Tipton Community School District

Tipton Community School District
Location
Cedar County, Iowa, USA
Information
School type	Public
Established	1856
Enrollment	834
Athletics	11 Sports, 13 Teams
Mascot	Tigers
9-12 Principal	Chris Habben
K-8 Principal	Lori Foley
Website	http://www.tipton.k12.ia.us

The Tipton Community School District is a public school district located in Tipton, Iowa. It serves 834 students and comprises one elementary school (K-5), one middle school (6-8), and one high school(9-12). Its stated focus is on developing the total student in a full range of academic and extra curricular offerings. The school has a staff of over fifty professional educators whose stated values are education, student achievement, and student growth. Tipton’s educational program is anchored by the basics and music, art, and physical education which are all considered essential at every educational level. K-12 special education and Talented and Gifted programs are also available. Media centers and computer labs exist in each attendance center to assist in curriculum delivery. All classrooms are computer and telephone networked with every other school within the district.

History

In 1856, Tipton established the first free public school, including a high school, west of the Mississippi River.^{[citation needed]} In 1920, eighteen rural schools surrounding Tipton joined to form a consolidated school district covering over 137 square miles (350 km²). In the late 1920s, population growth dictated that a new Tipton School be constructed as a three story school near the center of the city of Tipton. The school board oversaw six country schoolhouses and by 1925 all country school students had moved into the new building in Tipton. The Tipton School was also among the first to build a gymnasium, swimming pool and auditorium for the use of elementary grades and both junior and senior high school. John Kerry visited Tipton in 2004 and spoke in the Tipton Middle School gymnasium.

Athletics

Tipton High School competes as a part of the Cedar Valley Conference. The Conference is in its second year of existence, prior to this the Tiger athletic teams competed in the Eastern Iowa Hawkeye Conference (EIHC). The 2009 Tiger Girls Basketball Team won the inaugural CVC Basketball Conference with a 13-1 record. The Tipton Girls Basketball team has qualified for the state tournament in 2005, 2006 and 2009.^{[citation needed]} The Tipton boys athletic programs share similar success as they were state champions in track in 1983, 1984 and 1985, state champions in cross country in 1975, state football champions in 1968 and 1969 and the Tipton Boys Golf Team qualified for the state tournament in 2005.^{[citation needed]} The Wrestling program has been very successful as of late with at least one member of the team qualifying for state the last eight years. Tipton High is also the smallest school in Iowa to have a girls' swim team, which has had girls qualify for state many years in a row. The Tipton Girls track program has won state championships seven times in 1988, 1989, 1991, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.^{[citation needed]} Tipton is tied with Atlantic as the school with the highest number of girls' track championships in Iowa. The Tipton Girls Cross Country team has also won a state title seven times in 1989, 1994, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Tipton is home to a three-time Drake Relays champion and two-time Athlete of the Year, Ashley Miller. Miller also holds the record for the most state championships in track at 15.^{[citation needed]} On the men's side, four state relay titles were won during the 2000-2002 track seasons which included Phil Doehring, Matt Weih, Andy Kruse, and Billy Hoffman, which set a 2A state record in the 4×800 7:53.67. Many athletes from Tipton have gone on to play college athletics. Travis Person is a 2004 graduate playing basketball for Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa.^{[citation needed]} Chad Geary, a 2005 graduate is a football player at the University of Iowa.^{[citation needed]} Ryan Bormann, another 2005 graduate, went on to wrestle at University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Ashley Miller, a 2007 graduate, runs track at the University of Nebraska. Recent athletes of the class of 2007 was BJ King who committed to Buena Vista University for football. Graduates from the 2008 class to commit were Matt O'Donnell to Brown University for football, and Mike and Mark Lafrenz to South Dakota and Upper Iowa respectively for basketball. In the 2007 season of football, Tipton was district runner-up to future state champions Solon, and made school history by winning its first ever playoff game, 21-20, over Wilton in the first round. The 2009 class saw several players move on in their respective sports.

Fine arts

One of the most well-known fine arts programs of THS is the Tipton Concert Choir. This ensemble comprises 5 mixed voices and is constantly one of the best 2A choirs in the state of Iowa.^{[citation needed]} It has been invited to perform in many places around the state of Iowa and nationally. They have performed in Washington D.C, Wisconsin, Louisiana, and various locations around Iowa. The Tipton Chamber Choir received a "Best in Center" award in 2005, 2006 and 2007 at the state Solo/Ensemble contest.^{[citation needed]} In the fall of 2006, the THS Chamber Choir was selected to perform for the Iowa Girls State Volleyball Tournament and in the Spring of 2007, the THS Concert Choir performed for the United Nations in New York City. In 2007, the THS Madrigal Choir also received "Best of Center" recognition at the 2A state solo/ensemble contest.^{[citation needed]} In 2004, Josh Anderson, Brandon Musser and Austin Zaruba were selected to be part of the Iowa All State Chorus. In 2005, Katelyn McBride and Alec Amosson were selected. In 2006, Alec Amosson and Tobin Thomas were selected. In 2007, Traci Dreyer, Karrington Mohr and Matt Boddicker were lucky enough to be selected and in 2008, Traci Dreyer was selected again along with Micki Kruse and Darby Shelton. In 2009, Micki Kruse made it back to All-State along with Adam Jedlicka. Also in May 2009, the Tipton Concert Choir earned a perfect score at Large Group Contest singing Psalmo 150 and Gloria.

Tipton also offers many other fine arts activities such as band, drama and academic decathlon. The University of Iowa Hawkeye Drumline shared a performance on the THS field with the Tiger Band during a 2005 football game. The concert band also continuously earns division I ratings at the State Large Group contest.

Another great aspect of the Tipton Community School District is there Thespian/Drama Department. Every year the troupe puts on a fall musical, a selection of senior directed one acts called "Studio One" in the winter, and a spring play. The troupe also travels to State Thespian in November and some students go to International Thespian Festival in Nebraska. Recently, Tipton has had two students on the Iowa Thespian Chapter Board: Kyle Scott and Adam Jedlicka. Some recent productions at Tipton have been "Wizard of Oz", "Grease", and "Little Shop of Horrors" in the musical department, and "And Then There Were None", "The Man Who Came to Dinner", and "The Importance of Being Ernest" in the play department.

1999 Tipton graduates Kevin Corkery and Chris Sorgenfrey played movie extras in the 2007 Hollywood Film "The Final Season" featuring Sean Astin, Rachel Leigh Cook and Powers Boothe.^{[citation needed]}

Contact information

• 400 E 6th St
• Tipton, IA 52772
• Cedar County, Iowa

Facts and figures

Tipton is part of the Eastern Iowa Hawkeye Conference, which includes Clear Creek Amana of Tiffin, Durant, Mid-Prairie, Mount Vernon, Regina of Iowa City, Solon, West Branch, West Liberty, Williamsburg and Wilton. The EIHC is a very competitive 2A school in every sport sanctioned by the IGHSAU or IAHSAA. The eleven high schools that comprise the EIHC all boast impressive athletic histories.^{[citation needed]} This rich history is well represented by the recent highlights of Iowa High School Athletics. At the conclusion of the 2008 season the EIHC is breaking up. Tipton will then join the Cedar Valley Conference with Wilton, Durant, North Cedar, West Branch, West Liberty, Iowa City Regina and Mid-Prairie.

In the summer of 2006, the Clear Creek Amana Clippers were the 3A State Champions and the Solon Lady Spartants were the 2A State Runners Up.^{[citation needed]} The Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks also qualified for the 2A State Tournament, while the Iowa City Regina Regals, Durant Wildcats and Wilton Beavers were consistently ranked in the 2A Top 15 teams.

The Wilton Beavers were the 2005 State Baseball Champions.^{[citation needed]} The Regals of Regina were the 2005 1A State Football Champions.

The Solon Lady Spartans, Williamsburg Raiders and the Tipton Tigers all qualified for the 2005 Girls State Basketball Tournament. The Solon Spartans also qualified for the 2005 boys state basketball tournament.

The Tipton Tigers were the 2006 Girls State Track Champions, while the Lady Spartans of Solon and the Golden Hawks of Mid-Prairie also scored in the Top 10.^{[citation needed]}

At the 2005 State Cross Country Meet, the Tipton Tigers of Tipton were the State Champions, the Wildcats of Durant were the runners up and the Lady Spartans of Solon received 3rd place. The Mount Vernon Mustangs were the 3A Boys Cross Country State Champions.

Enrollment

Year	District-wide	High schools	Middle schools	Elementary schools	Other programs & adjustments
2003-2004	846	270	230	338	8
2002-2003	843	287	212	338	6
2001-2002	875	291	209	336	9
2000-2001	894	302	213	370	9

External links

• Tipton Community School District: http://www.tipton.k12.ia.us/
• Tipton High School Alumni: http://www.schwitzer.net/tiptonAlumni.asp (limited)