Northwood High School (North Carolina)

Northwood High School is located in Pittsboro, Chatham County, North Carolina, United States. The school is the largest of three high schools in Chatham County and is operated by Chatham County Schools. The school's mascot is the Charger and the school colors are gold and green.^[2] It is a member of the Big Eight 3A Athletic Conference. It currently serves around 750 students.^[3] The school receives students primarily from the eastern and northeastern portions of the county, which coincidentally are the fastest growing parts of the county. ^{[citation needed]}

Northwood High School
Northwood High School
Location
310 Northwood High School Rd Pittsboro, North Carolina 27312 United States
Coordinates	35°44′39″N 79°10′09″W
Information
Type	Public
Established	1972 (53 years ago) (1972)
School board	Chatham County Schools
CEEB code	343135
Principal	Bradford Walston
Staff	54.52 (FTE)[1]
Enrollment	702 (2023-2024)[1]
Student to teacher ratio	12.88[1]
Color(s)	Gold and green
Mascot	Charger
Website	chatham.k12.nc.us/Domain/18

A school bus at Northwood High School

History

Northwood High School opened in time for the 1972–1973 school year to replace the older Pittsboro High School which is now the headquarters of Chatham County Schools. The school was opened two school years after school integration (schools were not fully integrated in Chatham County until the 1970–1971 school year) as a way of consolidating black and white students into a larger facility than available at Pittsboro High.^[4] The school building has changed little since its opening with the exception of a new math wing and modular classrooms. A green steel roof was added during the 2000–2001 school year. During the 2009–2010 school year the arts wing was remodeled and expanded and the gymnasium was renovated.

Northwood High School has held their annual commencement ceremonies on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill at the Dean Smith Center since 2008.

Principal: Bradford Walston (2018–present)

Athletics

Northwood currently provides the following JV and Varsity sports:

Fall:

• Football
• Women's Volleyball
• Men's and Women's Cross-Country
• Men's Soccer
• Women's Tennis
• Women's Golf
• Cheerleading

Winter:

• Swimming
• Men's and Women's Basketball
• Men's and Women's Indoor Track
• Wrestling

Spring:

• Men's Golf
• Men's Tennis
• Club Lacrosse
• Women's Soccer
• Men's and Women's Track
• Baseball
• Softball
• Lacrosse

Student organizations

Northwood currently has around 48 clubs, such as FBLA, FCCLA, DECA, FFA, weight-lifting, and a Chess Club.^[5] The school's Ultimate Frisbee team took 1st in state during their 2006–2007 season, defeating Cardinal Gibbons High School in the state semi-finals, and then Chapel Hill High School in the championship game, 13–11. Northwood's branch of FCCLA are renowned for their excellence in Parliamentary Procedure competitions. A team of eight females, all class of 2008 students, have won three state and national championships since 2004, traveling to San Diego, Nashville, and Anaheim. In 2009 the music department added a Tri-M honor society.^[6] Northwood fielded a Science Olympiad team in the spring of 2010 winning multiple 1st, 2nd, and 5th place medals at the Regional competition at UNC-Greensboro. In 2011, the Science Olympiad team won first place overall at Regionals that took place at Campbell University, advancing to the State competition level. In 2019, FBLA had eight members place in the top 4 at the state level and advance to the national competition in San Antonio.

Marching band

The Marching Chargers take the field to perform their show, Heartbeat, in the Yamaha Cup. Giants' Stadium, October 7, 2006.

Former director Eugene Cottrell led Northwood's marching band to its first ever all-superior season in 2002, an achievement repeated by the band numerous times under Cottrell's 15 years of leadership.^[7][8] In 2004 The Marching Charger Band received a grant from the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation and was selected as an exemplary national model for band program development.^[9] On October 7, 2006, The Marching Chargers placed 2nd in class and 11th overall nationally in The Yamaha Cup, a marching band competition held at Giant's Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.^[8] In 2014, Brett Cox was hired to be Cottrell's successor. During his tenure as band director, the marching band continued to win championships at distinguished regional competitions including Western Alamance, The Brick Capital Classic, Danville Dixie Classic, and Union Pines.^[10] In 2018, Jason Freeman took Brett Cox's place as head band director at Northwood High. Hagan Zoellers took the place of Jason Freeman as head band director beginning in the 2022–2023 school year.^[11]

Notable alumni

• Tobais Palmer (2008), former NFL wide receiver^[12]
• Austin Brice (2010), former MLB pitcher^[13]
• Jarin Stevenson (2023 - transferred), basketball player for the North Carolina Tar Heels^[14]
• Drake Powell (2024), basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets, drafted #22 in the first round of the 2025 NBA draft, formerly a player on the North Carolina Tar Heels^[15][16]

Notable staff

• Tyler Zeller, eight-year NBA player, former ACC Player of the Year, assistant boys' basketball coach^[17]