Old Orchard Beach High School

Old Orchard Beach High School (OOBHS), is a public high school located in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. It is the secondary school for Regional School Unit (RSU) 23, a school district which exclusively serves the town of Old Orchard Beach.^[3][4] It has an enrollment of about 200 students, making it the smallest high school in Southern Maine.

Old Orchard Beach High School
Address
40 E. Emerson Cummings Boulevard Old Orchard Beach , York , Maine 04064 United States
Coordinates	43°30′48″N 70°23′32″W / 43.5132°N 70.3922°W / 43.5132; -70.3922
Information
School type	Public, high school
School district	Regional School Unit 23
NCES School ID	231478400921 ^[1]
Principal	John Suttie^[2]
Teaching staff	26 ^[1]
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	195 ^[1]
Student to teacher ratio	7.50^[1]
Campus size	Small
Campus type	Suburban
Color(s)	Blue and   White
Athletics	Football, Girls Soccer, Golf, X-Country, Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball, Hockey, Baseball, Softball, Track and Field.
Athletics conference	Class C
Mascot	Sandy the Seagull
Nickname	Gulls
Team name	Seagulls
Accreditation	NEASC
Tuition	Free (Public)
Website	rsu23.org

History

 

Exterior of OOBHS

The Old Orchard Beach school system was established in 1881 after being separated from the neighboring Saco, Maine school system. Rev. W. W. H. McAllister, who would later be elected the first Supervisor of Schools, lobbied for the establishment of a High School with town officials due to tax incentives from the state. The high school's first day of operation was 25 September 1883.^[5]

The school originally resided in what is today Loranger Middle School, another school within RSU 23.^[6] The school moved to a new building across from its previous location in the late 1970s.^[7]

In 2009, the Saco, Old Orchard Beach, and Dayton school systems combined to form Regional School Unit (RSU) 23 under the state's educational consolidation program. The school systems remained unified until July 2014, when Saco and Dayton withdrew, leaving Old Orchard Beach the sole town in the system.^[8][9] Between 2009 and 2014, OOBHS (with some limited exceptions) still only served residents of Old Orchard Beach, despite being consolidated with the two other townships.^{[10][11][12][13][14]}

Since 2019, OOBHS has been in a unique situation in that the principal and assistant principal also serve concurrently as superintendent and assistant superintendent, respectfully, for the entire RSU 23 school district.^[11][13]

References

1. "Old Orchard Beach High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
2. GILLIAN GRAHAM (18 March 2020). "Old Orchard Beach High staff member tests positive for virus". Retrieved April 19, 2020.
3. Writer, Gillian GrahamStaff (2020-03-18). "Old Orchard Beach High staff member tests positive for virus". Press Herald. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
4. "Withdrawal List | Department of Education". www.maine.gov. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
5. "1921 Old Orchard Beach High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
6. "1939 Old Orchard Beach High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
7. "1986 Old Orchard Beach High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
8. "RSU23 Final Dayton Withdrawal Agreement" (PDF). www.maine.gov/doe. August 13, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
9. "RSU23 Final Saco Withdrawal Agreement" (PDF). www.maine.gov/doe. August 13, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
10. "Structure & Governance | Department of Education". www.maine.gov. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
11. Gotthelf, Liz (2019-08-17). "RSU 23 board changes title of Old Orchard Beach High School assistant principal". Press Herald. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
12. Writer, Gillian GrahamStaff (2014-09-28). "RSU 23 – A failed union". Press Herald. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
13. Writer, LIZ GOTTHELF | Staff (2014-04-16). "RSU 23 budget gets first vote". Press Herald. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
14. Reagan, Mike (2013-11-06). "Saco plans RSU 23 departure after vote". WMTW. Retrieved 2020-04-29.