Mt. Lebanon High School is a four-year, comprehensive high school located in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh. It serves as the only high school in the Mt. Lebanon School District and has an enrollment of 1,789 students in grades 9–12 for the 2023–2024 school year. Its mascot is the Blue Devil.
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History
The school was originally built in 1927, and was described after being built as one of the most advanced schools in the state. The school had two additions added in 1956 and 1957. Ground was broken in 1970 for an addition, which was completed in 1972. This addition added another six-story building connected to the original building, an arts wing connected to the auditorium, and a new gymnasium. Ninth grade students were later added to the school due to overcrowding at the junior high schools.
In 2012, construction started for the Science Wing and a new Athletic Building that included a new pool, a main gym, two smaller gyms, and an exercise center. Remaining portions of the school that were renovated include the 1930 wing on Cochran Road, the Auditorium, and Fine Arts Wing. These were completed in 2017. In addition, the old South Gym was renovated into the Center Court, which functions as the cafeteria, and is located to be accessible from all main courses.
Athletics
The sports teams compete in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League - District 7 of the PIAA. The teams go by the name "Blue Devils" and the school mascot is the Blue Devil. The student section is known as the Devil's Den.
The high school has a sports rivalry with Upper St. Clair High School. The schools are neighboring communities, with Upper St. Clair High School around 3 miles (5 km) south of Mt. Lebanon High School.
In 2021, Mt. Lebanon football coach Bob Palko was awarded the Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year Award, following an undefeated season, winning the WPIAL 6A title, and the PIAA 6A state title. Palko led Mt. Lebanon to a spot in the national rankings.
PIAA State Championships
Football
1 PIAA state championship (2021)
Baseball (Boys)
1 PIAA state championship (1998)
Basketball
Boys: 1 PIAA state championship (1940)
Girls: 3 PIAA state championships (2009, 2010, and 2011)
Cross Country
Boys: 12 PIAA state titles (1941, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1998)
Football
1 PIAA state championship (2021)
Hockey
Boys' Ice: 2 PIHL state championships (1976 and 2006).
Soccer
Boys: 1 PIAA state championship (1981)
Girls: 1 PIAA state championship (1992)
Swimming
Girls: 1 PIAA state championship (2002)
Volleyball
Girls: 2 PIAA state titles (1997 and 2000)
Academics
As of 2025, the school's average ACT score for students is a 30, and the school's average SAT score is a 1290.
The school offers 24 AP courses.
Facilities
Mt. Lebanon High School is located on 26 acres in the western Pennsylvania hills. The indoor athletic facilities are connected to the Mt. Lebanon High School Center Court and academic buildings via a glass skybridge, recently named McFeeley Way, after the late high school principal Brian McFeeley.
Arts and extracurricular activities
In the 2002–03 school year, the high school received one of six Outstanding School Awards from the Educational Theatre Association. The school's theater program began in 1930 and has produced a number of notable actors.
In 2006, the fine arts department was rated one of eight finest nationwide by the U.S. Department of Education.
In 2007, the American Music Conference listed Mt. Lebanon High school as one of the "Best 100 Communities for Music Education". Mount Lebanon Percussion ensemble were invited by the NHL to perform at the 2011 NHL Winter Classic on live TV for the country.
The Mt. Lebanon Forensic Team won the Western Pennsylvania District Forensic Championship four years in a row, beginning in 2001. In 2004, the team won the state championship in dramatic interpretation and extemporaneous speaking and then earned a second-place title in extemporaneous speaking at the national competition in Salt Lake City. In 2006, the team captured the Pennsylvania High School Speech League championship.
The Devil's Advocate is Mt. Lebanon High School's monthly student newspaper.
Awards and rankings
In 2019, Mt. Lebanon High School received the U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School award for its leadership in sustainability and environmental education while promoting health and wellness.
In 2025, the U.S. News & World Report ranked Mt. Lebanon High School the number one high school in the Pittsburgh region, and 7th in Pennsylvania.
Notable alumni
Mt. Lebanon alumni include people in business, politics, entertainment, education, and athletics.
Athletics
Eric Angle (born 1967) - professional wrestler
Kurt Angle (born 1968) - Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling and former professional wrestler
Troy Apke (born 1995) - NFL cornerback and special teamer
Matt Bartkowski (born 1988) - NHL ice hockey defenseman
Mia Bhuta (born 2005) - soccer player
Gene Breen (born 1941) - NFL football player
Ave Daniell (1914-1999) - football tackle
Jim Daniell (1918-1983) - NFL football player
Bill Davidson (1915-1970) - NFL football player
John Fitsioris - professional basketball player
John E. Frank (born 1962) - NFL football player and surgeon
Justin Geisinger, NFL football player
Curt Grieve, college football player
Ian Happ (born 1994) - MLB player
Eli Heidenreich (born 2003) - NFL player
Chris Jelic (born 1963) - MLB baseball player
Tom Jelley (1926–2014) - NFL football player
Don T. Kelly (born 1980) - MLB player and coach
Business
Mark Cuban (born 1958) - billionaire entrepreneur
Brian Cuban (born 1961) - attorney and author
Andrew Mason (born 1981) - founder and former CEO of Groupon
Rich Skrenta (born 1967) - computer programmer and tech entrepreneur, creator of Elk Cloner virus
John P. Surma (born 1954) - businessman, former CEO of US Steel, minority owner of Pittsburgh Penguins
Greg Fenves (born 1957) - 21st President of Emory University and 28th President of the University of Texas
Entertainment & Media
Carl Betz (1921-1978) - actor
Eugene Baird (1923-1988) - jazz singer
Patti Burns (1952-2001) - journalist and TV news anchor
Frank Capelli (1952-2018) - actor and singer
Twink Caplan (born 1947) - actress
Christina Cindrich (born 1981 or 1982) - actress and television host
Daya (born 1998) - Grammy award winning pop artist
Jon Delano - journalist
Scott Ferrall (born 1965) - radio personality
Dave Filoni (born 1974) - President and director of Lucasfilm
Bob Hoag - record producer and recording artist
David Hollander (born 1968) - actor and film producer
Gillian Jacobs (born 1982) - actress
Vince Lascheid (1923-2009) - Pittsburgh Pirates and Penguins organist
Daniel London (born 1973) - actor
Joe Manganiello (born 1976) - actor
Matt McConnell (born 1963) - NHL play-by-play broadcaster, Utah Mammoth
Terri Minsky (born 1957) - television writer, producer
Government
Kenyen Brown (born 1969 or 1970) - United States attorney
Ruth Colker (born 1956) - scholar, lawyer, and distinguished professor
Susan J. Crawford (born 1947) - lawyer
Q. Todd Dickinson (1952-2020) - USC(IP) and USPTO director
Wayne S. Ewing (1929-2010) - politician
Timothy Hauser (1948–2005) - economist with the United States Department of Commerce and the Bureau of Labor Statistics; two time winner of the Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Executive winner
Dick Lamm (1935-2021) - former governor of Colorado and Presidential candidate
Lynn Scarlett (born 1948 or 1949) - government official, environmental policy executive and analyst who served as United States Deputy Secretary of the Interior
John Seymour (1937-2026)- politician
Carole Beebe Tarantelli (born 1942) - Italian parliament member; first American citizen to be elected to the Italian Chamber of Duties
Gerald Bard Tjoflat (born 1929) - lawyer and jurist serving as Senior United States circuit judge and in the US Court of Appeals in the eleventh circuit
Education
Gwyn Cready (born 1962) - author
Todd DePastino - author and history professor
Sandra Moore Faber (born 1944) - world renowned astrophysicist, National Medal of Science recipient
Terry Hart (born 1946) - former NASA astronaut and engineer
Stuart A. Herrington (born 1972 or 1971) - author and retired counterintelligence officer
Paige Kassalen (born 1993) – Electrical engineer who was the only American, female engineer, and youngest member of the ground crew for the Solar Impulse 2 project
Dan Klein (born c.1976) - computer science professor
Caroline Klivans (born 1977) - mathematician
Linn F. Mollenauer (1937–2021) - physicist and author
Reed E. Pyeritz (1947-2026) - geneticist, physician, and academic
Warner Slack, professor at Harvard University, physician, biomedical informatician, and pioneer in medical informatics
Ann M. Valentine (born 1971 or 1972) - Yale University bioinorganic chemist and researcher
Julia Randall Weertman, materials scientist, academic, Northwestern University professor
Other
Richard Baumhammers (born 1965) - spree killer and former immigration lawyer
Newt Heisley - commercial artist and designer of the POW/MIA flag
William D. Morgan (1947-1969) - U.S. Marine and Medal of Honor recipient
Michael Turian - Professional Magic: The Gathering player
Notable staff
Orlando Antigua (born 1973) - basketballer
Ralph Fife (1920-2000) - NFL football player and coach
Freddie Fu (1950-2021) - doctor, surgeon, and academic
Armen Gilliam (1964-2011) - basketballer
George Savarese (born 1965) - radio personality and educator
Jamie Silva - NFL football player
Paul Tortorella (born 1963) - football coach