MBHS sticks to core principles in first 50 years

Mountain Brook High School is celebrating 50 years of Spartans during the school year.

The school, founded in 1966, has grown in student population, building size and number of activities, but some qualities have remained consistent over the last half century.

“I think it’s interesting that the foundation of who Mountain Brook High School is has not changed over the last 50 years,” said MBHS Principal Amanda Hood. “We went back and in our reflections of the last 50 years … (and) were able to put our hands on the original statement of philosophy for Mountain Brook High School.”

That statement held the same principles practiced today, Hood said, including supporting student voice and ownership, providing an academically focused education and having available extracurricular options.

“As I read through this, it almost moved me to tears because it is where we are, and the original faculty that really began the trajectory for this school set us on a course that was visionary and really understood what it takes to prepare students to be successful, not just in college but in life,” Hood said.

Don Lytle, one of the original faculty members and now a substitute teacher, started his teaching career at MBHS in 1966. In 50 years, Lytle said he has seen changes in technology and building structure, but the core areas of focus remain the same — as do the core desires of students.

“They really want the same thing that they wanted 50 years ago,” Lytle said. “They want teachers to be interested in them, teachers to be competent in their field. They want us to answer them fairly, treat them fairly. They want to feel that we care about them, which we definitely do.”

During his teaching career, Lytle has taught the grandchildren of some of his former students as well as some of his coworkers. As those classes of students have come through the school, Lytle said he is proud to see the principles original faculty members focused on remain strong.

“The continuity of the content in that [statement], I think, speaks to that we got it right, and we continue to hire people who understand what it is that Mountain Brook High School is all about,” Lytle said.

School officials said they hope to honor those founding faculty members and MBHS’s history during their 50th anniversary celebration, Hood said.

As they have researched the school’s beginning, she said a continuous thread of community-school partnerships can be seen.

“We also know this is a unique community that values our schools and values education, and many of our parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles are rooted here in this place,” Hood said. “Our paths have each crossed because of Mountain Brook High School.”

Celebration programs have included honoring the first homecoming queen during the 50th homecoming game, opening a “vault” of memorabilia in the mall of the school and celebrating the 51st Miss Olympian. They also plan to honor former faculty at a luncheon in February.

“It’s a privilege to be able to connect with all the people who came before us,” Hood said.

As the school reflects on its history, Lytle said they are taking an important step toward a strong future.

“I appreciate Mrs. Hood and the rest of the people that have been involved in this wanting to honor 50 years of history at Mountain Brook, because I think we have something special here,” he said, “and I think it’s really important for us to remember that we have something special because then we can continue it.”