Benton High School is a rural high school that has been accredited by the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges since 1965. The school colors are purple and gold, and the school mascot is the tiger. Emblazoned at the top of the school crest is the tiger. Below the tiger is a shield surrounded by magnolias, the state’s official flower. The shield contains the seal of Bossier Parish, the lamp of knowledge, and the pelican, the state’s official bird. Below the shield is inscribed, “Strength is Knowledge.” The Bossier seal symbolizes the location of Benton, the parish seat. The lamp of knowledge signifies the objectives and ideals of education that are held in high esteem at Benton High School.

The school, originally containing grades one through twelve, came into existence in 1890 thanks to a private donation funded by the citizens of Benton. The school was originally housed in a two-story structure, with the school occupying the first floor and the Masonic Lodge occupying the second floor. The original school had only one teacher and a handful of students. By 1904 the school had increased to three teachers and had its first graduating class. A primary teacher taught grades 1-3, a secondary teacher taught grades 4 and 5, and the principal taught grades 6 and up. There were approximately twenty-five students in grades 6-12.

A new frame building was erected in 1907 at a cost of $4,500.00. It was the first school in Bossier Parish financed using tax revenues. The building was used until bonds were sold in 1922 for a new, modern two-story school which was completed and occupied by 1924. The school was located in what is now called “School Board Square” and housed eight teachers and 140 students. The total cost was $75,000.00. Enrollment increased dramatically, and in three years, another two story frame building was added. In 1939 a combination gym/auditorium was added, and further improvements were made when a new cafeteria was added and a building adjacent to the school was converted to a band room.

The last “separate-but-equal” class graduated in May of 1969 from Benton High when the Supreme Court ordered desegregation on February 1, 1970. The all black school, C. H. Irion High School, became Benton Elementary School, and for the first time, black and white students attended classes together.

On September 27, 1976, an act of arson destroyed the junior high wing. The seventh grade students were sent to Benton Elementary School, and the eighth grade students remained with the high school until the fall of 1978, when they were also transferred to the elementary school.

A twenty-five acre tract of land originally planned for a horse racing track was obtained by the school board, and the present high school was opened during the 1978-1979 school year. The school housed grades nine through twelve. An additional wing and gym were added in the mid-1980s, and the 1985-1986 school year brought the seventh and eighth grades from the elementary school to once again be united with the high school students.

Presently, a new middle school stands due north of the high school. It opened in the 1999-2000 school year and houses grades five through eight. Benton High School serves grades nine through twelve only, although a new mega-sized gym, track, and football stadium is shared with the middle school.