David Henry Hickman High School (commonly Hickman or HHS) is a public secondary school in Columbia, Missouri, United States, serving students in grades 9–12. Built in 1927, it is the oldest of four high schools in the Columbia Public Schools, with admission based primarily on the locations of students' homes. Hickman is also one of the largest high schools in Missouri and has perennially strong academic, athletic, and arts programs.
There are a number of notable alumni from Hickman including a Missouri Governor, several U.S. and State members of congress, Frederick Chapman Robbins (who won the 1954 Nobel Prize for medicine), Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, and Kenneth Lay (founder and former CEO of the now-bankrupt Enron Corporation). Hickman is a two-time Blue Ribbon School and a Missouri Gold Star School.
In 2022, Hickman had nineteen National Merit Finalists, the most of any school in Missouri. Hickman has more than double the number of Presidential Scholars than any other public or private high school in Missouri.
Hickman was constructed in 1927 on the country estate of Missouri legislator and educator David Henry Hickman, next to what was then U.S. Route 40. The school was built to replace the earlier Columbia High School and carried over many of its traditions including the mascot and yearbook. Today, the school is accredited with distinction by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as well as the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Hickman's mascot is the Kewpie.
History
Public secondary education began in Columbia during the 1880s with the founding of Columbia High School in 1889 at the intersection of Eighth Street and Rogers.
As many high schools were at this point in history, CHS offered a two-year course of study. In 1895, it was increased to three, and again in 1896 to four. Extracurricular activities in 1898 included a literary society, choral union, orchestra, and debate team. Sports teams were present, but were not yet funded by the district. Overcrowding caused the demolition of the old school and the construction of a new three-story structure at the same site. The new building included the district's first gymnasium, and the first athletics and music teacher were hired.
1912 saw the first edition of the school yearbook, the Cresset. The school mascot, the Kewpie, appeared for the first time in the Cresset associated with the basketball team "...whose loyalty to the school and to the Kewpie motto, ‘Keep Smiling,’ has won the State Championship". During World War I, students were excused to work as part of the war effort, and the German Club was removed from the extracurricular offerings.
In the 1920s, Columbia was experiencing continued growth, and the district decided to build a new high school on the edge of town on the newly built U.S. Route 40. David Henry Hickman donated part of his estate which had formerly held grandstands and a track for horse racing. David H. Hickman High School opened in 1927, and the old high school became Jefferson Junior High School, which later became Jefferson Middle School. The Great Depression of the 1930s caused the school district to operate with a deficit for the first time; however, the high school building was expanded using loans and the Works Progress Administration.
In this decade, the school's wrestlers captured three state championships, and Hickman created a marching band. The 1940s and World War II brought a new level of international awareness to Hickman, and classes in international relations, aeronautics, and home nursing were added. In 1944, the operetta "Tune In" was performed, and there have been yearly musical productions since. In 1948, the tradition of requiring sophomores to wear beanies was restored.
The 1950s saw the end of racial segregation in Columbia, and Hickman was integrated with Fredrick Douglas High School. The influx of students saw a building boom, and class rooms for special education, adult classes, vocational work, and laboratories were built. A new gymnasium was built in 1955 and a swimming pool added in 1968.
In 1961, the tradition of sophomore beanies was ended. David Wheeler became Hickman's first presidential scholar in 1964, the first year of the program. Hickman saw four state championships in three sports in the 1960s. Rock Bridge High School was opened in 1973 as the second high school in Columbia, and competitive women's sports were offered for the first time 1970s. The 1980s saw much national recognition; Hickman was given the Blue Ribbon Award for 1984–85.