Papillion-La Vista Senior High School

Papillion-La Vista Senior High School
Location
402 E. Centennial Road Papillion, NE
Coordinates	41.1696°N 96.0398°W / 41.1696; -96.0398
Information
Type	Public high school
Principal	Jim Glover
Grades	9 - 12
Enrollment	1,456
Student to teacher ratio	17:1
Color(s)	Maroon and White
Team name	Monarchs
Website	http://www.plhs.esu3.org/

Papillion La Vista Senior High School, often referred to as "The Greatest School" ,Papio, PLHS, North or "Old School", is located in Papillion, Nebraska and is operated by the Papillion-La Vista Public School District.

The main colors of the school are Maroon and White. The school mascot is a monarch.

History

The Papillion-La Vista Public Schools District have had origins extending from 130 years ago. It is reported to be the first school district to be established in Nebraska Territory, in 1872.

The city of La Vista incorporated in 1960 and presented no education system. The students of this new development area north of Papillion had been incorporated into the Papillion School District. With the sudden growth the existing Papillion High School, south of the current building, was to educate an increasing number of students.

By September 1969, voters in the district had passed a bond issue to build a new high school facility at 84th Street and East Centennial Road. A similar bond issue the preceding year had been defeated. The school opened its doors August 1971, and the former Papillion High School became Papillion Junior High.

The district and the high school were renamed in 1987 as La Vista continued to grow. To avoid conflict that could result in a separate La Vista School district, La Vista was added to the high school and district names, establishing the name Papillion-La Vista Senior High School.

The 1999 semi-cult film Election was shot mainly in Papillion-La Vista High School. The director of the film, Alexander Payne, wanted to use Millard North High School in Omaha for his fictional school; however, the school board found the script too obscene and inappropriate. It was instead moved to Papillion-La Vista High School where a majority of it was shot. Papillion-La Vista High School had actual classes going on during much of the filming of Election. The background noises during much of the film are actual teachers and their students in nearby rooms.

The High School is home to senior volleyball player Gina Mancuso. She is currently in the top 10 in the country, was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2009, and was recently crowned homecoming queen.

Second High School

In 2003, the Students of Papillion La Vista Senior High School were split with a new high school in southwest Papillion due to already present overcrowding and continued population growth. Papillion-La Vista South High School, PLSHS, was opened in the fall of 2003. PLHS had previously been a 10-12 school, and 9th graders had attended classes at the two junior high schools in the district. After the school district opened a second high school, the freshman class was moved from the junior high schools to the two high schools.

Notable alumni

• Jeremy Slechta, former professional football player.
• Merle Dandridge, Broadway actress and the voice of Alyx Vance in the award-winning action game Half-Life 2 and its sequels, Episode One and Episode Two.
• Matty Lewis, Musician and lead singer of the band Zebrahead.
• Becca Swanson, nicknamed "the strongest woman in the world" for lifting more weight than any other woman in the world—squatting over 800 lbs, benchpressing over 500 lbs, and total lifting (squatting, benchpressing and deadlifting) more than 2000 lbs.

External links

• School Website
• District Website
• Papillion-LaVista High School-Class Reunion Websites at Classreport.org