Robert McQueen High School

Robert McQueen High School
View from Lancer Street "Quest for Excellence"
Location
Reno, Nevada United States
Coordinates	39°32′04″N 119°53′01″W / 39.534431°N 119.883478°WCoordinates: 39°32′04″N 119°53′01″W / 39.534431°N 119.883478°W
Information
Type	Public secondary
Established	1982
Principal	Sue Denning
Faculty	98[1]
Enrollment	1,883 (2009/10)[1]
Color(s)	Blue and Gray
Mascot	Lancer
Information	[phone]
Campus surroundings	Suburban
Website	http://www.mcqueenhs.com/

Robert McQueen High School is a public secondary school in Reno, Nevada, USA. It is part of the Washoe County School District.

History

The school was named for Dr. Robert McQueen, emeritus professor of Psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno. During his tenure from 1955–1991, Dr. McQueen headed UNR's scholarship program, served as department chair and dean, and was appointed to Nevada's first psychological board of examiners. Dr. McQueen served on the Washoe County School District Board of Trustees from 1969–1990, during which the district built several new schools, including Reed and McQueen . He also negotiated the purchase of McQueen's 60-acre (240,000 m²) site from the Bureau of Land Management for just one dollar.^[2]

When the school opened in 1982, adjoining Seventh Street and Robb Drive were only dirt roads extended out to allow access to the school. Some remarked the school was "in the middle of nowhere" as it was more than a mile from other buildings. Since then, the construction of numerous subdevelopments has resulted in overcrowding problems. The building was designed for an enrollment of 1,600; in 2009/10 more than 1,800 were enrolled. In order to mitigate overcrowding concerns and comply with local fire regulations, several modular classrooms have been added to the campus.

In 2010, Newsweek listed McQueen as the 740th best school in the United States^[3] using the ratio of number of AP exams taken to graduating students as its criterion.

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

• The Lancers compete in the High Desert League, which is part of the Northern Nevada 4A Region. McQueen competes in the 4A level, which is the large school category. In 2008, rivals.com named them the 75th Best Football Team in the nation. They beat Palo Verde High School in a rematch of the 2001 state semi-final game on December 6, 2008 with a score of 13-12 for the Nevada 4A High School Football Championship. They finished ranked 48th in the nation by Rivals.com.^[4]

Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association State Championships

• Basketball (Girls) - 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
• Football - 1990, 1992, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2008, 2010
• Soccer (Girls) - 2003
• Softball - 2005, 2006
• Swimming (Girls) - 1995
• Track and Field (Boys) - 2010, 2014
• Track and Field (Girls) - 2010
• Cross Country (Boys) - 2014

Music

MARCHING BAND Current Director: Rick Moffit

The marching band has won the state championships fourteen times: (1986, 1987, 1988, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011)^[5]

The band has played in the following parades:

• Hollywood Christmas Parade, Los Angeles, CA (2012, 2003)
• Graeagle July 4 Parade (2012, 2010, 2009, 2008)
• Reno Rodeo Parade (2012, 2010, 2009 [First Place], 2008 [First Place], 2007 [First Place])
• Fiesta Bowl Parade, Phoenix, AZ (2010/11 Class B National Champion; Field Show, Fourth Place in the Nation; 2006 Class B National Champion Field Show, Fifth Place in the Nation)
• Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena, CA (2014, 2009)
• American Legion National Convention, Non-Competitive (2007)
• Presidential Inaugural Parade, Washington, DC (2005)

CHOIR Current Director: Maribeth Burt

• The Robert McQueen High School Choir performed in Carnegie Hall in 2007^[6] and June 2009.^[7]
• McQueen's Core Jazz vocal ensemble won the "Best in Nevada" award at the UNR Jazz Festival in 2005.^[8]
• McQueen's Core Jazz choir also had a concert tour of 5 cities in China for the World Choir Games, held in Shaoxing, China, July 2010.

ORCHESTRA Current Director: Kenny Baker

• The McQueen Orchestra with Kenny Baker has played at the ASTA National Conference in 2010 in Santa Clara, California

Publications

• The Excalibur — monthly school newspaper, inducted into the National Scholastic Press Association's Hall of Fame in the fall of 2004,^[9] making it the only student publication in the state to be inducted. It won a NSPA Newspaper Pacemaker in 2009.^[10]
• "McQueen TV" — closed circuit telev ision station (daily broadcast news show) and video production facilit y
• Chrysalis — annual literary magazine
• Caxton — yearbook, awarded the national Silver Crown award in 2006^[11] and the NSPA Yearbook Pacemaker in 2008.^[12]

Demographics

In 2009, the school's total enrollment was 1,884, and its ethnic makeup was:^[13]

• American Indian/Alaskan Native 39 (2.1%)
• Asian/Pacific Islander 231 (12.3%)
• Hispanic 262 (13.9%)
• Black 79 (4.2%)
• White 1,273 (67.6%)

Notable alumni

• 1985, Terri Ivens, actress
• 1987, Mädchen Amick, actress
• 1989, David Byerman, Director of the Kentucky General Assembly
• 1989, Nicole King, molecular biologist, professor and MacArthur Fellowship winner
• 1996, Teresa Benitez, former Miss Nevada 2002 and politician
• 1997, Chris Aguila, baseball outfielder, currently with the New York Mets
• 1998, April Meservy, singer and songwriter
• 2001, Ryan Bader, professional MMA fighter, won The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mir, currently competing in the UFC's Light Heavyweight Division^[14]
• 2001, Chris Carr, football defensive back, played for Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens, Minnesota Vikings, San Diego Chargers & New Orleans Saints before retiring in March 2014
• 2002, Jeff Rowe, football quarterback, played for Cincinnati Bengals, Seattle Seahawks & New England Patriots
• 2002, Ryan Thomas (fighter), wrestler; current professional mixed martial arts fighter for American Top Team^[15]
• 2003, Clint Stitser, football kicker, played for New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals & Washington Redskins in the NFL; played for the Las Vegas Locomotives in the United Football League (2009–2012)
• 2007, Chikezie Okorie, singer/songwriter
• 2009, Kyle Van Noy, football linebacker, currently with the Detroit Lions

References

1. "2009-2010 school profile". McQueen High School. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
2. Williams, Alli. "The number one psychologist in Nevada". Alli Williams blog. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
3. Newsweek 2005 High School Rankings
4. "RivalsHigh Rankings". Highschool.rivals.com. Retrieved 2013-10-24.
5. McQueen Band History Archived October 24, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
6. Carnegie Hall Archived September 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
7. Archived September 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
8. "Reno Jazz Festival" (PDF). Unr.edu. Retrieved 2013-10-24.
9. "Press release" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-10-24.
10. "2009 NSPA Newspaper Pacemaker Winners". National Scholastic Press Association. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
11. "Columbia University CSPA". Columbiauniversity.org. 1999-02-22. Retrieved 2013-10-24.
12. "2008 NSPA Pacemaker winners". National Scholastic Press Association. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
13. "WCSD 2008-2009 Accountability Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-10-24.
14. "Ryan Bader UFC Bio". Retrieved 2014-01-01.
15. "Ryan Thomas MMA Bio". Retrieved 2014-01-01.

15. http://www.wolfpackradio.org/category/hiphop/Chikezie

External links

• Robert McQueen High School Webpage
• School marching band
• Football boosters site
• Class of 1985 site