Mission: The Mission of De Soto High School is to empower students with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to build successful lives.   

Vision: De Soto High School ensures all students learn at a high level and have a positive sense of belonging, developing each student to be ready for their future.  

Underlying our mission and vision are six belief statements: 

• • Students learn by being positive risk-takers in an environment that is safe, clean, respectful, caring, and fair.     
  • All students offer a unique contribution to the school environment.     
  • All students can grow and thrive, and learning is rooted in trusting relationships. 
  • Students learn in a variety of ways.  
  • All students can learn from a relevant curriculum and experiences beyond the classroom.     
  • Student motivation and assumption of responsibility impact student learning.    

As a result of our individual and collective commitment to the Mission and Vision of De Soto High School, each staff member pledges the following:  

• • I will create a safe, respectful learning environment for all students and colleagues.  
  • I will deliberately build and maintain positive relationships and provide learning support for all students.    
  • I will value and/or create relevant learning experiences for students in and out of the classroom. 
  • I will insist on student engagement and communicate expectations of success.  
  • I will teach the identified essential standards and a rigorous curriculum for every student.  
  • I will actively collaborate with colleagues and assume collective responsibility for student learning.  
  • I will use evidence of student learning to meet the needs of individual students and pursue continuous improvement of my practice.  

Location: De Soto High School is located near K-10 and Lexington Avenue on 91st Street in De Soto, Kansas. We are a part of Unified School District No. 232 in Johnson County.

School History
De Soto High School enjoys a long tradition dating back to February 8, 1919, when the building was located in what is now the City Hall of the City of De Soto. That building opened as part of the De Soto Rural High School District. In the 1960s, the State of Kansas ordered the unification of school districts. The De Soto Rural High School District became the Unified School District No. 232, forming in 1964. A second building was opened in 1968 at 8800 Penner Avenue, the current location of Lexington Trails Middle School, with the old high school becoming De Soto Junior High School. The present De Soto High School facility/building (32000 West 91st Street) opened in 1995. Since that time, there have been five additional construction projects that have expanded and renovated the building, with the newest addition opening in August of 2022.

Extracurricular activities at De Soto High School have been the focus of community pride. Most of the activity programs at De Soto High School have excelled competitively in both state and national contests. The Marching Band, Scholars Bowl, Choir, Cross Country, Baseball, Softball, and Diamond Dancers teams have all won state or national titles. The school newspaper, The Green Pride, and the yearbook, The Wildcat, have likewise received recognition. The wildcat has been the school’s mascot since the early 1920s. DHS offers 22 sports in interscholastic competition. Students are also offered many extracurricular and intramural opportunities through an extensive activities program.

Fight Song
Fight, De Soto Wildcats
For the vic'try, fight.
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT
Glory in the combat
For the green and the white.
Faithful to De Soto
We shall ever be!
Fighting, ever fighting.
For a Wildcat victory.
GO CATS!