E. E. Smith High School

E. E. Smith High School (also Ezekiel Ezra Smith High School, E.E.S., Smith High, Smith) is a high school in Fayetteville, North Carolina. A part of Cumberland County Schools, it is named for Ezekiel Ezra Smith (1852–1933) and is home of the Golden Bulls.

E. E. Smith High School
Address
1800 Seabrook Rd. Fayetteville, North Carolina 28301 United States
Coordinates	35°05′04″N 78°53′45″W
Information
Type	Public
Motto	Born of Need * Destined to Serve * Striving to Excel
Founded	1927 (98 years ago) (1927)
School district	Cumberland County Schools
Superintendent	Marvin Connelly
CEEB code	341305
Principal	Larry Parker Jr.
Staff	60.55 (FTE)[1]
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	1,000 (2023–2024)[1]
Student to teacher ratio	16.52[1]
Language	English
Color(s)	Navy blue and old gold
Mascot	Golden Bulls
Feeder schools	Spring Lake Middle, Max Abbott Middle, Albritton Middle, Nick Jeralds Middle, Shughart Middle
Website	eeshs.ccs.k12.nc.us

High school aged dependents of personnel living on the military reservation of Fort Bragg, in Cumberland County, are zoned to E. E. Smith.^[2]

History

Ezekiel Ezra Smith High School has been home of the Mighty Golden Bulls since 1927.

The school has been in four locations: Orange Street, Campbell Avenue, Washington Drive, and Seabrook Rd (Present Location). From 1927 to 1929, the Orange Street School served as the high school. The school was moved to the building on Campbell Avenue in September 1929. At that time, the school was known as the Southside High School. This building was used until 1932. In September 1932, the school was rehoused in the building on Orange Street, remaining there until January 1940. A new modern edifice was built on Washington Drive in 1941. This building served students until June 1954.^[3]

In 1954, the current physical facility was erected and made ready for occupancy on September 6, 1954. This building with its beautiful and functional architecture occupies a site of twenty-eight acres. In 1932, the Fayetteville Grade School Trustees held a special meeting and voted unanimously to name the school in honor of the distinguished educator, clergyman and U.S. Ambassador, Ezekiel Ezra Smith (1852–1933), a man who left a legacy of unusually fine and constructive work. Hereafter, the school was officially designated E. E. Smith High School, trusting that the standards of the school would always be kept worthy of the name which was bestowed upon it.

To date the school has had eleven principals: Benjamin Lay, W.C. Donnell, A. J. Blackburn, E. E. Miller, W. T. Brown, John R. Griffin Jr., Lonnie McAllister, Rene' Corders, Clinton Robinson, Melody Chalmers, Donell Underdue and the current principal Larry Parker.

Today, the school plant consists of approximately 50 classrooms, housing foreign languages, science and computer labs, offices, a guidance suite, library, auditorium, music rooms, 2 gymnasiums, cafeteria, music building and a physical education building.

The D.T. Carter Athletic Field which seats approximately 5,000 persons, has a quarter mile track, and facilities for other field events. There are also six tennis courts.

Notable alumni

• Charlie Baggett — former NFL coach and college football coach
• Robert Brickey — basketball coach^[4]
• Harold Floyd "Tina" Brooks — hard bop, blues, funk tenor saxophonist and composer
• Aaron Curry — former NFL linebacker
• Mark Allen Davis — jurist and former NC Supreme Court Judge
• Russell Davis — former NFL defensive tackle, Super Bowl XLII champion with the New York Giants
• J. Harrison Ghee — Tony Award-winning Broadway actor known for Kinky Boots and Some Like It Hot
• Bishop Harris — former college football coach and NFL coach
• Joe Harris — former NFL linebacker, member of Georgia Tech Athletic Hall of Fame
• Brian Tyree Henry — Academy Award nominee for Best Supporting Actor in Causeway, best known for his role as "Paper Boi" in the FX series Atlanta, also played in other major acting and voice roles, including Jefferson Davis in the movie Spider-man: Into the Spider-verse^[5]
• Patricia D. Horoho — retired U.S Army Lieutenant General and was 43rd U.S. Army Surgeon General and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical Command. The first female and first Nurse Corps Officer to hold those appointments.
• Jason Hunter — former NFL defensive end
• Lil' Mo (Cynthia Karen Loving) — R&B singer, radio personality, songwriter, and record producer
• Connell Maynor — college football head coach
• Mary E. McAllister — Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the 43rd House district
• Anquell McCollum — former professional basketball player and college coach^[6]
• Victoria "Porkchop" Parker — drag performer^[7]
• Jimmy Raye II — former NFL player and current coach
• Junior Smith — football player
• Larry Tearry — former NFL center
• Cressie Thigpen — lawyer and jurist who served on the North Carolina Court of Appeals
• Tank Tyler — former NFL defensive tackle
• Dimitrius Underwood — former NFL defensive end
• Doug Wilkerson — former NFL offensive lineman and 3x Pro Bowl selection with the San Diego Chargers