South Side High School (Fort Wayne, Indiana)

South Side High School
Address
3601 South Calhoun Street
Fort Wayne, Indiana
United States
Coordinates 41°3′10.6″N 85°8′10.6″W / 41.052944°N 85.136278°W / 41.052944; -85.136278Coordinates: 41°3′10.6″N 85°8′10.6″W / 41.052944°N 85.136278°W / 41.052944; -85.136278
Information
Type Public, Secondary
Established 1922
Locale Urban
Oversight Fort Wayne Community Schools
Principal Mr. Carlton Mable
Grades 9-12
Number of students 1,536
Color(s)          
Athletics Summit Athletic Conference
Mascot Archer
Newspaper South Side Times
Website South Side High School

South Side High School is a Fort Wayne Community Schools high school situated in south-central Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana.

History

A postcard depicting South Side, circa 1930–1945.

On September 11, 1922, South Side High School opened its doors to students for the first time. The idea of a second high school in the city of Fort Wayne became a reality in 1920 when Fort Wayne High School, later known as Central High School, became overcrowded. As a site for the new high school, the school board chose a tract of land on South Calhoun Street close to the city limits. The land on which the school was constructed had been used for gardens by residents. The land that the football field was constructed was rather flat. This site had previously been occupied by the Kaylor Brickyard.

When South Side High School opened its doors, classes were primarily held in the south part of the building because the north section, particularly in the area of the Gymnasium, had not yet been completed. To further complications, the approximate 800 high school students shared the building with 510 grade school students. The South Side Grade School continued to be part of the facility until the fall of 1925 when Harrison Hill Elementary School opened.

When South Side High School first opened, desks and other furnishings had not been delivered to classrooms. As a result, students frequently had to sit on nail kegs. Because construction was not completed, half-day sessions were held for several weeks until October 30, 1922 when the first full-day session took place.

At the time South Side opened, it was the largest one-story school building in the United States. The building itself covered 3 acres (12,000 m2) and the normal capacity was 1,500 students. It was also one of the very first school building in the nation to use a series of ramps instead of stairs.

As the school population increased, additions to the original structure were made in the late 1930s, the late 1950s and in 1970-1973. The 1970-73 addition included several classrooms, a new media center and a new auditorium. A new physical education facility was completed in January, 1981, and recently South Side has completed a 39.5 million dollar renovation which includes Fort Wayne's only olympic-sized swimming pool. South Side is now an academic gem in the FWCS crown.

South Side High School has been for over 60 years a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and is a Special First-Class Commissioned High School by order of the Indiana State Department of Public Instruction. In the spring of 2000, South Side received full accreditation in the Performance Based Accreditation system of the Department of Education.

From 1963 to 1966, from 1968 to 1974 and again from 1976 to the present, South Side has been privileged to be a member of the prestigious College Entrance Examination Board of New York City which serves the colleges and secondary schools of the nation. In 1982, South Side was elected to permanent membership in the College Board - one of only thirteen Indiana high schools at that time to be so honored.

Six principals have served the school in the past: Robert Harris, 1922-1926; R. Nelson Snider, 1926-1963; Jack E. Weicker, 1963-1990; and Jennifer Manth, 1990-2001. Thomas Smith was the most recent principal to leave South Side. Carlton Mable currently serves as the principal of South Side. Ninety-five individual staff members have served the school for twenty-five years or longer.

South Side High School has had as its philosophy since 1922 the idea that it is a school's task to help students acquire the knowledge and skills that will enable them to do better in those endeavors they pursue. As the school continues its second half century, this philosophy will enrich and strengthen the lives of all the young people who leave South Side High School to take their places in the community, in the nation and in the world.[1]

South Side is also the home to the Helen P. Brown Natatorium which resides just across the parking lot in front of the school.[2]

South Side's athletic teams are the Archers. The school colors are green and white. The school's main rivals are North Side High School and Bishop Luers High School.

In 2013, South Side High School ranked worse than 96% of high schools in Indiana. It also ranked last among 5 ranked high schools in the Fort Wayne Community Schools District. The average math score was 27 and the average reading score was 54.9."http://www.schooldigger.com/go/IN/schools/0363000562/school.aspx"

Alma Mater

Hail to thee, O South Side High School,
Faithful may we be;
Our beloved Alma Mater,
We sing our praises to thee.
May we always well remember
All thy gifts to us so free;
And pay homage to thy memory,
Hail, South Side High School, to thee.

Written by: Jack Wainwright, SSHS Music Director 1933-1943[3]

School Song

To the school that has no equal,
To our dear old South Side High,
To whose teams there are no equal.
For you we'll gladly die.
Though the odds may be against you,
We'll still stand for your rights;
And in the end we'll greet you,
Our dear old green and white.

Written by: Paul Hahn, Class of 1923[4]

Notable alumni

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://southside.fwcs.k12.in.us/about/history.html
  2. ↑ http://fwcs.k12.in.us/natatorium/natatorium.php
  3. ↑ http://southside.fwcs.k12.in.us/about/alma_mater.html
  4. ↑ http://southside.fwcs.k12.in.us/about/song.html

External links

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