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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the school in Kane County, Illinois, USA. For the school in
Erie county, New York USA, see East Aurora High School (New York).
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for verification. Please help improve this
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East Aurora High School

Address
500 Tomcat Lane

Aurora
,
Illinois

60505

United States
Information
School type Public high school
 Opened 1867; 157 years ago
(1957 current building)
School district East Aurora Public School
District 131
Principal Marina Kosak [1]
Teaching staff 223.00 (FTE)[2]
Grades 9–12
Gender coed
Enrollment 3,972 (2018-19)[2]
Student to teacher 17.81[2]
ratio
Campus suburban
Color(s) Red
Black
Fight song "Wave the Flag"
Athletics conference Upstate Eight Conference
Nickname Tomcats
Newspaper The Auroran
Yearbook Speculum
Website easthigh.d131.org

East Aurora High School, (also known as EAHS or Aurora East High
School), is a public, four-year high school located in Kane County, at the
corner of Smith Boulevard and Fifth Avenue in Aurora, Illinois, a western
suburb of Chicago, Illinois. It is the only high school in East Aurora Public
School District 131.

History[edit]

According to "The Educational History of Illinois", private subscription schools

were taught by various teachers on the East Side of Aurora starting in 1834.
The first class from East Aurora High School - four girls - graduated in 1867.
The first high school was built on Center Street, and torn down in the 1960s.

In August 1912, East Aurora High School opened a new, larger building on
Jackson Street. The dedication ceremony was attended by the U.S.
Commissioner of Education and Illinois Schools Superintendent Francis G.
Blair. The total cost of the structure was $225,000, including $25,000 to buy
the land. That building is now K.D. Waldo Middle School.

The present East Aurora High School campus opened in 1957. The address
for East Aurora High School is 500 Tomcat Lane, in Aurora, IL. Additions were
made to the new high school sometime after 1989 school year, adding three
stories to the East side of the school for math, science and English. Previous
to 1989 there were three stories however a new addition was not put on until
after 1988. The new addition is now the freshman classrooms, gym and
cafeteria. Currently, construction is being done on the west side of the
campus, where the Roy E. Davis stadium will replace the original field.

Tomcats nickname[edit]

Through the 1920s, the East High teams did not have an official mascot or
nickname. The teams were often referred to as the “Red and Blacks", “East
Warriors” or simply “East High”. But by 1934, the high school yearbook
referred to the football team as the “Tomcats”. By 1945, all the high school
 teams had adopted the name. An article in the September 30, 1931, East
High Auroran hints that the name was in honor of legendary varsity football
coach Glen Thompson, who was known more often as “Tommy”. Thompson
had come to East Aurora High School in 1925, and proceeded to resurrect the
football team. He was a successful basketball and track coach, and his
football teams regularly won conference championships. For decades, the
high school teams have been known as the Tomcats and nearly all the East
Aurora middle and elementary schools use some sort of cat for their logo and
nickname. [3]

Academics[edit]

There are Honors and Advanced Placement classes offered in one or more of
the following subjects: foreign language, math, science, language arts, social
studies and fine arts.

According to the 2012 Illinois State report card, East Aurora had an average
composite ACT score of 16.6 and graduated 60.1 percent of its senior class.
The average class size is 22.8 students. East Aurora has not made Adequate
Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, a state test
part of the No Child Left Behind Act.[4]

The staff is 178 teachers, of whom 60 percent hold an advanced degree.

Approximately 250 semester courses by eight major departments are taught
at East Aurora.[5]

Athletics[edit]

East Aurora has 23 athletic teams - 11 for boys and 12 for girls - which
compete in the Upstate Eight Conference and Illinois High School
Association. East Aurora's mascot is the Tomcat. Teams include football,
tennis, badminton, baseball, softball, bowling, cross country, volleyball, track
and field, basketball, soccer and cheerleading.

The following East Aurora teams have finished in the top four of an IHSA-
sponsored state tournament or meet:[citation needed]

 Basketball (Boys): 4th Place (1969); 3rd Place (1972)

 Basketball (Girls): 4th Place (1982)
 Debate: 3rd Place (1966)
 Track and Field (Boys): State champions (1898)
 Wrestling (Boys): 3rd Place (1964)

The rivalry between the East Aurora and West Aurora High School football
teams is considered the oldest football rivalry in the state, and the sixth-oldest
in the nation.[citation needed] The teams first met on November 18, 1893. East
High won the game 28-0. By 1895, the game was drawing 2,000 fans to
Hurd's Island, the neutral area of the Fox River where the two teams played.
The game was not played in 1894 or 1897, but the teams met twice in 1896
and 1898. Through 1951, the teams traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day.
 The 1938 Tomcats football team is considered the school's best ever. That
year, the team went 9-0, and outscored opponents 188-6. West High was the
only team to score against East that year.

Activities[edit]

East Aurora offers dozens of opportunities to participate in extracurricular

activities. Activities include art club, book club, card club, chess club,
conservation club, computer gaming club, cooking club, drama, film club,
Gay-Straight Alliance, guitar club, heavy metal club, key club, literary
magazine, mathletes, music club, National Honor Society, photography,
Peace Jam, Scholastic Bowl, student council, Speculum (yearbook), The
Auroran (school paper),

The school also offers a wide spectrum of clubs and organizations, including:
Literary Magazine, GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), NHS (National Honor
Society), GHS (German Honor Society), Music Club, Art Club, FCCLA and
DECA.

NJROTC[edit]

Navy JROTC Insignia

East Aurora is well known for its involvement in the Navy Junior Reserve
Officers' Training Corps, or NJROTC. The high school has more than 900
students enrolled in the program, making East Aurora largest in the nation.

East Aurora's NJROTC has been the Area 3-West Champions for the past
several years. East Aurora has gone to Navy Nationals held in NAS
Pensacola, Florida, for the past seven years. East Aurora has won many
honors including, Distinguished Unit and 2006 National Color Guard
Champions. The East Aurora NJROTC Rifle Team has also had successful
years traveling and competing in Colorado, Tennessee and Ohio.[citation needed]

Notable alumni[edit]
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help improve this section by adding citations to
reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged
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 Kurt Becker, class of 1977, former NFL offensive lineman; former head
football coach at East Aurora High School
 Charles Pierce Burton, class of 1880, author of the "Bob's Hill" young adult
books
 Linda Chapa LaVia, class of 1984, member of Illinois House of
Representatives, representing 83rd District since 2003
 James Compton, class of 1954, president of the Chicago Urban League
1978-2006
 Slade Cutter, class of 1929, recipient of four Navy Crosses for sinking
second-most Japanese ships in World War II; All-American football player at
U.S. Naval Academy
 Michael J. Davis, class of 1965, Senior U.S. District Judge for the District of
Minnesota
 Christine Estabrook, class of 1968; actress
 Henry Gale, class of 1892, astrophysicist and author
 Ralph Galloway, former CFL offensive lineman
 Lloyd Hall, prominent African-American chemist who contributed to science
of food preservation
 Frank Hanny, former NFL tight end
 Tom Kivisto, businessman who founded SemGroup and played on
two University of Kansas Final Four teams
 Bob Lavoy, former NBA power forward
 Patricia Reid Lindner, class of 1957, member of Illinois House of
Representatives, representing 50th District from 1993-2009
 Aaron McGhee, former professional basketball player
 Olive Beaupré Miller (née Olive Kennon Beaupré), class of 1900, author and
publisher of children's literature
 Mabel O'Donnell, class of 1906, author of Alice and Jerry basal reader
series
 Frank R. Reid, class of 1898, attorney and member of U.S. House of
Representatives
 Wilfred Reilly, Kentucky State University professor and well-known writer
 John Rennicke, former NBA guard
 Ryan Boatright, professional basketball player.
 Andy Sabados, former NFL offensive lineman
 John F Sarwark, class of 1972, head of orthopaedic surgery at Lurie
Children's Hospital
 Roy Solfisburg, class of 1903, Illinois State Supreme Court Chief Justice
from 1962–63, 1967-1969
 Robert Strotz, class of 1938, Professor of Econometrics and President of
Northwestern University, 1970-1984; also Chairman of the Board of
Directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
 Jay Taylor, former professional basketball player
 Carl Thomas, R&B singer, recording artist
 Charlotte Thompson Reid, class of 1930, U.S. Representative from 1962 to
1971
 Walter Truemper, Medal of Honor recipient for heroic actions in World War II
 Frank Wickhorst, class of 1915, college football player and coach, member
of the College Football Hall of Fame

References[edit]
 1. ^ "East Aurora High School - High School Leadership". easthigh.d131.org. Retrieved Jul
12, 2022.
2. ^ Jump up to:a b c "East High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved October
22, 2020.
3. ^ "About - East Aurora High School". d131.org. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
4. ^ "Illinois School Report Card" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-10-08.
Retrieved 2006-08-11.
5. ^ "About East Aurora High School". Archived from the original on 2006-07-15. Retrieved 2006-
08-11.

External links[edit]

 Media related to East Aurora High School at Wikimedia Commons

 Official website
show

AURORA, ILLINOIS
show

UPSTATE EIGHT CONFERENCE

Authority control databases:
NCES
Geographic

Categories:
 Educational institutions established in 1847
 Public high schools in Illinois
 Education in Aurora, Illinois
 Schools in Kane County, Illinois
 1847 establishments in Illinois
 This page was last edited on 19 December 2023, at 03:55 (UTC).
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