East High School (Denver)

East High School is a public high school located in the City Park neighborhood on the east side of Denver, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Denver Public Schools system, and is one of four original high schools in Denver. The other three are North High School, Denver West High School, and Denver South High School.

East High School
Address
1600 City Park Esplanade Denver , Colorado United States
Coordinates	39°44′30″N 104°57′22″W
Information
Type	Public High School
Established	1876
School district	Denver Public Schools
Principal	John Youngquist
Teaching staff	130.49 (on a FTE basis)[1]
Grades	9–12[1]
Enrollment	2,603 (2018-19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio	19.95[1]
Color(s)	Red, White & Gold
Nickname	Angels
Newspaper	The Spotlight
Yearbook	The Angelus
Website	east.dpsk12.org
East High School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Colorado State Register of Historic Properties
East High School
Built	1924
Built by	Arvid Olson Invest. & Building Co.
Architect	George Hebard Williamson
Architectural style	Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals, Jacobethan Revival, other
NRHP reference No.	06000660[2]
CSRHP No.	5DV.2091
Added to NRHP	July 27, 2006

History

East High opened in 1875 and was the first high school in Denver.[3] The first graduating class was in 1877. In 1889, it moved to 19th and Stout Street because of the need for more room. This location is now referred to as "Old East," and could accommodate 700 students.

The architect for the current facility was Denver native George Hebard Williamson, himself an 1893 graduate of "Old East" High. Williamson won national recognition for his design of the "new" East, which has a 162-foot (49 m) high clock tower[4] modeled after Independence Hall in Philadelphia.

In early 1991, the East High building was declared an official Denver Historic Landmark by the Denver Landmark Commission and the Denver City Council.

In July 2005, a music video for the song "Over My Head (Cable Car)", by The Fray was filmed in East High.[5]

East High has been repeatedly honored as one of America's top high schools. It was honored in 1957 as one of the country's top high schools and subsequently selected in 1968 as one of America's Top Ten Schools. In 2000 Newsweek recognized East as one of America's top hundred public high schools.[6] In 2008, Newsweek again recognized East in its annual list of the country's "Top High Schools".[7] It is ranked 23rd out of Colorado high schools and 974th nationally by U.S. News "Best High Schools".[8]

Academics and activities

Constitutional Law

Constitutional Law or "Con-Law" as most Angels refer to it, is a large part of the academic extracurricular setting at East.[9] The team, usually composed of 11th and 12th graders, has continuously traveled to Washington D.C. to compete in the Center for Civic Education's national "We the People: The Citizens and the Constitution" competition. This competition involves on average 54 other teams who have qualified by winning their state's competition and totals to around 300 students. The team has won 5 national titles with the most recent being in April 2019.[10][11] Other national titles include 2009, 2008, 2007, and 1992.[12]

Model United Nations

Model United Nations has been an active club at Denver East since the early 1980s. In recent years they have traveled to many conferences ranging from ones in Colorado, to ones at the national and international level. In February 2019, the team took 11 students to Birkerød, Denmark to compete against 400 other students, returning two 1st place or Best Delegate international recognitions.[13] As well in 2019 East's Model U.N. team hosted a conference at Denver East High School that brought in over 200 competitors from 29 schools.[14] In 2020, East traveled to Mexico City, Mexico for their 2nd international competition fielding 13 students and returning 5 international recognitions.[13]

Athletics

East High is ranked 4th in the State of Colorado for greatest amount of State Championships with the Angels holding 70 total state championships; 63 in boys teams and 7 in girls teams.[15] Additionally, teams representing Denver East outside of the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) as club teams have accumulated 8 combined state championships bringing the high school's count to 78 1st-place finishes since the early 1900s.[15]

In 2007, the boys' basketball team was named the top-ranked team in the state by RISE Magazine and Sports Illustrated, and finished the season with another 5A state championship win, topping a season with a 22–3 record.

East High Angels Athletic State Championships[15]- Colorado High School Activities Association 5A Division

Season	Sport	Number of Championships	Year
Fall	Cross Country, Boys	5[16]	1967,1964, 1963, 1959, 1958
	Golf, Boys	2[17]	1952, 1947
	Tennis, Boys	16[18]	1968, 1967, 1964, 1959, 1958, 1957, 1956, 1955, 1949, 1943, 1939, 1938, 1936, 1934, 1933, 1931
	Soccer, Boys	3[19]	2011, 2008, 1994
	Football, Boys	2[20]	1962, 1949
Winter	Basketball, Boys	11[21]	2014, 2008, 2007, 2004, 1999, 1996, 1965, 1964, 1952, 1951, 1943
	Basketball, Girls	1[22]	2010
	Swimming, Girls	2[23]	1994, 1992
	Wrestling, Boys	1[24]	1937
Spring	Lacrosse, Boys	1[25]	2000
	Baseball, Boys	2[26]	1994, 1951
	Swimming, Boys	1[27]	1960
	Track, Boys	19[28]	1966, 1965, 1964, 1960, 1953, 1948, 1946, 1945, 1942, 1941, 1939, 1937, 1936, 1907, 1906, 1905, 1904, 1903, 1902
	Track, Girls	3[29]	1992, 1985, 1984
	Soccer, Girls	1[30]	1983
Total		70

Denver East Angels Athletic State Championships- Club Teams

Season	Sport	Number of Championships	Year
Spring	Ultimate Frisbee, Boys	2[31]	2019, 2018
	Rugby, Boys	6[32]	2018, 2015, 2009, 2004, 2002, 1997
Total		8

Notable alumni

• Norman Augustine, US aerospace businessman; Under Secretary of the Army 1975–77; currently serves as chairman of the Review of United States Human Space Flight Plans Committee[33]
• Philip Bailey, member of Earth, Wind & Fire; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame[33][34]
• R. Stephen Berry, Chemistry Professor[33][35]
• J.B. Bickerstaff, basketball associate head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers
• Jerome Biffle, track and field gold medalist at the 1952 Olympics[35]
• Joan Birkland, Colorado state women's amateur golf and tennis champion
• Ward Bond, film actor[36]
• Joe Barry Carroll, NBA All-star[36]
• Neal Cassady (attended for a short time), Beat generation icon; model for te character Dean Moriarty in Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road, played a prominent role in the counter-culture of 1960s
• Herrick Chapman, associate professor of History and French Studies, New York University (1992–present)
• Don Cheadle, actor[37][34][36]
• Dan Cohn-Sherbok, Professor Emeritus of Judaism, University of Wales
• Judy Collins, folk and standards singer and songwriter[34][36]
• Harlan L. Dalton, professor of law, Yale Law School[35]
• Larry Dunn, member of Earth, Wind & Fire; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame[36]
• Bruce Egloff, former MLB player (Cleveland Indians)
• Barry Lersch, former MLB pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies) and (St Louis Cardinals)
• Mamie Eisenhower, wife of President Dwight D. Eisenhower; First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961[38]
• Douglas Fairbanks, was expelled from East High School; went on to become one of the most famous silent movie stars of all time[33][36]
• Edwina Hume Fallis, educator, writer, and toy designer[35]
• Bryan Fogel, playwright and author
• Bill Frisell, jazz guitarist[34]
• Miriam Goldberg, newspaper publisher and editor[33]
• Pam Grier, actress[36]
• Peter Groff, first African-American President Pro Tem of the Colorado Senate[35]
• Regis Groff, East history teacher, 20-year member of the Colorado Senate
• General Irving Hale, Spanish–American War veteran[39][40]
• Christopher A. Hart, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board[41]
• General Robert T. Herres, first Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff[34]
• Daniel Walker Howe, Pulitzer Prize for History; Rhodes Professor of American History Emeritus at Oxford University in England; Professor of History Emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles[36]
• Cobe Jones, former MLB player (Pittsburgh Pirates)
• Jamie Laurie (aka Jonny 5), singer/songwriter for The Flobots
• Harold Lloyd, silent film actor[33]
• Hattie McDaniel, actress; first African American to win an Academy Award, for her performance in Gone with the Wind[33]
• Stephen L.R. McNichols, Colorado governor (1957–1963)[36]
• Ron Miles, jazz trumpeter, cornetist and composer[35]
• T. J. Miller, comedian and actor, known for his role in the show Silicon Valley and the 2014 film Big Hero 6
• David Oliver, professional track athlete[42]
• Antoinette Perry, stage actress; namesake of the Tony Awards[33][36]
• Dianne Reeves, jazz vocalist (graduated from George Washington HS in Denver)
• Reese Roper, singer/songwriter for Five Iron Frenzy
• Brandon Shaffer, President of the Colorado Senate
• Sidney Sheldon, Academy Award-winning writer; created The Patty Duke Show (1963–66), I Dream of Jeannie (1965–70) and Hart to Hart (1979–84); best-selling novels include Master of the Game (1982), The Other Side of Midnight (1973) and Rage of Angels (1980); the seventh best selling fiction writer of all time[33][36]
• George Gaylord Simpson, paleontologist and evolutionary biologist[33]
• Maurice Rose, Major general in the United States Army during World War II and a World War I veteran. General Rose was at the time the highest ranking Jew in the U.S. Army. Rose Medical Center in Denver, Colorado, was named in his honor.
• Robert F. Smith, American businessman, investor, and philanthropist.[43]
• Jack Swigert, NASA astronaut and member of the Apollo 13 mission[34][36]
• Donnette Thayer, songwriter, singer
• Edward D. White Jr., architect based in Denver, whose forty-year practice (1955–1995) focused on contemporary architecture and historic preservation
• Paul Whiteman, jazz composer and bandleader
• Stan Williams, former MLB player (Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox)
• Andrew Woolfolk, member of Earth, Wind & Fire; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• Bernard Wrightson, Olympic springboard diving gold medalist[44]
• Jean Yancey, women's small business consultant and motivational speaker, inducted into Alumni Heritage Hall[45]

References

1. "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for EAST HIGH SCHOOL". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
3. "East High School History". East High School.
4. "2007 Doors Open Denver Building List". Archived from the original on 2007-09-11. Retrieved 2008-01-04.
5. "The Fray - Over My Head (Cable Car) (Video)". YouTube.
6. High School History, The Hill School. The Torch Relit. Vol. 7, Issue 2. Page 11. By Parker La Casse and Hayley Price. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
7. Denver Schools Archived 2013-08-27 at the Wayback Machine, Denverrelocationbroker.com. By Michelle A. Potter. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
8. "East High School (U.S. News, Best High Schools)". U.S. News. 2019.
9. "About Denver East High School".
10. https://kdvr.com/2019/05/01/denvers-east-high-wins-1st-place-in-national-con-law-competition/
11. "2019 We the People National Finals Award Winners". www.civiced.org. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
12. "National Competitions". Center for Civic Education.
13. "Denver East Model United Nations Recognitions". Retrieved 2020-03-12.
14. "East-DCIS Conference". Retrieved 2020-03-12.
15. "Colorado high school sports championship history by school". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
16. "List of Colorado high school boys cross country champions". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
17. "List of Colorado high school boys golf champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
18. "List of Colorado high school boys tennis champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
19. "List of Colorado high school boys soccer champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
20. "List of Colorado high school football champions through history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
21. "List of Colorado high school boys basketball champions". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
22. "List of Colorado high school girls basketball champions". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
23. "List of Colorado high school girls swimming champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
24. "List of Colorado high school wrestling champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
25. "List of Colorado high school boys lacrosse champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
26. "List of Colorado high school baseball champions through history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
27. "List of Colorado high school boys swimming champions". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
28. "List of Colorado high school boys track champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
29. "List of Colorado high school girls track champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
30. "List of Colorado high school girls soccer champions in history". CHSAANow.com. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
31. "Youth Division". www.usaultimate.org. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
32. "EAST RUGBY Records & Achievements". HomeTeamsONLINE. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
33. "Heritage Hall Inductees". East Angel Friends and Alumni Foundation. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
34. Davidson, Joanne (August 30, 2013). "East High School adds 16 to its Alumni Heritage Hall". Denver Post.
35. Davidson, Joanne (October 28, 2010). "East High's Hall of Fame". Denver Post.
36. Frei, Terry (February 9, 2013). "Denver's tradition-rich East High School a grand ol' Angel". Retrieved April 30, 2016.
37. http://movies.com/don-cheadle/b897582 Archived 2008-05-16 at the Wayback Machine Don Cheadle Biography on Movie.com
38. "Mamie Eisenhower Biography". National First Ladies' Library. Retrieved 2011-09-01.
39. http://blogs.denverpost.com/library/2013/04/10/general-irvin-hale-of-denver-founder-of-the-v-f-w/7275/
40. https://www.vanderkrogt.net/statues/object.php?webpage=ST&record=usco44 https://www.historycolorado.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/2018/ph.00001_0.pdf
41. "Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board: Who Is Christopher Hart?". Retrieved 2016-07-05.
42. David Oliver USA Track & Field
43. "Heritage Hall Inductees". East Angel Friends & Alumni Foundation. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
44. Moss, Irv (May 13, 2014). "Colorado Classics: Bernie Wrightson, Olympic Champion Diver". Denver Post.
45. Shikes, Jonathan (29 July 2008). "I'm Not Don Cheadle or Judy Collins, But Still..." Westword. Retrieved 12 September 2018.