# Pikesville High School

Pikesville High School (PHS) is a four-year public high school in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is part of the Baltimore County Public Schools consolidated school district. The school is located in the community of Pikesville, just inside Baltimore County to the northwest of Baltimore City. It is located on the corner of Smith Avenue and Labyrinth Road. The school's district borders Towson High School, Dulaney High School, Owings Mills High School, New Town High School, Randallstown High School, Milford Mill High School, and Woodlawn High School.

## History

The school was opened in 1964 as Pikesville Senior High School with grades 9–11 and was renamed in the mid-1980s as part of a countywide grade realignment.
The school received a $40 million renovation, including a math wing and science wing that replaced a single hallway of rooms and adjacent courtyard. The other courtyard was filled with more learning spaces. The cafeteria was expanded along with asbestos removal.
On July 8, 2023, 45-year-old Lakisha Wheeler was fatally shot in the Pikesville High parking lot and was pronounced dead on arrival.
In April 2024, athletic director Dazhon Darien was arrested for using artificial intelligence (A.I.) to impersonate a principal on an audio recording that included racist and antisemitic comments. Darien faces charges that include theft, disrupting school activities, stalking and retaliating against a witness.

## Academics

Pikesville High school received a 59.4 out of a possible 90 points (65%) on the 2018–2019 Maryland State Department of Education Report Card and received a 4 out of 5 star rating, ranking in the 63rd percentile among all Maryland schools.

## Students

The 2021–2022 enrollment at Pikesville High School was 885 students. Previous student count peaked in 2003 at 1,159.
The graduation rate at Pikesville is fairly high, having been steady at 89–95% between 1996 and 2007. The current graduation rate of Pikesville High is over 95%. Pikesville has a large enrollment of minority students. The racial makeup of the student body is 50.3% Black, 30.6% White, 4.8% Asian, 9.9% Hispanic, and 4.4% two or more races.

## Extracurricular activities

Clubs and teams at the school include Spanish club, Jewish Culture Club, Christian Club, Interact, Key Club, Young Democrats and Republicans, National Honor Society, and Science Club. Many of the teams include Model UN, Model OAS, It's Academic, Mock Trial, and Model Congress.

## Athletics
### State championships

Golf
* 1A/2A 2000, 2001
Boys Soccer
* 1A 2016
Girls Basketball
* 1A 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024
Girls Indoor Track
* 1A 2014
Boys Indoor Track
* 1A 2013
Baseball
* Class B 1986
Boys Lacrosse
* 2A-1A 2001, 2004, 2009
* Ron Belinko Sportsmanship Award 2002
Softball
* Eugene Robertson Sportsmanship Award 2017
Boys Track and Field
* 1A 2014

## Notable alumni

* Miša Aleksić - bass guitarist for Riblja Čorba
* Mark Elliott Brecher - retired chief medical officer LabCorp, Emeritus Professor University of North Carolina
* Elise Burgin - professional tennis player
* Gary Gensler - named CFO of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign 2015; served in the United States Department of the Treasury as assistant secretary for financial institutions from 1997 to 1999
* Karen Hesse - author
* Shelly L. Hettleman - member of the Maryland Senate
* Hellin Kay - filmmaker and photographer
* Jeffrey Kluger - author of Lost Moon: the Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13, the basis of the movie Apollo 13
* Daniel Lipman - Emmy Award-winning television writer of An Early Frost and Queer as Folk
* Ken Mehlman - former chairman of the Republican National Committee (2005 to 2007)
* Jeff Pinkner - television writer and producer known for his work on Alias and Lost
* Marc Platt - producer of Legally Blonde.
* Mike Sager - best-selling author
* Jesse Schwartzman - professional lacrosse player
* Wendy Sherman - former United States deputy secretary of state
* Bert Vogelstein - oncologist at The Johns Hopkins Medical School and Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center
* Ellis Weiner - author
* Bobby Zirkin - former Maryland State Senator

### Fictional Alumni

* John Munch - detective on Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit