Elkins High School (Missouri City, Texas)
Lawrence E. Elkins High School, more commonly known as Elkins High School is a public high school in Missouri City, Texas, that serves communities in Sugar Land and Missouri City. The school, which handles grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Fort Bend Independent School District. Elkins was established in 1992, with its first graduating class in 1995.
Elkins received a Blue Ribbon Award from the United States Department of Education in 2002. In addition, Elkins high school was ranked 715th among the top 1000 schools in the United States by Newsweek in 2005. The Washington Post also ranked Elkins High School among the Top High Schools in the Nation in 2011.
History
Lawrence E. Elkins High School was established as a grade 9 and 10 school in the Fall of 1992 to alleviate overcrowding from three other district high schools, Dulles, Clements, and Willowridge. Elkins was FBISD's fifth comprehensive high school.Neighborhoods served
Areas served by the school include Quail Valley, and all of Riverstone.It formerly served Arcola, Fresno, Juliff, and parts of the area near Rosharon in Fort Bend County.
Academies
The Engineering Academy informs and encourage students to learn about the potential of a career in engineering. Courses include Engineering inciples & Systems and Engineering Computer Applications. Advanced Engineering Internship is also offered in which students are able to work alongside professional engineers.In Internship, students will work with NASA and other programs dedicated to the engineering arts and studies. Elective classes include the classical courses in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, emerging courses also include those in the area of Domestic Engineering and Waste Management.
Mix It Up Day
On November 16, 2004, the principal of Elkins High School allowed the school to participate in the nationwide Mix It Up Day.Academic competition
- Academic decathlon
- *3rd place regional 2006
- *21st place state 2008
- *16th place state 2011
- *2nd place region 2017
- *12th place state 2017
- *1st place individual student score of Houston-area medium schools 2017
- Academic octathlon
- Math and science club
- *School merit roll, AMC 12 A&B
- **2004, 2005, 2006, 2009
- *8th place TMSCA state 2003
- *5th place TMSCA state 2004
- *6th place TMSCA state 2008
- *4th place TMSCA state 2009
- *5th place TMSCA state 2010
- Speech and debate
- *5th place state 2007
- *1st place duet interpretation state 2007, Lindsley Howard and Darry Hearon
- *6th place duet interpretation state 2007
- *3rd place duo interpretation state 2007, Sami Atassi and Shannon Kitner
- *4th place LD state 2008, Andrew Cockroft
- *Top 8 LD Tournament of Champions 2008, Andrew Cockroft
- UIL academics
- *1st place conference 5A state academic champions, 1994–95
- *1st place conference 5A state academic champions, 1995–96
- *Calculator applications
- **2nd place state 1995
- **3rd place state 1995
- **1st place state 1996
- **6th place state 1996
- **1st place state 2001
- **3rd place state 2001
- **6th place state 2002
- **1st place state 2004
- *Mathematics
- **1st place state 1996
- **5th place state 2004
- *Number sense
- **3rd place state 1995
- **4th place state 1995
- **1st place state 1996
- **5th place state 1996
- **6th place state 2001
- *Science
- **5th place 1994
- **2nd place 1995
- **1st place 1996
- *Computer applications
- **4th place state 2002
- Constitutional law
- *1st place state 2005, 2008, 2011
- AFJROTC
- 3rd place armed drill team regulation fort bend drill comp 2009
- 1st place male color guard fort bend drill comp 2009
- 1st place altitude rocketry meet 2005
- 1st place drift rocketry meet 2005
Fine arts
- Art
- Band
- *In 2005, Lawrence E. Elkins HS had the most students in TMEA All-State of any school in Texas.
- *In 2009, the Elkins HS Honors Band was one of 18 bands selected in the USA to attend and perform at the BOA Music For All National Concert Festival in Indianapolis.
- *In 2015, Elkins Knights placed fifth at the area sweepstakes in Waller, Texas.
- *In 2016, the Elkins HS Honors Band advanced to the state honor band finals and placed as the twelfth ranked band in the state of Texas.
- State marching season
- Drumline
- *Marching season
- *Indoor drumline: Won 1st place at the TCGC state indoor finals in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2nd place in 2002, 2005, 2012
- Knightbeats
- Knightingales
- Schola cantori
- Bell canto
- End effect
- Camerata
- Elite dance team
- Drama
- Orchestra
Honor societies
- English Honor Society
- International Thespian Society
- Mu Alpha Theta
- National Art Honor Society
- National Forensic League
- National French Honor Society
- National Honor Society
- Science National Honor Society – This national organization was founded by an Elkins student.
- Spanish Honor Society
- Kitty Hawk Honor Society
Athletics
Clements / Elkins rivalry
In 1992, after Elkins was built to alleviate overcrowding from William P. Clements High School, zoning issues forced many families in different subdivisions around the city of Sugar Land to send their children to both high schools. Still today, it is not uncommon to find next door neighbors or siblings going to opposing schools as feeder middle schools and zoning patterns overlap.In 1996, after an outbreak of senior pranks between the two schools, the principals of both high schools decided to focus the rivalry in a less destructive manner. After meeting with both schools' Student Councils, the principals decided to hold an annual, year-long competition.
Each school's athletic program can earn points based on wins against the other school in UIL competition. The competitions include: boys' football, basketball, baseball, and soccer, and girls' volleyball, basketball, softball, and soccer. A school earns one point when it defeats the rival school. A game ending in a tie score will award both teams one-half point. As often occurs, the schools sometimes meet more than once per year. In the event of a tie for the overall competition, the school's band that is ranked the highest at the Texas UIL regional marching band competition will be the year's winner.
Since 1997, the schools have held the competition every year. As both schools' mascots typically ride horses, the "Golden Horse" trophy is awarded and displayed in the champion school's trophy case at the beginning of each new school year.
Notable alumni
- Cornelius Anthony – San Francisco 49ers football player
- Pat Batteaux – NFL player
- Ross Blacklock – NFL defensive end for the Houston Texans
- KaRon Coleman – gridiron football player
- Matt Carpenter – MLB third baseman with the St. Louis Cardinals
- Keli Goff – political commentator, media personality and author of Party Crashing: How the Hip-Hop Generation Declared Political Independence
- D.J. Hayden – NFL cornerback for Oakland Raiders, Detroit Lions
- Chad Huffman – MLB and NPB outfielder
- Maxo Kream - rapper
- James Loney – MLB first baseman for Los Angeles Dodgers, Tampa Bay Rays
- Jake Matthews – former Texas A&M University offensive lineman and current Atlanta Falcons tackle
- Kevin Matthews – former Texas A&M football player and NFL offensive lineman
- Jamal Marshall – football player, North Texas and Seattle Seahawks cornerback
- Kenneth Murray- former Oklahoma football player and current NFL Linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers
- Kendrick Sampson – actor who has been on television shows such as How To Get Away with Murder and The Vampire Diaries
- Travis Scott – rapper, singer, and record producer.
- Crystle Stewart – Miss USA 2008
- Kip Wells former American professional baseball pitcher. Class of 1995
Notoriety
Cyber-bullying
Elkins, along with other Fort Bend High Schools Dulles and Clements, was subject to an act of cyber terrorism when a list titled Whimsical Girls of FBISD was posted on Facebook in April 2010. The list named several female students from the three high schools with graphic detail of promiscuous acts that the girls performed, locations of the acts, as well as severe name calling. While some described this as tattle-taling, others argued that the list was a direct form of verbal assault and demanded the expulsion of the offender who posted the list.Staff
On March 13, 2008, former Vice-Principal Jon Jeffrey Jones was caught by Sugar Land Police looking through the window of a home containing a woman and several children.Feeder patterns
The following elementary schools feed into Elkins:- Austin Parkway
- Commonwealth
- Lantern Lane
- Lexington Creek
- Palmer
- Quail Valley
- Settlers Way
- Fort Settlement
- First Colony
- Lake Olympia
- Quail Valley