Ruston High School

(Redirected from Jimmy Childress)

Ruston High School is a four-year public high school located in the Lincoln Parish School District of Ruston, Louisiana, United States. The school has an enrollment of approximately 1300 students with 85 faculty members; the mascot is the Bearcats named "Rusty,” by a class of 2009 student, Anna Ward. The school colors are red, white, and gray. Black students were first admitted in 1970. Ruston High School also serves as a memorial to the survivors of the Gulf War.[3]

Ruston High School
Front

entrance to Ruston High School (2010)

Ruston High School main steps 2024
Ruston High School circa 1960
Ruston High School Main steps 2024
Ruston High School postcard c.1940
Ruston High School Auditorium c.1950-60s
Address
Map
900 Bearcat Drive

,
Louisiana

United States
Information
Type4-year, Public high school
Established1921 building built 1939
School boardLincoln Parish School Board
DirectorAthletic Director, Jerrod Baugh
PrincipalDaniel Gressett
Staff80.92 (FTE)[1]
Number of students1,310 (2022–2023)[1]
Student to teacher ratio16.19[1]
Classes offeredTraditional, Project Based Learning
Color(s)Red, white and grey      
AthleticsBaseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Powerlifting, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Track & Field, Volleyball
Athletics conferenceLHSAA District 2-5A
MascotBearcats
RivalsNeville High School
West Monroe High School
Ouachita Parish High School
WebsiteRustonHigh.LincolnSchools.org
Ruston High School
Ruston High School is located in Louisiana
Ruston High School
Ruston High School is located in the United States
Ruston High School
Location900 Bearcat Drive, Ruston, Louisiana
Coordinates32°32′05″N 92°39′01″W / 32.5348°N 92.65022°W / 32.5348; -92.65022
Area7 acres (2.8 ha)
Built1939
Built byCaldwell Brothers & Hart
ArchitectJ.W. Smith & Associates
Architectural styleArt Deco
NRHP reference No.92001335[2]
Added to NRHPOctober 8, 1992
Ruston High School (rear view)
Ruston High Auditorium c.1950-60
Ruston High Rear view c.1950-60
Various Ruston high photos 1947

The 7 acres (2.8 ha) campus area, comprising two contributing buildings, was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 8, 1992.[2][4][5]

New Tech @ Ruston

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New Tech @ Ruston began with the Founding Fathers Cathi Cox-Boniol and Missy Wooley in 2011 with a large grant from the state, along with grants to start construction two new technology graded buildings on the Ruston High Campus. The New Tech building opened by July 2, 2013, on which date the Lincoln Parish School Board toured the facility and held its monthly meeting in the building for the first time.[6]

Athletics

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Ruston High athletics competes in the LHSAA. The Bearcats compete in the highest classification in Louisiana (5A) and participates in District 2-5A.

Championships

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Football championships

  • (1) National Championship: 1990
  • (9) State Championships: 1925, 1941, 1947, 1951, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990, 2023
  • (4) State Runner-up: 1944, 1984, 1998, 2022

Coaches

  • Jimmy Childress - LHSAA Hall of Fame Head Coach, Jimmy Childress (1932-2015), was head coach at Ruston High School for eleven seasons (1979 to 1990).[7] He led his alma mater to a 131–27 (.829) record and four state championships in 1982, 1986, 1988, and 1990.[7] His 1990 team also won a national championship.[7] As a player, he was on the 1947 state championship football team.[7] He was an assistant football coach at Neville High School in Monroe from 1958 to 1972 helping the school to win four state championships and was later head coach at Carroll High School in Monroe in 1973 and at the private Cedar Creek School in Ruston from 1976 to 1978.[7] He also coached at the college level at Northeastern Louisiana University from 1974 to 1976.[7] In 2001, he was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.[7]
Childress played football and received his undergraduate degree at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, then known as Northeast Louisiana State College, and obtained his graduate degree at Louisiana Tech University.[8]

Notable alumni

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Ruston High Pepettes 1961 downtown Ruston

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Ruston High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  3. ^ "History of Ruston High School." Ruston High School Alumni.
  4. ^ "Ruston High School" (PDF). State of Louisiana's Division of Historic Preservation. Retrieved August 9, 2018. with four photos and two maps
  5. ^ National Register Staff (June 1992). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Ruston High School". National Park Service. Retrieved August 9, 2018. With 14 photos from 1992.
  6. ^ "REGULAR SESSION". Lincoln Parish School Board. July 2, 2013. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g "Former Ruston High football coach Jimmy 'Chick' Childress dies". nola.com. August 4, 2015. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  8. ^ "Jimmy "chick" Childress". The Monroe News-Star. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  • "History of Ruston High School. Arkansasnewslist2007/halloffame02
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