Our School

School History

Tomball High School… In the Beginning
In 1908, school was first held in Tomball in the Woodmen of the World building, which was a one room framed building that educated nearly 15 students. The community soon made plans to build a school. Land on Cherry Street was donated, and by 1910 a school was built. The two-story red brick schoolhouse, which was part of the Harris County School System, consisted of two classrooms downstairs and an auditorium upstairs. By 1916, 62 students attended the school. As of 1928, the community grew and consisted of four schools. By 1931, the district employed five teachers.

By 1935, the original schoolhouse was torn down and replaced with a new buff brick building that contained grades one through eleven. In 1937, a petition was presented to the Harris County School Board requesting that Tomball have its own school district. That petition was granted and all funds and debts were transferred to the Tomball Independent School District. The school on Cherry Street had grown so much that by 1938 a second campus was needed. Therefore, the district built a new red brick high school with a gymnasium and a swimming pool, which was located in the 700 block of Main Street.

Tragedy Strikes
On a cold winter morning in 1961, sparks from an electrical fire in the attic of the high school on Main Street erupted into a fire that completely destroyed the building. The Houston Fire Department responded. Fire fighters dropped a hose into the swimming pool that was adjacent to the school in order to extinguish the flames. School was dismissed for four days. Churches and other businesses throughout the community offered their facilities so the high school students could complete the school year.

Continued Growth
By 1974, students began attending classes at the new Tomball High School on Sandy Lane, which later became Quinn Road. Continued growth over the decades meant there was a need for additional classrooms. In 2000, voters approved a $98.4 million bond referendum that enabled the district to renovate Tomball High School.

Since that time, Tomball High School has increased its enrollment to over 1,800 students, and earned a Recognized rating from the Texas Education Agency, which determines state accountability ratings based on data collected via the Academic Excellence Indicator System. Tomball High School has also met Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) standards under the federal accountability system. AYP ratings are based on student performance on the TAKS test, the percentage of students participating in the assessment process, and performance on additional indicators such as student attendance and graduation rates.

Tomball High School maintains strong academic, extracurricular, and athletic programs. Our students have earned numerous national, state, regional, and local honors and awards. Collectively, graduating seniors receive over $2.5 million in scholarships each year from various foundations, colleges, and universities. The future is brighter than ever for our students. They make us proud, and they make Tomball High School the “Pride of Texas.”