School type Public, high school Superintendent Brian L. Maher Grades 9–12 Phone +1 308-698-8060 Mascot Bruiser Bearcat Color Blue and gold | Principal Jay R. Dostal Enrollment 1450 Number of students 1,450 Funding type State school | |
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Address 2702 W 11th St, Kearney, NE 68845, USA Profiles | ||
Kearney High School is a public high school in Kearney, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Kearney Public Schools district. It is one of two high schools in Kearney (the other being Kearney Catholic High School).
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Buildings
The original school was built in 1879 and was named Whittier School. It was used for grades K-12 until a new High School, Longfellow High School, was built in 1890. This was used until 1960 when the new high school was ready, and was later razed in 1969.
The building in use as of 2015 is located at 3610 6th Avenue. Its west side borders the campus of Horizon Middle School. Since its opening in 1961, it experienced several major additions. The original building featured an auditorium, band room, shared vocal/chorus room, cafeteria, offices, gym, library, and a lowered garden atrium. Since then, major additions include the vocational wing in 1981, the 400 Hallway in 1988, and the "Commons", 600 Hallway and North Gym in 1995.
In September 2013, Kearney voters approved a $75 million bond to build a new Kearney High School, to be built in southwest Kearney. The new building would be more than a third larger than its predecessor.
History of the Bearcats
According to an article in the November 7, 1923 edition of the Kearney Hub, Kearney High students chose Bearcats as the official school mascot. According to the Hub article, "the voting took place last week, and the vote showed that there was great difference of opinion as to the name which best suited the school. The four names voted upon were Bearcats, Buffaloes, Wolverines, and Kubs." The final tally of votes according to the Hub article was as follows: Bearcats (206), Buffaloes (138), Wolverines (92), and Kubs (51). The article goes on to state, "Each home room carried on its own voting through its officers. Speeches were made by pupils in many of the home rooms, in which the merits of the various names were discussed. The speeches help to make the pupils understand what they were voting for, and the importance of their selection."