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NORTH MECKLENBURG HIGH SCHOOL
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
NMHSAA • P.O. Box 655 • Huntersville, NC • 28070
About North Meck
A Brief History of North Meck
Information and quotations gathered from "Golden Reflections, A History of North Mecklenburg High School 1951-
2001" by Margaret Smith.
North Meck opened its doors on September 4, 1951 when Davidson, Cornelius, Huntersville, Long Creek and Derita high schools merged. Under the first principal of the high school, Marion Bird, North Meck adopted a school song, school colors (blue and white) and a mascot, the Rebels. The first group of seniors was only 120 students, and the first faculty only numbered nineteen. In that very first year both the Viking yearbook and North Star newspaper were established. Clubs and sports got off to a strong start that first year, and continued to grow throughout the years.
In 1953, North Meck got its official accreditation in the Southern Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges. The school saw its first expansion (one of many) in 1957 when H hall was constructed to house the growing number of students. As the 1950s drew to a close, North Mecklenburg had a staff of 36 and a student body of 700. During the 1960s the curriculum at North continued to expand along with the student body; Art, Orchestra, Drama, Spanish, Child Care, Auto Mechanics and ROTC were added.
During the 1965-66 school year, desegregation began at North Meck. Dr. Joe McClure, pastor of Huntersville Presbyterian Church said "the North community [is] better equipped to handle the race controversy than any other are of Mecklenburg County." North achieved desegregation a full five years before the rest of the system. When race riots began rocking other schools in the county, North was not immune from its problems. By 1969 the faculty at North was integrated. By the time court orders for desegregation began in 1970, North's experience with desegregation gave them a firm footing for dealing with additional changes.
By the early 1970s, North's student body reached 1100 and the staff had more than quadrupled with 95! The decade didn't bring much growth, and in 1980, the student body was only 1079. In the next decade, Mecklenburg County boomed around the school, and in turn, the population of the school blossomed. By the 2000-2001 year, North Meck offered 364 courses, and was the largest high school in North Carolina with more than 2700 students and a staff of 225. To meet the increased needs, the school consisted of 10 buildings and over 40 mobile classrooms. In the fall of 2001 Hopewell High opened on Beatties' Ford Road to house the ever-increasing student body in the north end of the county.
"First and foremost, the goal of the school remains the same: to prepare students for the world they will enter upon graduation, be it college, technical school...or the workplace. May North Mecklenburg High School always be blessed with the same love, dedication, and loyalty that has been a part of her total existence these first fifty years."
North Facts
This data applies to the 2005-2006 school year and was taken from the Charlotte Mecklenburg School System website. To find even more information about North Meck, please visit their site.
Number of Students at North
| Class | Number | Percent |
| Freshmen | 869 | 30.5% |
| Sophomore | 786 | 27.6% |
| Junior | 624 | 21.9% |
| Senior | 570 | 20.0% |
| Total | 2849 |
Racial Diversity
| Race | Number | Percent |
| African-American | 831 | 29.2% |
| Asian | 119 | 4.2% |
| Hispanic | 176 | 6.2% |
| Multi-Racial | 41 | 1.4% |
| Native American | 13 | 0.5% |
| White | 1,669 | 58.6 |
Gender of Students
| Gender | Number | Percent |
| Male | 1,403 | 49.2% |
| Female | 1,446 | 50.8% |
Other Statistics
Average North SAT Score: 1049
Average CMS SAT Score: 995
Students w/ at least 1 AP/IB credit: 60.9%
Average Daily Attendance: 93.7%
Students in Gifted and Talented: 16.3%
Faculty and Staff
Data on the current staff of North Mecklenburg High School.
Staff Numbers
| Position | Number |
| Teachers | 214 |
| Administrators | 7 |
| Assistants | 13 |
| Other Certified Staff | 13 |
| Other Staff | 70 |
| Total | 317 |
| No. of Years | % of Teachers |
| less than 1 | 25.7% |
| 1 - 3 | 15% |
| 4 - 8 | 15.9% |
| 9 - 15 | 15.4% |
| 16 - 24 | 9.8% |
| 25+ | 18.2% |
| Degree | % of Teachers |
| Bachelor's | 68.2% |
| Master's | 29.4% |
| Other Certificate | 1.4% |
| Doctorate | 0.9% |
More Information
For more information about the school, visit North Meck's website.
For more information about Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, visit their website.