In 2004 two schools, Midway and Highland, came together to make one unified school: the Doniphan West Mustangs. But before I get into that, I am going to go back into history about the Midway Eagles and the Highland Bluestreaks.

In 1897 in the town of Highland, where the Highland Bluestreaks High School started. The school colors were royal blue and white and their mascot was the Bluestreaks. In the first year of school, there were no graduates, but in 2004 there were 11 graduates in the last class to graduate from HH. From 1897 to 2004 there were 107 graduating classes that went on to start their journey as grown ups. 

But now I am going to talk about  “The Last Act” as an Eagle. 

In 1956 in Denton, Midway High School was built. The colors were red, white, and blue, and their mascot was the Eagles. The first year of MHS there were 15 graduates. Through the 48 years that Midway was open, there were 924 young men and women who received their diplomas from Midway and took on life by the horns. But as the Midway High School started to wind down to its final year they decided to make it the best. In 2004 there were 21 graduates that ended Midways long run. As Highland and Midway came to an end a new beginning was starting. 

In 2004 Midway and Highland decided to consolidate to become one, as each district was experiencing declining enrollment and budget challenges. To combine two new schools, there were going to have to be some changes, new colors and with a new mascot.

The student body and the community of each school were able to suggest ideas and vote to decide on the new school school name, mascot, and colors. And that is how the Doniphan West Mustangs sprang to life. The first DWHS graduating class had 27 graduates. In the first year there were 142 students in the high school.. Now in the 2019-2020 school year there 84 students enrolled.. 

In a January 2020 survey sent out to all DWHS students, 34 students replied to the question, “Did your parent(s) go to Highland or Midway during their high school career?” Out of the 34 students, eight said their parents went to Highland, 10 went to Midway, and 15 went to other schools. 

I asked Mrs. Taylor, the Doniphan West English teacher and former Midway English teacher, about the transition of Midway and Highland coming together to create Doniphan West. 

Q: How was the transition when the other schools came together? 

A: From what I remember, the students got along very well right from the start. 

Many of the students already knew each other, so it wasn’t like they were meeting complete strangers.

The football boys had already played together as a combined team in junior high, and many of the boys had played summer baseball together for several years.

Playing together in sports and participating in other school activities such as the musical, Homecoming, FFA, and classes helped everyone feel like they were part of the new school.

Q: What were the challenges with combining the other school?

A: Transportation issues between the schools

Students who had attended Midway had a drive a longer distance to school.

Deciding which coaches from both schools would continue as the head coaches.

Which teachers would teach which classes? Teachers from each district met during the previous school year to decide who would teach each grade level. For instance, I had taught grades 10-12 for English at Midway. At Doniphan West, I continued to teach English 2 and English 3, and did not continue teaching seniors. But that was something mutually agreed upon.

Q: How did they come to an agreement on the mascot, new school colors, and name?

A: All of those decisions were made by a democratic process. Students and patrons from both Highland and Midway made nominations and then all the options were brought to a vote.

About the writer

Hi, my name is Carlie Windmeyer and welcome to my page!  I made it to my freshman year at DWHS, and it has been exciting. I kicked off my year with some high school volleyball and it's been crazy fun. But when I am not on the court, I am hanging out with my family or playing with my animals. Some other things I am involved in is STUCO, Kay club, pep band, Green hand FFA Officer, and the class president of my class. My favorite food is French dip sandwiches and my favorite drink is Dr. pepper. Some hobbies I have are showing my animals at fair and going on ranger rides.