Background and History
Prior to the school's establishment in 1937, Pearland students had to attend secondary school in Webster. The first graduating class in 1938 included valedictorian was Beatrice Woods who would become Beatrice Woods Theriot after marrying Melvin Theriot.
The original Pearland School, opened in 1937, had a staff of about 25 people and served 100 students on Grand Boulevard. That building is now the Pearland branch of Alvin Community College.
In 1953, the campus moved to Galveston Avenue, and the Grand Boulevard school became Pearland Elementary (later C.J. Harris Elementary). In 1991, high school moved again, to Main Street (SH 35). The Galveston Avenue property is now the Education Support Center (administration), Pearland Jr. High West, and Sablatura Middle School.
The school's mascot is the Oiler Rig or "Oiler". In contrast to the local legend, the mascot was not inspired by the Houston Oilers professional football team (the school was established 25 years before the team). Instead it is a tribute to an important sector of the local and regional economy. Several local businesses in Pearland are related to the oil industry, including a helicopter service that ferries people to nearby off-shore oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico.
The school achieved prominence for its academics and size in the 1990s. By the mid-1990s, it was classified as a 5-A school with well over 4,000 students.
Read more about this topic: Pearland High School
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