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Grosse Pointe South High School

Coordinates: 42°23′27″N 82°54′10″W / 42.390754°N 82.902652°W / 42.390754; -82.902652
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Grosse Pointe South High School
Grosse Pointe South High School in September 2019
Address
Map
11 Grosse Pointe Boulevard

,
48236-3711

United States
Coordinates42°23′27″N 82°54′10″W / 42.390754°N 82.902652°W / 42.390754; -82.902652
Information
Other namesSouth, Grosse Pointe South, GPS, GPSHS
Former nameGrosse Pointe High School (1928–1968)
TypeComprehensive public high school
Opened1928; 96 years ago (1928)
StatusCurrently operational
School districtGrosse Pointe Public School System
NCES District ID2625740[1]
SuperintendentAndrea Tuttle
CEEB code231–802[2]
NCES School ID262574006220[3]
PrincipalMoussa Hamka
Teaching staff68.59 FTE[3]
Grades9–12
GenderCo-educational
Enrollment1,238[3] (2022–2023)
 • Grade 9284[3]
 • Grade 10296[3]
 • Grade 11313[3]
 • Grade 12332[3]
 • Ungraded14[3]
Student to teacher ratio18.05[3]
Schedule typeSemester
Schedule7 50-minute periods
Campus size23 acres[4]
Campus typeSuburban
Color(s) Blue  and  Gold 
Song"Grosse Pointe South Alma Mater"
Fight song"Victory March of the Blue Devils"
Athletics conferenceMacomb Area Conference – White division
MascotBlue Devil
NicknameBlue Devils
RivalGrosse Pointe North High School Norsemen
AccreditationCognia
ACT average25.8[5]
PublicationLooking Glass (art and literary magazine)
NewspaperThe Tower (print)
The Tower Pulse (online)
YearbookViewpointe
Communities servedGrosse Pointe
Feeder schoolsPierce Middle School
  • Students from all elementary school zones[6]

Brownell Middle School

  • Students only from Kerby and Richard elementary school zones[6]
Websitemi01000971.schoolwires.net/gpsouth

Grosse Pointe South High School from the front lawn
Grosse Pointe High School
Grosse Pointe High School historic site marker
Coordinates42°23′26″N 82°54′14″W / 42.390686°N 82.903787°W / 42.390686; -82.903787
Built1927–1928
Built byCarl S. Barry Co.
ArchitectGeorge J. Haas
Architectural styleColonial Revival (Neo-Georgian)
NRHP reference No.93000429
MSHS No.L1882
Significant dates
Architecture1927–1928
Education1928–1943
Art1938
Added to NRHPMay 20, 1993; 31 years ago (May 20, 1993)
Designated MSHS1992; 32 years ago (1992)
Last updated: March 31, 2022
Martin Luther King Jr. in Grosse Pointe
Coordinates42°23′27″N 82°54′14″W / 42.390753°N 82.903830°W / 42.390753; -82.903830
Designated2018; 6 years ago (2018)
Reference no.S754

Grosse Pointe South High School is a public high school of state and national historical significance serving the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe. Originally known as Grosse Pointe High School when it opened in 1928, the school adopted its current name in 1968 after the newly established Grosse Pointe North High School began accepting students.

Communities served and feeder patterns

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The school serves the following municipalities:[7] almost all of Grosse Pointe Farms,[8] and all of Grosse Pointe (city) and Grosse Pointe Park.[9][10]

Elementary schools feeding into GPSHS include all of the zones of Defer, Kerby, Maire, Père Gabriel Richard, and Trombly. All of the boundaries of Pierce Middle School and most of the boundary of Brownell Middle School coincides with that of GPSHS.[7]

Academics

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Student assessments
2021–22 school
year[11]
Change vs.
prior year[11]

M-STEP 11th grade proficiency rates
(Science / Social Studies)
Advanced %37.5 / 22.5
Proficient %29.6 / 36.5
PR. Proficient %12.1 / 33.6
Not Proficient %20.8 / 7.5
Average test scores
SAT Total1116.1
(Decrease −37.6)

In 2009, Newsweek ranked Grosse Pointe South in the top 2% of high school in the United States.[12] In 2010, Newsweek ranked Grosse Pointe South 920th nationally (fifth in Michigan).[13]

Martin Luther King Jr. visit and speech

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Grosse Pointe High School hosted a speech by Martin Luther King Jr. on March 14, 1968, when 2,700 people gathered in the gymnasium to hear a speech entitled "The Other America" three weeks before his assassination.[14]

To honor the 50th anniversary of the event the Grosse Pointe News partnered with the Grosse Pointe Board of REALTORS® in submitting an application for a historic site marker to be placed near the one previously installed on campus.[15] The marker, which was approved by the Michigan Historical Commission on July 27, 2018, was paid for by a grant from the National Association of Realtors®.[15]

Hosting an NBA game

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Grosse Pointe High School hosted game 1 of the NBA's Western Divisional Semi-finals vs the Detroit Pistons and Minneapolis Lakers on March 12, 1960. The Pistons were forced to play at the high school because nobody booked Olympia Stadium for the playoffs.

The game was a good one with the Lakers winning 113–112. [16]

Extracurricular activities

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Athletics

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Grosse Pointe South athletic field

As of 2010, the school offers 15 varsity sports teams for boys and 18 varsity sports teams for girls. These sports include baseball, basketball, competitive cheer, crew, cross country, field hockey, figure skating, football, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, sailing, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, synchronized swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball, and wrestling. Grosse Pointe South competes in the Macomb Area Conference (MAC), under the regulation of the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA).

Tennis

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The boys' tennis team won the class A state championship in 1945 and 1946 and tied with Monroe High School in 1947.[17] The girls' tennis team won the state championship every year from 1976 to 1986 (Tying in 1976,1977,1982 and 1985), 2008, 2012, and 2014.[18]

Performing arts

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Pointe Players is Grosse Pointe South's student theater organization.[19]

GPSHS has four show choirs: Pointe Singers varsity choir, Serendipity junior varsity, Rhapsody in Blue traditional concert choir, and the extracurricular female-only Tower Belles.[20] Pointe Singers, Serendipity, and Rhapsody in Blue are competitive, with Pointe Singers winning a national-level competition in 2019.[21]

Robotics

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The South Sun Devils is the solar car team, competing since 2013 in The Solar Car Challenge in Dallas, Texas. The team fundraised, designed, built, and raced their street-legal car on Texas Motor Speedway followed by a road test challenge.[22]

Notable alumni

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Grosse Pointe Public Schools". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  2. ^ "Grosse Pointe South" (PDF). Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Search for Public Schools - Grosse Pointe South High School (262574006220)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  4. ^ "History of South High School / History". Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  5. ^ "South Profile 2018-2019.pdf" (PDF). Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "GPPSS-DistrictMap" (PDF). Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "District Map." Grosse Pointe Public School System. Retrieved on January 8, 2017.
  8. ^ "Zoning Map Archived January 8, 2017, at the Wayback Machine." City of Grosse Pointe Farms. Retrieved on January 8, 2017.
  9. ^ "Zoning Map[permanent dead link]." Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan. Retrieved on January 8, 2017.
  10. ^ "Zoning Map Archived November 18, 2016, at the Wayback Machine." Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Retrieved on January 8, 2017.
  11. ^ a b "MI School Data Annual Education Report". MI School Data. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  12. ^ "America's Top Public High Schools 2008 – Newsweek and The Daily Beast". Newsweek.
  13. ^ "America's Best High Schools: The List". Newsweek. June 13, 2010. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
  14. ^ "The Other America". Grosse Pointe Historical Society. Retrieved March 23, 2010.
  15. ^ a b GPN Staff (January 23, 2019). "Commemorating MLK at 'The High'". Grosse Pointe News. Pointe News Incorporated. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
  16. ^ "Detroit Pistons History". nbahoopsonline.com. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  17. ^ "Boys' Tennis Team Champions". Michigan High School Athletic Association. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  18. ^ "Girls' Tennis Team Champions". Michigan High School Athletic Association. Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  19. ^ Brush, Mary Anne (November 6, 2019). "South Pointe Players present murder caper". Grosse Pointe News. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  20. ^ "SCC: Viewing School – Grosse Pointe South High School". Show Choir Community. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  21. ^ Guthrie, Grace (May 22, 2019). "Spotlight: Grosse Pointe South Choir wins National Championship". Click on Detroit. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  22. ^ Brunedell, Mike (May 4, 2015). "G.P. South solar car club set for battle in Texas". Detroit Free Press. Gannett. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  23. ^ a b "Grosse Pointe Musicians Score Major Record Label Contract: Listen". Patch. September 9, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
  24. ^ "Will Johnson – Football". University of Michigan Athletics.
  25. ^ "twitter.com".
  26. ^ "THIRD MAN RECORDS ANNOUNCES STATIC's TOOTHPASTE AND PILLS DUE SEPTEMBER 10, 2021".
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Further reading

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  • Kilar, Jeremy W., and Bradley F. Smith (Jan./Feb. 2023). "Reflecting on 'The Other America': Martin Luther King Jr. in Grosse Pointe." Michigan History vol. 107, no. 1, pp. 36+. Lansing, Michigan: Historical Society of Michigan. Accessed Gale OneFile