Cookeville High School

Cookeville High School

(1981 - Present)

In 1981, a student-led initiative changed the name of Putnam County Senior High School to Cookeville High School.  Cookeville High School's first years were in the old PCSHS building.  Also in 1981, new classrooms were added to accommodate increased enrollment.  In 1982, students were required to pass a state proficiency test in order to graduate and a new diploma policy was established. 

Continued growth in the 1990s led to calls for a new high school to be constructed.  When a new high school building was completed in 1996, the original PCSHS building became home to Avery Trace Middle School.   

When it opened in August 1996, the "new" Cookeville High School was one of the largest high school in the state and in the southeast.  The new building is 395,000 square feet on three floors set on an 80-acre campus.  Principal Tom Parker stated, "we already have 2,005 students registered for this year and we expect 2,050."  The 1996-1997 school year was the first time all four high school grade levels (9th through 12th) were together in the same building as the old Cookeville High only housed grades 10 through 12 for some 30 years.