Rock Bridge High School

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Rock Bridge High School
File:RB bruin.jpg
File:Rock Bridge High School Columbia Missouri.jpg
"Where learning is for life."
Address
4303 S. Providence Road
Columbia, Missouri 65203
United States
Information
School type Public high school
Established 1973
School district Columbia Public Schools
Principal Dr. Jennifer Rukstad
Grades 9-12
Enrollment 1,866 [1] (2014-15)
Athletics conference Independent
Team name Bruins
Rival David H. Hickman High School
Newspaper The ROCK
Yearbook Flashback
Online News BearingNews
Website

Rock Bridge High School is a public high school located in southern Columbia, Missouri. The school serves grades 9 through 12, and is a part of the Columbia Public Schools.

History

Due to the increasing population of Columbia in the 70's, and the crowding of David H. Hickman High School towards the end of the 1960s, the Columbia Board of Education decided to form a new high school. The board bought 42 acres (170,000 m2) of land in Southern Columbia and started the construction of the new high school. The name Rock Bridge was chosen because of the schools proximity to the natural rock bridge of Rock Bridge State Park. Construction started in 1970 on the original portion of the building, consisting of 18 classrooms and one office area in the present-day east wing of the building. Many of these classrooms were connected by motorized folding walls, many of which are still operational and in use. The design of the original portion and its three planned additions, of which two were completed, won a national award in school design. Construction started on the second portion in early 1973, which added the "Main Commons", another office area, the library, the gymnasium, and a few specialty classrooms underneath that area. In September 1973, with the completion of the second portion, Rock Bridge was considered "complete enough" to open and had a class of 583 students, mostly sophomores and juniors. This high school was the first centrally air conditioned school built in Columbia, MO. In 1974 the jewel of our school the planetarium was opened. This allowed for students at RBHS as well as around and outside of the district to take field trips to watch star shows in our planetarium. In 2012 the planetarium added a full dome movie projector for the public and others to watch additional shows. The school was soon expanded, and in 1978, a west wing opened, which was similar to the east wing, but had two levels. The west wing featured about ten general-purpose classrooms, as well as science, art, and band rooms, providing the school with a then-total of about 40 classrooms. A north wing similar in design to the east and west wings was proposed but never came to fruition. Three new science classrooms, as well as a performing arts center, were added in 1992. Eight years later, in 2000, a large addition opened between the east and west wings, featuring seven science classrooms, eight English and Social Studies classrooms, seven foreign language classrooms, a new Media Center, and three new computer labs, (two of which were converted to science classrooms in 2013). The new facilities allowed the school to repurpose several areas, to allow for an expanded cafeteria and other education improvements. As of 2010-2011, the school had Wi-Fi throughout the media center, commons, and main hallways, with the entire building wired in the summer of 2012. In 2011, the school's library received a set of 30 laptops for teachers to reserve for their class. When the students need the laptops, the teacher sends the students to the library, where each student will check out a laptop under their name as an hourly checkout. By 2013, the library had received nine more carts (plus a set of 30 iPads). Each science classroom also has 15 laptops. In January 2013 Rock Bridge opened a new auxiliary gym due to the expected ninth graders to begin attending high school following the secondary redistricting in August. The area under the auxiliary gym featured a new wrestling room, making room for three new math classrooms in the former location. A new weight room was also added. The library received yet another cart of 30 laptops for the 2014-15 school year, plus a set of 30 iPads in every math classroom.

Structure

Rock Bridge runs on a block scheduling format during the hours of 8:55 AM to 4:05 PM. This format is structured so that students have four 95-minute-long classes each day. However, most of these classes meet every other day for a total of eight classes for the year. Block scheduling was established in the 1994-95 school year.[2]

Academics

The school offers 18 Advanced Placement courses and a multitude of honors classes available to students. However, RBHS does not weight grade point averages.

Athletics

Rock Bridge High offers a variety of sports. Fall sports include Cross Country, Football, Girls Golf, Boys Soccer, Softball, Boys Swimming/Diving, Girls Tennis, and Volleyball. Winter sports include Basketball and Wrestling. Spring sports include Baseball, Boys Golf, Boys Tennis, Girls Swimming/Diving, Girls Soccer, and Track & Field. Year round sports include Cheerleading and Poms. Rock Bridge is a perennial powerhouse in both boys and girls tennis, having won the Girls State Title in 1999, 2002, 2003, 2011 and 2014, as well as the Boys State Title in 2008, 2010, 2011, and 2012. At the club level, Rock Bridge fields a Boys Varsity Lacrosse team in the spring.[3]

Notable former students

Notable faculty

  • A.J. Ofodile, professional football player currently head football coach and P. E. division chair

References

[4] [5] [6] [7]

External links

Notes