This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (October 2007)

Buffalo Grove High School

Motto	"...and Back those Bison"
Established	1973
Type	Public secondary
Principal	Patrice Johannes
Asst. Principal	Robert Hartwig, Carol Burlinski, Trisha Dean, Mark Schaetzlein
Dean	Craig Kinkaid, Richard Carlson
Faculty	149 certified staff members[1]
Students	2179 (2007 Enrollment)[2]
Grades	9-12
Location	1100 W. Dundee Road, Buffalo Grove, Illinois, USA
District	Township Highschool District 214
Accreditation	North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools
Colors	Navy Blue, Burnt Orange and White
Mascot	The Bison
Yearbook	'Stampede'
Newspaper	'The Charger'
ACT Average	23.7[3]
National ranking	1170[4]
Website	http://bghs.d214.org/

Buffalo Grove High School, or BG is a public high school located in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago. It is one of six four-year comprehensive high schools in Township High School District 214, serving portions of the Villages of Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, and Wheeling.

History and recent events

The first class

In 1973, drawing students and staff from Wheeling and John Hersey High School, and fed by Cooper Junior High, Rand Junior High, Saint Mary's Catholic School in Buffalo Grove, nearly half of the students at Thomas Junior High in Arlington Heights, and a smattering of students from Saint Peter's Lutheran School in Arlington Heights, BGHS opened for business with no seniors.

The school's colors were chosen as blue and orange combining Wheeling's blue and gold and Hersey's brown and orange. University of Illinois's alma mater was adopted as Buffalo Grove's school song, with slight changes to the wording.

Dr. Clarence M. "Chick" Miller, formerly assistant principal at Wheeling High School, was named the school's first principal. Richard R. "Dick" Schnell--who coined the phrase "Back Those Bison"--formerly at Wheeling as a social science teacher and coach, is named an assistant principal. Norman Patberg, formerly at Forest View High School in Arlington Heights, is named as the other assistant principal. Paul Mueller, a science teacher from Wheeling, is chosen as Director of Student Activities. Wayne Selvig, from the physical education staff at Wheeling is the first athletic director.

Notable events

On March 12th, 1976, President Gerald Ford, running a hard-fought campaign against former California Governor Ronald Reagan, made a March primary appearance in the gymnasium of Buffalo Grove High School. During the 1978-1979 school year, Bison varsity football placed second in the state 5A (then the largest division in Illinois football playoffs) championship game, played at Illinois State University, in Normal, Illinois. During the 1986-1987 school year, the Bison won the Division 6A IHSA Football State Championship. Two years later, the Bison were the IHSA Boys Soccer State Champions, led by future international soccer star Brian McBride. During the 1990-2000 school year, coach Tom Dineen led the Bison to a Class AA IHSA Girls Basketball State Championship.

Additions and Renovations

In 2003, new classrooms, a foyer, and offices opened as part of a six-million dollar new development. The "circle drive" on the west side of the school was greatly reduced in size to make room for the new classrooms and foyer. The new classrooms included new science labs and special-ed facilities. Additionally, room was made in old storage space on the second floor of the south side of the building for new foreign-language classrooms.

Ending a long stand against stadium lights, on August 27, 2004, the Bison hosted their first Friday night Game under the new lights at Bison Stadium as they hosted Glenbrook South. They were the final team in the Mid-Suburban League to switch from Saturday afternoons to Friday night games. [1]

Recent events

In 2005, openly gay and lesbian students became the homecoming king and queen, making news in the local community.[2]

On June 6, 2007 The Boys Varsity Baseball team qualified for the state tournament for the first time in school history. They eventually lost in the quarter-final round by eight runs to a ranked New Trier team. The Varsity Girls Basketball team also made it to state (for the second time in the past two years), however, they lost in the first game.

In the 2007/2008 schoolyear the school hosted two Exchange Students from Germany and 1 Exchange Student from Italy.

Academics

Buffalo Grove High School was a 1999-2000 Blue Ribbon Award for Excellence winner presented by the United States Department of Education.

Standardized Test Results

Buffalo Grove High School has consistently scored above the District 214 and Illinois average on standardized tests. However, in 2007, BGHS failed to meet Adequate Yearly Progress of the No Child Left Behind Act because of scores below the minimum target on the Prairie State Achievement Examination by Hispanics and students with disabilities. In 2007, BGHS had 2 National Merit Scholarship Finalists and 10 National Merit Commended Students^[5].

Post-graduation

Buffalo Grove High School also maintains an excellent college admissions rate, with over 91% of graduating students going to a 2 or 4 year college as of 2005. The school provides a cocurricular program website to assist with college admissions and a career resources website for those going straight into the workplace.

Athletics

The Boys' Athletic Director is Kip North and the Girls' AD is Marianne Mendoza.

Clubs and Activities

 Ms. Smalley

Notable alumni

• The first overall pick in the 1996 MLS draft, Brian McBride, graduated from Buffalo Grove High School. He has since played in three FIFA World Cups for the US men's national soccer team and was named MVP in the 1998 MLS All-star game. He currently plays for the Fulham Football Club in the English Premier League. He is in the last year of his contract and wants to get away from a rebuilding team. He would like to go to the Chicago Fire of the MLS.

• Baltimore Raven Tom Zbikowski graduated from Buffalo Grove High School with the class of 2003, and started for the Bison for three years. He starred as an option quarterback and strong safety for BG. As a standout at the University of Notre Dame, he played safety and returned punts for the Fighting Irish. He was drafted 86th overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. [3]

• Don Thorp was an All-State Defensive Tackle at Buffalo Grove as he lead the Bison to the State Championship Game his Junior Year. He accepted a scholarship to play football at the University of Illinois. He got the Fightin' Illini to the Rose Bowl his senior year and won the Big Ten MVP, the first defensive player to do so since the great Dick Butkus. He was drafted in the sixth round by the New Orleans Saints in the 1984 NFL Draft. In his career, he also spent time on the rosters of the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, and Kansas City Chiefs. [4]

• Three Major League Baseball players have graduated from Buffalo Grove High School: Mike Marshall, Tim Bogar and Josh Paul. [5]

• NHL Detroit Red Wings defenseman Brett Lebda attended Buffalo Grove High School.

• 1988 Olympic Short Track Speed Skater Brian Arseneau graduated from Buffalo Grove High School with the class of 1983.

• The Simpsons writer Larry Doyle graduated from Buffalo Grove High School. In May 2007, he published his first novel, "I Love You, Beth Cooper," set at Buffalo Grove High School. [6]

• Actress Jessy Schram graduated from Buffalo Grove High School with the class of 2004.

• Threadless Creative Director Jeffrey Kalmikoff graduated from Buffalo Grove High School with the class of 1997.[7]

• Michael Terson, public address announcer for the Chicago Cubs and Chicago Wolves graduated from Buffalo Grove High School with the class of 1988.

External links

• Official Website
• School profile from the district website
• Windows Live Local satellite photo of school campus with labels
• Class of 1987 Reunion Website