San Antonio, like many Sun Belt cities, experienced explosive growth in its suburbs beginning in the early 1990s. This growth was particularly evident in affluent areas formed by people moving to the city. In Stone Oak and Sonterra north of Route 1604 and between the Blanco Road and US-281 corridors, this rapid growth caused severe overcrowding at nearby Winston Churchill High School. At the time, Churchill was the farthest-north school in the North East Independent School District, and its student population grew to 3,400 at a school designed for not more than 2,500. The district recognized this problem, and included an allocation to build a new high school in the area as a part of its 1997 bond issue. The property for the school was purchased from descendants of rancher William Classen prior to passage of the bond issue.
After voters approved the bond issue, construction began on the 84-acre (340,000 m2) campus. Spaw Glass was the general contractor for the project. The name "Ronald Reagan" was chosen by future students of the school (those currently in attendance at other North East schools) from a list selected by the district's board of trustees. A spirit committee selected the mascot "Rattlers" from three finalists and chose green, silver, and black as the school colors.
The opening of Lady Bird Johnson High School in 2008 relieved overcrowding at Reagan as San Antonio's population continued booming in the early part of the 2000s.[6][7]
Band
The Reagan Marching Band has been in existence since the school was opened in 1999. With the exception of the 2009 BOA Arlington regional, the band has made the finals at every regional contest entered.[citation needed] The band competes in the Texas University Interscholastic League marching competition held every other year, and competes annually in different Bands of America events, including the regionals in Arlington, Texas, and Houston, Texas, the super regionals in San Antonio, and the Grand National competition in Indianapolis, Indiana.
