Thurston High School

For other schools with similar names, see Thurston High School (disambiguation).

Thurston High School is a public high school located in the Thurston area of Springfield, Oregon, United States.

Thurston High School
Entrance to the school, 2021
Location
333 North 58th Street Springfield , (Lane County) , Oregon 97478 United States
Coordinates	44°02′57″N 122°55′30″W
Information
Type	Public
Opened	1960
School district	Springfield School District
Grades	9–12[1]
Number of students	1,236 (2023-2024)[1]
Color(s)	Red, black, and white      [2]
Athletics conference	OSAA Midwestern 5A[2]
Mascot	Colt[2]
Newspaper	The Pony Express
Website	www.springfield.k12.or.us/THS

Academics

In 2024, 88% of the school's seniors received a high school diploma. 83% graduated in four years. 29% of students met Oregon proficiency standards in English language arts, 14% met the standards in mathematics, and 35% did so in science.^[3]

Notable alumni

• Anthony W. Case, astrophysicist
• Colby Covington, professional mixed martial artist, former UFC interim welterweight champion^[4]
• Jodi Ann Paterson, Playboy Playmate of the Year 2000
• Dan Straily (born 1988), starting pitcher in the Philadelphia Phillies organization^{[citation needed]}

Notable faculty

• Matt LaBounty

Shooting

Main article: Thurston High School shooting

On May 21, 1998, the school was the scene of a shooting. Expelled student Kipland Kinkel opened fire with three guns and killed two students and injured 25 others.^[5] He was pinned down while he was reloading and restrained until police arrived and arrested him.^[6] Kinkel, who had also murdered his parents the previous night, was sentenced to 111 years in prison.