Meadowcreek High School

Meadowcreek High School/ Meadowcreek U est. 2014
Location
4455 Steve Reynolds Blvd. Norcross, Georgia 30093
Coordinates	33°55′22″N 84°08′56″W / 33.922642°N 84.148754°W / 33.922642; -84.148754Coordinates: 33°55′22″N 84°08′56″W / 33.922642°N 84.148754°W / 33.922642; -84.148754
Information
Type	Public
Established	1986
School district	Gwinnett County Public Schools
Principal	Tommy T. Welch, Ph.D. (Founding principal: Byron Collier 1986-1988; Meadowcreek U, Founding principal: Tommy T. Welch, Ph.D. 2011-)
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	3,546
Campus	Urban
Color(s)	Carolina Blue and White
Mascot	Mustang/Region 7-AAAAA
Newspaper	Pony Express
Information	(770) 381-9680
Website

Meadowcreek High School is a secondary school in Norcross, Georgia, United States, located outside of Atlanta and off I-85.

The school is part of the Gwinnett County Public Schools system. Meadowcreek High School is the most diverse secondary institution in the state of Georgia, with a student body representing over 90 different nationalities. Hispanics make up 60% of its students.

Meadowcreek's robotics team competes in FRC (First Robotics Competition) at the state level, the culinary arts team has won state and national recognition, and the Science Olympiad Team consistently ranked in the Top 4 for over six consecutive years. In 2003 and 2005, it was ranked second and went to the national competition with Parkview High School, the only other high school representing Georgia. Meadowcreek FCCLA was consistently ranked as one of the best fine arts programs in the Metropolitan area. The Model UN team was named 1st Place Outstanding Delegation in 2005 and 2nd Place Outstanding Delegation in 2006 at the Georgia State Competition, with only three years of experience.

History

Meadowcreek High School opened in August 1986 to relieve overcrowding at Berkmar High School and Norcross High School. It was named for the Meadows Family School and the Creek Indians, both once located near the site of the school. Today, its location at 4455 Steve Reynolds Boulevard is prime real estate, fronted by a five-lane thoroughfare a mile or so from Interstate 85.

The opening of Meadowcreek High School was not without problems, including many delays in construction. Faculty and staff were unable to work in the building until the Friday before school began on Monday. Most worked all weekend to prepare for the first day of classes. The excitement and pride of being in a new facility had to be postponed for some faculty and students because the gym, theater, band and chorus rooms, and science labs were not completed when school began. Still, the newly assembled staff of 50 and the new student body, two-thirds of whom came from Berkmar and one-third from Norcross, worked at overcoming these obstacles and created a spirit of cooperation and commitment to their new home. During the first year, Meadowcreek temporarily housed 500 eighth-grade students and 20 teachers from the overcrowded Sweetwater Middle School.

At the time, Meadowcreek served a unique student body made up of students representing at least a dozen cultures, nationalities and languages. One project which helped unite the students, faculty, and community, and began to give the school a sense of identity was the spring musical Li'l Abner, which involved students, teachers, parents, and others in the production. Meadowcreek students also demonstrated that they could compete with the more established schools in the county by winning in junior varsity competitions in wrestling, soccer, and football. Four county winners in the Mosaic writing competition came from Meadowcreek the first year.

The school's mascot is the Mustang, and its colors are Carolina blue, navy blue, Vegas gold, silver and white. Carolina blue and white were chosen in a vote by the first student body from a variety of choices. Vegas gold, navy blue and silver were added with the establishment of Meadowcreek U in 2014. Warriors and Indians were also finalists for the mascot.^[1]

Building facts

• The school is divided into 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, and 5000 buildings.
  • The 1000 building is the original structure, opened in 1986. Much of the 1000 building has been modified since 1986. The old theatre from the commons was torn down to make way for the expansion of the commons. To expand the library, the main hall in the 1200 section was removed.
  • The 2000 building added more classrooms and computer labs.
  • The 3000 building also added more classrooms to relieve overcrowding.
  • The 4000 building was the largest of the construction projects at the school. Phase I consisted of adding more classrooms and computer labs. Phase II added new band, chorus, dance, and orchestra rooms. A new theatre, considered the best in the county, and a new athletic gym were also added. The area between the athletic gym and the theatres shares a large communal area with a concession stand. The basement of the building holds a weight room, locker rooms, and offices.
  • The 5000 building added classrooms, computer labs, and science labs. Though there are three stories to this building, only the first two levels are used, because at the time of construction the county decided that the third floor was not needed and would be finished at a later time.
• 2009: A new concessions area and pressbox for the baseball team were completed.
  • 2014: An industrial kitchen was installed through the collaboration and establishment of Meadowcreek U.
  • 2014: Brand Bank branch was opened in the front lobby through the collaboration and establishment of Meadowcreek U.
  • 2015: The school store was built and named the "U" Store through the collaboration and establishment of Meadowcreek U.
  • 2016: The third floor was completed and transformed into the district's and state's first "Innovation Makers' Lab" through the collaboration of Meadowcreek U and Georgia Tech GoSTEM.
  • The community garden was completed.

Future construction

• The third floor of the school was begun in 2015.

Athletics

Many sports are offered by the school:

• Baseball^[2]
• Boys' basketball^[3]
• Girls' basketball^[4]
• Cheerleading^[5]
• Cross country^[6]
• Football^[7]
• Golf^[8]
• Soccer^[9]
• Softball^[10]
• Swim & dive^[11]
• Tennis^[12]
• Track & field^[13]
• Volleyball^[14]
• Wrestling^[15]

Fine arts

Meadowcreek has some of the best fine arts programs in the county, frequently earning top honors at competitions and performing at major sporting events.

• ^[16]Band
• Chorus
• Dance
• Orchestra
• Theatre

Clubs and activities

Many clubs and activities are offered at Meadowcreek.

• Academic Team
• Anime Club
• Beta Club
• Creek Caterers
• Dance Team
• DECA
• Environmental Club
• Ethnic & Excellence Club
• FCCLA (Family, Community, & Career Leaders Of America)
• Flow (Step Alumni)
• French Club
• Future Business Leaders Of America
• Future Educators Of America (FEA)
• Gay Straight Alliance
• German Club
• H.O.P.E.
• Interact
• Latin Club
• Latin Mustangs
• Math Team
• Meadowcreek Christian Conquerors (MCC)
• Med Club
• Trial Mockery
• Model U.N.
• Mu Alpha Theta
• Muslim Student Association
• Mustang Pep Squad
• National Art Honor Society
• National English Honor Society
• National Honor Society
• National Science Honor Society
• Principal's Elite
• Pony Express (newspaper)^[17]
• S.A.L.T. (Students As Living Testimones)
• Satan Sapphire Dancers
• Science National Honor Society
• Science Olympiad
• SEAL (Sisters Educated And Liberated)
• Spanish Honor Society
• SQUAD (Simply Qualified United and Determined)
• Student Council
• Drama Guild
• Thespians
• WMHS school's broadcasting
• Volunteer Center
• Yearbook

Achievements

• 1988 - The Meadowcreek Mustangs varsity football team in its first full varsity season made the state playoffs in Class AA for the first time in the school's history. Led by MHS's first Head Football Coach, Kevin Maloof, the Mustangs defeated then Class AA powerhouse East Hall 21-20 in one of the greatest upsets in Meadowcreek football history. The Mustangs knocked off top-ranked White County (away) 28-7, but were defeated in a very close game against the Lovett School, 13-7, for the 8-AA Region championship.
• 1988 - Meadowcreek varsity men's and women's basketball, men's varsity soccer, varsity baseball, Varsity wrestling (in Area 8) and men's and women's varsity track all competed for the Region 8-AA Championships.
• 1988 - To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, was performed by Meadowcreek's Fine Arts department which earned Meadowcreek its first-ever AA State Championship for One-Act Play. Derek Sanders (class of 1988) received the Best Supporting Actor award.
• 1989 - Alex Paucar (class of 1992) became Meadowcreek's first State Wrestling Champion. Under Head Coach Cliff Ramos, Paucar won the title twice. His first state title was in 1989 (in Class AA) at 103 pounds, he was State Runner-Up (in Class AAAA) in 1991, and his second state title was in 1992 (in class AAAA) at 125 pounds. He is MHS's only two-time state champion with a record of 112-15 in his four years at the school.
• 1989 - The Meadowcreek Mustangs were the last MHS football team to be ranked in the Top 5 by the Gwinnett Daily Post, the now defunct Gwinnett Daily News, and the Atlanta Journal/Constitution. Under Head Football Coach Kevin Maloof, the Mustangs finished the season with a 7-3 record in 8-AA, missing the 1989 AA State playoffs.
• 1989 - All county football and track standout David Hendrix (class of 1990) won the Class AA State Track title in the 100 and 300 meters hurdles.
• 1990 - Mandel Coleman (class of 1991) finished his career at MHS by becoming the first Mustang football player to receive Gwinnett County Touchdown Club's Defensive Player of the Year award and the second player since Darly Rogers (class of 1989) to receive All-State Football Honors at DB. He became Meadowcreek's all-time leading rusher and rushing touchdown leader (3,289 yards and 42 touchdowns).
• 1995 - The Meadowcreek Mustangs were the last football team to finish with a winning record at 5-5 (.500). Led by Head Coach Tom Lozano, they had two-time 1,000 yards rusher Jason Ward, All-County (and former University of Memphis star) linebacker Karmir Shakair, and future NFL player tight end Wesley Dukes.
• 2001 - The MHS women's varsity basketball team, led by All-State and current WNBA player Amber Holt and All-County Sherida Triggs, led MHS to its first-ever AAAAA State Basketball Championship. Under Head Coach Mike Ireland, the Mustangs faced eventual AAAAA State Champion Collins Hill and former MHS standout Stacy Booker in one of the greatest high school women's basketball games in MHS history.
• 2005 - On May 12, 2005, Meadowcreek senior Hasan Soneji received 2nd place for FBLA-PBL in Visual Basic Programming at a statewide competition. Soneji represented Meadowcreek in a national competition located in Denver, Colorado, for Visual Basic Programming.^[18]
• 2008 - The culinary team won first place in the Georgia ProStart competition, which was the first time in the school's history that this honor had been given.^[19]
• 2006 - On May 6, 2006, Brittany Hall made school and Georgia history by breaking the record for the 800m run with a time of 2:08.58.^[20]
• 2006 - The MHS men's varsity basketball team had one of its best seasons, making it the 2006-07 GHSA State Basketball Tournament with a record of 24-7. Meadowcreek men's basketball won its first-ever Region 8-AAAAA Championship under Head Coach Billy Davis.
• 2007 - Meadowcreek's men's varsity basketball team made the GHSA State Basketball tournament for the second time under Head Coach Billy Davis. Led by former AAAAA Player of the Year, two-time All-State and former Michigan State (now Iowa State) guard Chris Allen (class of 2007), the Mustangs went into the State tournament with one of the best records (26-3) in school history.
• 2008 - On September 5, 2008, Meadowcreek football broke its 43-game losing streak by defeating Duluth.^[20]
• 2009 - The culinary team won first place in the Georgia ProStart competition; it also won in 2008.^[21]

Statistics

• Demographics (2009-2010 school year, last available numbers)^[22]
  • Hispanic: 60%
  • Black: 24%
  • Asian: 10%
  • White: 1 %
  • Other: 5%

Notable alumnus, Chris Allen, Meadowcreek High School class of 2007, Michigan State SG

Notable alumni

• Wesley Dukes (class of 1996) - former basketball standout at Mercer University, the third Meadowcreek football player to play in the NFL as an un-drafted free agent tight end for the Denver Broncos^[23]
• Amber Shirell Holt (class of 2003) - first MHS athlete to be drafted in the first-round (9th overall) by the Connecticut Sun, currently playing for the Tulsa Shock of the WNBA^[24]

References

External links

• Meadowcreek High School
• Meadowcreek Football
• Meadowcreek Athletics Department