Springfield High School (Louisiana)

Springfield High School in Springfield, Louisiana, is a co-educational public high school under the Livingston Parish School Board. The school currently serves 361 students from the communities of Springfield and Killian in Livingston Parish, Louisiana.

History

Springfield High School's history is not the most documented one, similar to the town it resides in. The earliest known record of a graduating class was the Class of 1923, in which two males and three females were among the honorees. The original school buildings were burned down sometime in the 1970s due to tensions between African-American students and White students. Neither party was found responsible for the ignition of the fire, as both parties were present on the school grounds during the fires and both sides claimed they were innocent whilst blaming the other. The only building that remained largely intact was the modern "3rd Hall" structure. The student population has not significantly changed in recent years, as the towns of Springfield and Killian have not had any major population gains or losses for decades. Recent plans are to combine the Elementary, Middle, and High Schools into one large structure in Springfield's North-East Quadrant. Funding for this project was halted in favor of Football Stadium upgrades, a new Basketball/Volleyball Gymnasium, and new Baseball and Softball fields.

Athletics

The School's Mascot is the Bulldog and the teams are referred to as the "Fighting Bulldogs" and the "Lady Bulldogs". The Football Stadium is commonly referred to across South-East Louisiana as "The Dawg Pound". "The Dawg Pound" was unofficially ranked the 39th toughest place to play in for opponents in 2012 (out of 314 total). Springfield's "official" rivals are the Class 2A St. Thomas Aquinas Falcons (Hammond, LA), who also compete in the same district as Springfield, and the Class 3A Albany High School Hornets (Albany, LA).

Springfield High School has always competed in Louisiana High School Class 2A Sports, with Football and Basketball being the most popular sports among students and community fans. The Springfield High School Boys Basketball team has appeared in the Louisiana Class 2A Boys Basketball State Championship Game a total of three times. The first appearance, in 1982, saw the Bulldogs defeat Delta High School (Delta ,LA) 60-56. The next two appearances, in 1996 and 1997, were the pinnacle years of legendary Springfield Coach Mark Erdey. Erdey took control of the Basketball program in 1985, leading numerous teams to the State Semi-Finals and two teams to the State Championship up until his final season in 2009. Both the 1996 and 1997 Championship games were fought against the same opponent, Christian Life Academy (Baton Rouge, LA). In 1996, Christian Life was victorious, 57-51; and in 1997, Springfield was victorious, 81-72 (OT).

Springfield Football, while always popular, has not always been successful. It was not until 1999 that the Bulldogs hosted their first ever Playoff game. The final result of that game was a loss for Springfield, but it set the stage for many great seasons to come. From 2006-2009, the Springfield Football Team managed to get into playoffs every year, winning three games and losing four. Springfield's first ever Playoff victory in Football was in 2006 against Jonesboro-Hodge (Jonesboro, LA). 2007 and 2009 saw victories against rival school St. Thomas Aquinas (Hammond, LA) and Jeanerette (Jeanerette, LA), respectively. In 2012, Springfield experienced its most successful season in Football to date. Springfield drove itself all the way to the Class 2A Semi-Finals, defeating Northeast High (Baton Rouge, LA), district opponent Northlake Christian (Covington, LA), and Many High School (Many, LA) to face the well-known and well-respected John Curtis Patriots of River Ridge, LA. The game did not go well for the Bulldogs, and Curtis was eventually crowned State Champions the next week, but it solidified Springfield's position as the newest Class 2A power. In 2014, the Bulldogs survived until the Quarterfinal round, being beaten by eventual State Runner-Up Kinder High (Kinder, LA). The Bulldogs hope to obtain a State Championship in Football in the near future under leadership of Springfield coaches Ryan Serpas and Spencer Harris.

Academics

Springfield High School has always had one of the most successful 4-H and Agricultural Science (FFA) organizations in the entire region. Springfield has also received a "Bronze" Medal from the U.S. News and World Reports for being one of the most successful Public High Schools in the State of Louisiana and all of the United States. The Average ACT Score is a 24 and the graduation rate is 92% amongst students from 9-12 grade.

References

    Coordinates: 30°25′47″N 90°33′03″W / 30.4298°N 90.5509°W / 30.4298; -90.5509

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