Dr. Phillips High School
Dr. Phillips High School is a public high school in Dr. Phillips, Florida, United States, near Orlando.
It serves[2] the Dr. Phillips census-designated place (CDP),[3] the Bay Hill CDP,[4] and the residential portion of Lake Buena Vista.[5]
History[edit]
Dr. Phillips High School opened in fall of 1987 and was built for about 2,500 students in the Dr. Phillips area of southwest Orange County, Florida.
The campus sits on 55 acres (220,000 m2) in the Orlando city limits and unincorporated Orange County. The school serves as a Visual and Performing Arts Magnet and Center for International Studies magnet for Orange County Public Schools.
The school's first principal, Bill Spoone, went on to be elected to the Orange County School Board. The football stadium is named after him. The school's gymnasium is named after its second principal, Larry Payne, and is nicknamed "The House of Payne."[6]
The school opened with enrollment above capacity and began using portable classrooms on the North Campus, formerly known as the 9th Grade Center. Due to overflow from main campus, many non-freshman classes were moved into additional portable classrooms at the 9th Grade Center, which was renamed North Campus, with the main campus renamed the South Campus. Portable classrooms are still used on the North Campus and are primarily for freshman-level classes.
As of the 2014–15 school year the school had 3,641 students, of whom 35% were white, 32% African American, 24% Hispanic, 7% Asian, and 2% multiracial.[7]
The school underwent a series of renovations which finished in 2015. A new building has been added, along with new VPA classrooms on the South Campus.
The press box at Bill Spoone Stadium is dedicated to Mike Murray, "The Voice of the Panthers" since the school opened its doors in 1987. A full-time employee of a large aerospace contractor and not formally employed by the school, Murray was elected to their Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001.
The school's baseball facility is John Barbati Field. In 1992, the baseball facilities were completely renovated with a state of the art press box, team office and facilities. The new facilities were designed and constructed by William P. Riegert, CEO of Cox Associates, Architects, and donated to the OC School Board in a dedication ceremony on February 22, 1992. Accepting for the OC School Board were Assistant Superintendent Dave Wofford, Assistant Superintendent Dave Sojourner, Superintendent Don Shaw, Bill Spoone, and Bill Thompson. Today the Press Box is dedicated to Scott Muhlhann, a baseball player and 1992 school valedictorian who died of cancer in 1998.
The mascot for Dr. Phillips is the Panther; specifically, the Florida panther. They have many sports including lacrosse, football, baseball, golf, basketball and swimming. The Panthers have won FHSAA state championships in the following sports:
Athletic program accomplishments: