On June 3, 2006 at 2:30 pm, a fire broke out in the AHS room behind the gym during a farewell assembly for the seniors. Students and teachers were evacuated. The gym was heavily damaged and Mountain Avenue was closed for hours. No one was hurt during the fire. The fire department determined that the fire had been started by two students with firework sparklers.[6][7]
Homecoming
The homecoming dance on September 25, 2015, was the first school dance at AHS to feature gender-neutral "homecoming royalty". The change was initiated by student body presidents and approved by the principal at the time, Michelle Zundel. The change received wide publicity and was announced to the student body in a video shown to all students during the mandatory "advisory" class.[8][9]
On the afternoon of October 1, 2015, during the school's homecoming celebration, Ashland Police Department officers put the school into lockdown following a potential threat of a school shooting. An AHS alumnus had posted to Facebook a photo of a gun with threatening statements against the school. The Umpqua Community College shooting had taken place about three and a half hours prior, prompting the police to take the situation especially seriously. Students were kept in classes 10 minutes past the end of the day and the homecoming parade was cancelled.[10] The threat was later deemed too vague to represent a significant danger.[11]
Academics
In 2008, 81% of the school's seniors received a high school diploma. Of 296 students, 239 graduated, 53 dropped out, one received a modified diploma, and three were still in high school in 2009.[12][13]
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