William H. Hall High School, also known as Hall High, is a four-year public high school located in West Hartford, in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Opened in 1924, it was named after William Henry Hall, who was a teacher, principal and superintendent of schools in West Hartford. The school colors are blue and white, and the mascot is the "Warrior." It is one of two public high schools in the West Hartford Public Schools, the other being Conard High School. Enrollment in grades 9â€"12 for the 2014â€"2015 school year was 1,437 students.
Demographics
Survey ranks top high schools in Connecticut - If you are looking for the best public high schools in Connecticut, look no further than Fairfield County.
The 2014â€"2015 demographic profile is as follows: White 65%, Hispanic 12%, Asian American 10%, Black 10%, two or more races 3%, American Indian/Alaskan Native 1%, and Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 0.1%.
Athletics and clubs
In soccer, Hall won the 1980 state championship 3-2 over E. O. Smith High School. The school also reached the semifinals of the state tournament four times under head coach Zeke Seguro, who won his 150th game as coach on October 10, 2008 with a 1-0 victory at South Windsor. Hall's boys' cross country team has won the Central Connecticut Conference four of the last five years dating back to 2012.
Hall has a renowned jazz program, which stage an annual production called Pops 'n' Jazz, regularly selling over 3,000 tickets every year. They have also won the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival twice, in 1998 and 2000. The band has performed for the president at the White House, appeared in Ken Burns's documentary film ''Jazz'' and shared the stage with countless jazz luminaries, including Count Basie Orchestra, Wynton Marsalis, Jimmy Heath, Ted Nash, Arturo O'Farrell, Elliot Mason, John Daversa, Phil Woods and Joe Lovano.
In 2011, Hall's chess team won the state championship.
Academic accomplishments
- Blue Ribbon School in 1984â€"85.
- Ranked as the 12th best school in the state of Connecticut by U.S. News & World Report in 2015.
Notable alumni
- Natalie Anderson, Survivor: San Juan Del Sur winner
- David Alan Basche, actor (United 93, War of the Worlds)
- Jeff Bleich, United States Ambassador to Australia (2009-2013), class of 1979
- Chris Carrabba, musician and lead singer of the band Dashboard Confessional attended freshman year
- Dave Chameides, Emmy-Award-winning cinematographer, TV director and environmentalist.
- Andy Fleischmann, politician, Connecticut State General Assembly
- Jacob Fox, mathematician
- Joel Frahm, jazz tenor saxophonist
- Wavy Gravy, activist and comic
- Jonathan Harris (politician), former Connecticut State Senator
- Grayson Hugh, singer/songwriter
- Charlie Kaufman, Academy Award-winning screenwriter (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Adaptation., Being John Malkovich)
- Steven A. Kandarian, businessperson
- Marc Lasry, co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks
- Frank Luntz, The New York Times best-selling author, Fox News correspondent, Communication Consultant Company President, and political pollster
- Jimmy Macbride, jazz drummer
- Brad Mehldau, jazz pianist
- Ken Ober, actor, game show host, comedian
- Noah Preminger, jazz saxophonist
- Jessica Rosenworcel, commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission
- Sara Roy, Middle East scholar
- Richie Barshay, drummer
- Michael Schur, writer and producer (The Office, Saturday Night Live, Parks and Recreation)
- Scott Slifka, former West Hartford mayor
- Roger Sperry, neuropsychologist and Nobel Prize laureate
- David H. Steinberg, screenwriter (Slackers, American Pie 2, Puss In Boots, American Pie Presents: The Book of Love)
- Erica von Kleist, a renowned flautist, saxophonist, composer and educator
- Patrick Zimmerli, composer
References
External links
- Official website
- West Hartford Public Schools Official Site
