  12. Dunn, Andrew. (2015, 12 February). Olympic High teachers put $34,000 to use from new fund. The Charlotte Observer.
  13. School Profiles. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
  14. "Facts Facts on CMS" (PDF). Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 April 2007.
  15. Smolowitz, Peter. (2007, 26 June). CMS tests scores a mixed bag. The Charlotte Observer.
  16. "Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Month 1, 2019–20 School Diversity Report" (PDF). Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. 28 November 2019.
  17. "NCHSAA CONFERENCES 2011–12". NCHSAA website. NCHSAA. Archived from the original on 10 October 2011. Retrieved 13 November 2011.
  18. Olympic High School JROTC.
  19. Ceremony held for JROTC cadets. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
  20. Thabiti Davis Stats. Pro-Football-Reference. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  21. Allerik Freeman NC State Men's Basketball. gopack.com. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  22. Kenny Funderburk Columbus State Men's Basketball. csucougars.com. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  23. C.J. Jackson DraftExpress Profile. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  24. Adelson, Eric. (4 July 2005). Chris Marcus's struggle with alcoholism derailed his ride to the NBA. ESPN. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  25. Tori Paul - Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved Aug 26, 2020.
  26. Lyttle, Steve (2 October 2019). "Charlotte friends say nobody will outmanage Cardinals' skipper Mike Shildt". Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  27. Radio, TV vet Bea Thompson signs off. The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
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