The school was the subject of controversy over a print of artist Warner Sallman's portrait, "Head of Christ", that has hung outside the principal's office since the 1970s. Two parents filed a lawsuit against the school in federal district court in Clarksburg, charging the principal, superintendent, and school board with endorsing Christianity over other religions. The parents were represented by the West Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The school board accepted an offer from the Alliance Defense Fund to represent the school board, superintendent and the principal of the high school.