Kempner High School

I.H. Kempner High School
http://www.kempneralumni.com/showthumb.asp?filename=\images\domainwide\65.jpg&width=600&height=225
Location
14777 Voss Road Sugar Land, Texas, United States
Coordinates	29°38′36″N 95°38′46″W
Information
Type	Public Secondary
Established	1988
School district	Fort Bend ISD
Principal	Dr. Anthony Indelicato
Teaching staff	142
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	2,461 (Spring 2011)
Campus	55.88 acres (22.61 ha)
Color(s)	Maroon
Mascot	Cougar
Newspaper	Cougar Tracks
2011 TEA Rating	Recognized
Website	School website
[1]

I. H. Kempner High School is a public high school in Sugar Land, Texas, USA and a part of the Fort Bend Independent School District.

It was named after Isaac Herbert Kempner, the founder of Imperial Sugar, through which the city of Sugar Land received its name. Kempner serves areas within Sugar Land, including a portion of First Colony.

History

In 1984, Fort Bend ISD authorized a bond issue. This allowed the construction of the fourth high school in Fort Bend ISD.

The school board chose Wayne Emerson to be the first Kempner principal. Kempner opened its doors to the first Open House on August 30, 1988; the campus was occupied in September [2] of that year. The $15,522,300 school contained 55.88 acres (226,100 m²) of pecan trees, a 750 seat auditorium, and 100 faculty and staff members.

In 1990, Kempner's first senior class graduated.

When Kempner first opened, the area surrounding it was isolated. State Highway 6 was two-laned. Since then, the school has witnessed immense growth. With houses across the street, Kempner is a neighborhood school.

Student body

At one point (1995) Kempner had 3,000 students.

In the 2005-2006 school year, Kempner had a population of 2616 students. This was compromised of 723 freshmen, 683 sophomores, 597 juniors, and 613 seniors.

As compared with other schools in the district, Kempner's student body features a diverse group of ethnicities, where not just one race predominates. According to the 2004-2005 Texas Education Agency, the students are classified as 37% non-Hispanic White, 30% Asian/Pacific Islander, 19% Hispanic, 13% African American, and <1% American Indian/Alaskan Native.

In terms of student subgroups, the students are categorized as follows: 19% Economically disadvantaged, 10% Special education, 13% Gifted and talented, and 6% Limited English proficient (2004–2005).

Boundaries and feeder patterns

Kempner, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Fort Bend Independent School District. Kempner serves portions of Sugar Land and a very small section of Houston. Kempner serves a portion of the First Colony development. Most of Telfair is zoned to Kempner.

The attendance boundary included the Smithville housing complex, which is employee housing of the Central Prison Unit, until the unit's 2011 closure.

The following elementary schools feed into Kempner:

• Barrington Place
• Sugar Mill
• Townewest
• Drabek (partial)
• Cornerstone (partial)
• Arizona Fleming (partial)
• Highlands (partial)
• Lakeview (partial)
• Meadows (partial)

The following middle schools feed into Kempner:

• Sugar Land
• First Colony (partial)
• Garcia (partial)
• Sartartia (partial)

Notable alumni

• Winslow Oliver, Class of 1991, Played in NFL from 1996-2000 for the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons.
• Carl Grady "Tre" Thomas III, Class of 1993, played for the N.Y. Giants in 1999.
• William Dominic "Billy" Austin, Class of 1993, Played for the Indianapolis Colts 1998-2000.
• James Fortune, Class of 1996, Gospel Singer
• Steven López, Class of 1997, two-time Taekwondo Olympic gold medalist, 1 bronze. People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People"
• Ethan Kelley, Class of 1998, Drafted by the New England Patriots in 2003, and currently (2006) plays for the Cleveland Browns.
• Mark López, Class of 2000, Olympics silver medalist (Taekwondo), 2005 World Champion
• Diana López, Class of 2002, Olympic bronze medalist (Taekwondo), 2005 World Champion
• Erica Routt, Class of 1992, 5-8 guard was drafted to the WNBA, Utah Starzz
• Chris Kelley, Class of 2004, Drafted by Washington Nationals and former Rice University pitcher

External links

• Kempner High School
• School Profile
• Fort Bend Now