Pueblo County High School

Pueblo County High School is a four-year public high school in Vineland, an unincorporated area in Pueblo County, Colorado, near Pueblo.[2][3] It is a part of the Pueblo County School District 70. The school's current mascot is the fighting Hornet, with school colors green and gold. Students have access to a variety of different clubs and extracurricular activities, as well as a highly respected program referred to as the School of Engineering and Biomedical Science (SEBS). Pueblo County High School offers courses for all academic levels, as well as the foreign languages of Spanish and Italian.

Pueblo County High School
Fighting Hornet of Pueblo County High
Location
1050 Lane 35
Pueblo, Colorado

United States
Coordinates38.2465°N 104.4677°W / 38.2465; -104.4677
Information
TypePublic School
Motto"Small School Environment with Big School Opportunities"
Established1953
School districtPueblo County School District 70
PrincipalBrian Dilka
Staff49.24 (FTE)[1]
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,044 (2017-18)[1]
Student to teacher ratio21.20[1]
Color(s)Green and gold
AthleticsLeague 3A-4 South Central, Division 3A-4A
MascotHornet
Student-Teacher Ratio21:1
Websitehttp://pch.district70.org/

Pueblo County High School has recently finished new building renovations due to the Bond issue of 2012.[4] The construction included a new Arts Department, Auxiliary Gym, and a relocated main office for staff.

History
Front Entrance of PCHS 2017

In the early 1950s it was decided by the School Board to build Pueblo County High School as a merging school. Students from Pleasant View, Vineland, Avondale, and Boone enrolled to attend Pueblo County High School in the fall of 1953, where they took up Pueblo County High School's new colors and mascot. A school-wide vote was cast to select the mascot, and a pair of colors. The selected mascot was a Hornet, the colors chosen were green and gold.[5]

Farmers to Students

While the school opened as a legal senior high school, construction of the building was still in progress, leaving many classrooms unavailable. Students and teachers took learning to the grass, boiler rooms, or inside buses as an alternative. Originally, the location in which Pueblo County High School was built was used as farmland and was tended as such. Harvest time and planting season respectively were the most important times of the year for Pueblo in that era, which caused many students to miss months of school, as Harvesting and Planting was more of a priority.[5]

Principals

Like the traditional American school, Pueblo County High School has a current principal, as well as many predecessors of which have their own private wall of fame, featuring their faces. There has only been one female principal: Terrie Tafoya (2010–2016).[6]

Name Year
Brian Dilka (2016 – present)
Terrie Tafoya (2010–2016)
John DeLuca (2006–2010)
Jose Perea (2004–2006)
Chris Gramstorff (1999–2004)
Dick Amman (1987–1999)
Jim Blanc (1983–1987)
John Klomp (1973–1983)
Mike Stefanic (1971–1973)
Jerry Ellis (1962–1971)
Robert Hall (1955–1962)
Tommy Tucker (1953–1955)

A Better Learning Environment: Bond Projects

In the 1970s Pueblo County High School was booming with roughly 1400 students. The student body was so large that the campus needed to be expanded. This Bond Project, originating in 1977, allowed construction of a pool, auditorium, original stadium, and another building containing English and foreign-language classrooms.[7]

In November 2012, Ballot Question 3A was approved, granting a second bond to Pueblo District 70 schools for improvements. NorthStar and H&L were responsible for facility changes.[8] Renovation began in early 2013, including an artificial turf football field and a multi-weather track. The main office structure was moved from the West Building to the center south side of County. A new Auxiliary Gym, Wrestling Room, and breezeway were also built.[7]

Demographics
A visual representation of the Demographics of the school year 2016–2017

There is a close 50–50 ratio between Hispanics or Latinos to Whites. This is due to Pueblo's tie with the largest steel industry in the 1970s, where immigrants came to work, largely Hispanics, for money.[9] Not only did the steel industry influence the demographics of Pueblo, but the land has also been owned by multiple nations, becoming a cultural melting point.[10]

SEBS – School of Engineering and Biomedical Science

The school of Engineering and Biomedical Science, more commonly known as "SEBS," is a specialized program offered to high-level students to prepare for career readiness and hands-on experience in the fields of Engineering and Biomedical Science.[11] There are also courses that assist in careers revolving around software and computer programing within SEBS. SEBS is paired with Project Lead the Way (PLTW) courses, and is a certified PLTW school. SEBS courses are only found at Pueblo County High School, although other schools may have a similar plan known as STEM.

Although classified as a separate course, the SEBS program is more commonly known to be a school within a school, rather than offered courses. Students must register into SEBS program. It is expected of all SEBS students to stay within an unweighted Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher. Managers, advisors, and/or counselors may recommend other courses if a student's grade does not meet the above criteria.[12]

History

Formerly known as Pueblo Technical Academy, SEBS started off as its own District 70 school in the GoodYear building of the Pueblo Industrial Park. John Musso, the current principal of SEBS, was among others who reinforced startup of the school.[7] Economic issues forced the Tech Academy to move to PCC around 2005, then finally to Pueblo County High School in the year of 2010.[12]

Alumni

Here are a few select picks of known Alumni that graduated from this school:

  • Ryli West, 2020 Colorado Miss United States Agriculture

References
  1. "PUEBLO COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  2. Home. Pueblo County High School. Retrieved on July 2, 2017. "1050 35th Lane Pueblo, CO 81006"
  3. "2010 CENSUS – CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Vineland CDP, CO." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on July 2, 2017.
  4. "2012 Bond". www.district70.org. Retrieved 2017-05-15.
  5. An interview was conducted with four original students who attended PCHS when it was first opened on April 20, 2017 (Primary Source) – Bert Pisciotta – Lillian Montez – Leta Solano – Ersie Mascarenas
  6. Information provided Daisy James from the 'Hall of Fame' plaques found in the Main Hall of Pueblo County High School building as of 2016–2017.
  7. An interview was conducted by students on May 17, 2017, to Ms. Toussaint, a senior staff at PCHS, about any historical information about PCHS.
  8. Jr, John Barker. "Athletic Facilities". www.northstar-co.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  9. Markus, Ben. "Decades later, Pueblo still reeling from steel exodus". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  10. "History of Pueblo | Pueblo, Colorado". pueblo.org. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  11. Unknown. "School of Engineering and Biomedical Science". Pueblo District 70. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  12. An interview was conducted by a student to Vicki Walter and John Musso who are SEBS staff on April 22, 2017, about general information about SEBS and its History (Primary Source)
  13. "Josh Faiola '06 To Be Featured on E:60". DartmouthSports.com. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  14. "Jason Sanders – Co-Founder/Director/Editing and Visual Effects |". www.hecticfilms.com. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
  15. "Cowboy Stories: Casey Colletti". Retrieved May 18, 2017.
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