William B. Travis High School (Austin, Texas)
| William B. Travis High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| 1211 E. Oltorf St. Austin, Texas, 78704 |
|
| Information | |
| Motto | "Committed to Excellence" |
| Established | 1953 |
| School district | Austin Independent School District |
| School number | 512-414-2527 |
| Principal | Ty Davidson |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Number of students | 1,450 |
| Color(s) | Red & Grey |
| Mascot | Rebel |
| Team name | The Rebels, Runnin' Rebs, Lady Rebs |
William B. Travis High School is a high school located in south Austin, Texas, which is part of the Austin Independent School District. It was opened in 1953 and is named after William B. Travis, who was one of the commanding officers at the Battle of the Alamo. It is the oldest high school in Austin, south of the Colorado River.
As of November 2009, there were over 1,400 students enrolled. Travis' athletic teams are known as the Rebels, and their school colors are red and grey. The Navy JROTC program at THS is the largest ROTC program in Austin and currently has the best shooting team out of all the JROTC units in the state of Texas. The school has also been selected as a mentor school by the Texas Education Agency.
Contents |
[edit] Rivals
Travis' biggest rivalry is with fellow AISD school, McCallum High School. The two schools meet annually in many different sports, the largest being an annual football game tagged "Battle of the Bell"; in which the winner is given an old locomotive bell that has been fought over for decades. During the game, "The Bell" will spend the first half on the defending school's side, at half time it will travel to the opponent's side (usually by the cheerleaders, student council, or journalism departments of both schools) where it will sit until the outcome of the game. "The Bell" is usually rung by the winning team in the middle of the field after victory, and at the winning team's school until midnight; at which time it will be stored until the next year's game. The winning school also engraves the date and score of the year's game on the bell, keeping track of the true history of the rivalry. Most years, the outcome of this game highly effects what team is named District 26-4A Champions.
In 2010, the Rebels defeated the McCallum Knights for the first time in over a decade. "The Bell" was awarded to Travis, who will defend it for the first time in 11 years at the 2011 game.
Another Travis rival is the AISD school David Crockett High School, a game in which the winner is tagged "Kings of the South".
[edit] Travis High in Popular Media
Travis High School has been featured in two full-length motion pictures. Its hallways were featured in the 2004 football drama Friday Night Lights. Also, the THS Band annually participates in the filming of a NBC TV series with the same name, participating as extras and featured as the visiting team band at football games - See Friday Night Lights (TV Series). The school was also the main setting in the 2006 comedy-mockumentary Chalk.
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Psychedelic-rock cult legend Roky Erickson attended Travis High School, but dropped out in 1966, one month before graduating, rather than cut his hair to conform to the school dress code.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ "The fall and rise of Roky Erickson. Austin American-Statesman, July 12, 2007. p 13 (Xlent section).
[edit] External links
|
||||||||||||||
