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DeLaSalle High School is a
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, college preparatory high school in
Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
, Minnesota. It is located on
Nicollet Island Nicollet Island is an island in the Mississippi River just north of Saint Anthony Falls in central Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to the United States Census Bureau the island has a land area of and a 2000 census population of 144 persons. T ...
.


History

DeLaSalle opened in 1900 and has been administered by the
De La Salle Brothers french: Frères des Écoles Chrétiennes , image = Signum Fidei.jpg , image_size = 175px , caption = , abbreviation = FSC , nickname = Lasallians , named_after = , formation ...
(French Christian Brothers) throughout its history. The school's current president is Barry Lieske, AFSC. Lieske has been an administrator at DeLaSalle since 1982 and has served as principal (chief operations officer) from 1993 to 2012. Enrollment peaked at 1654 boys in 1964, dropped to the range of 400–500 by the early 1970s despite the 1971–72 advent of co-education, and continued to decline to a 70-year low of 306 in 1991. Over the past two decades DeLaSalle's enrollment has climbed, and the school now receives an average of 400 applications each year for ninth grade admission. Strategic plans from 2000, 2007, 2012 and 2017 are based upon an optimum overall enrollment of 750–800 students. Then-Archbishop John Ireland helped raise money in the late 1800s to build the new Catholic secondary school in Minneapolis. Ireland's goal was to provide education to sons of immigrants who were moving into Minneapolis neighborhoods from many European countries. Only a few months after groundbreaking, the "DeLaSalle Institute" building was ready for occupancy. Fifty boys joined three teaching Christian Brothers in the new school in October 1900. The number of pupils rapidly expanded, and by spring, a fourth Brother had arrived to handle the overcrowding. By 1907, an addition had been added to the original building, and in 1914, the Archdiocese, at Archbishop Ireland's direction, purchased the adjoining King property to provide space for eventual expansion. Enrollment stood at 352 boys. In those early days, DeLaSalle was a commercial school. Through the work of Brother Hercules, the first graduating class, 13 members strong in 1903, all received positions with the leading business firms of Minneapolis before graduating. By 1920, parents were calling for a high school that was primarily college preparatory. So Archbishop Dowling, Ireland's successor, went to all Minneapolis parishes to raise the $200,000 needed to build a new high school on the former King property, adjacent to the existing commercial building. Construction began in May 1922, and within a year, the new DeLaSalle High School building (today known as the "B Building") had opened. Within six years, DeLaSalle was accredited as college preparatory by both the University of Minnesota and the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. (More than eight decades later, the school is still accredited by AdvancEd, the successor to North Central.) By 1950, enrollment was growing significantly each year, so much so that ninth graders were being educated in a separate building at West 43rd Street and Wentworth Avenue in south Minneapolis. The school's administration opened a new residence for the Christian Brothers in 1950, facing Grove Street on the back side of the DeLaSalle campus. In 1960, in order to "bring the freshmen back to the Island," the school opened the third classroom building on campus (today known as the "A building"). The original school building stood until February 1971, when a weekend electrical fire damaged much of the structure. Because enrollment was dropping precipitously at the time, the original building was razed and not replaced. In order to meet emerging educational and facility needs for a growing student body, in 2014 the DeLaSalle Board of Trustees authorized the construction of a new building. With funds and pledges raised from an ongoing five-year capital campaign run by the school's president, Barry Lieske, and the development office staff, DeLaSalle opened the new "D building" when the 2016–17 school year began. The centerpiece of the project is the "Center for Innovative Learning," new learning spaces providing teachers and students enhanced educational technology and facilities that integrate more efficiently with the tablet- and cloud-technology used by all students. Within the project's scope, DeLaSalle also was able to replace decades-old boiler and electrical systems, improve the energy efficiency of the entire campus, enhance traffic circulation with new corridors and a new north-side entry, and relocate athletic and theatre / fine arts functions closer to the gymnasiums, athletic field, and auditorium respectively. In the Strategic Plan of 1993 the school focused its curriculum only on college preparatory classes, in large part to maximize resources that could be available for financial assistance for families. To this day, graduation requirements mirror typical college entrance requirements, plus requirements for completion of Christian Service hours and Theology coursework. Placement is available in one of two levels within a department: Honors/Advanced Placement or regular college prep, with 13 different AP courses available to students. Since 2000, over 68 percent of each graduating class has matriculated to college. De graduates are enrolled in colleges in 36 states. The school was founded to provide a Catholic school option to poor and immigrant families (primarily European) moving into Minneapolis in the late 19th century. This mission continues to this day, to provide a Catholic and college preparatory education to students from all family and socio-economic backgrounds. The school provides over $3.0 million of financial assistance to assist 53 percent of its students with reduced tuition. In addition to its socio-economic diversity, DeLaSalle is the most diverse
Catholic School Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...
in the state of Minnesota as measured by almost all demographic areas: 45% of its students are people of color, 35% matriculate from single-parent households, and 33% have been raised in faiths other than Catholic. The student body of 760 is drawn from over 120 parochial and public grade schools across the Twin Cities. Over 85 students were born in other countries, some attending DeLaSalle because of its proximity to the University of Minnesota. DeLaSalle has launched an innovative Global Advantage Program, partnering with Hamline University, St. Mary's University, St. Catherine's University, and the University of Minnesota in areas of international academic travel and student exchange experiences. DeLaSalle is one of 13 Catholic high schools in the Twin Cities, one of two within the city limits of Minneapolis.


Sports and activities

Over 90 percent of DeLaSalle students participate in at least one school activity each year, and more than 75 percent will join two or more. Academic, fine arts, athletic and leadership/service groups and teams all are available to students. The largest activities in terms of participation are theatre (six productions each year), music (both vocal and instrumental programs), and Lasallian "Campus" Ministry. Since 2000, teams or individuals from DeLaSalle have qualified for participation in the
MSHSL The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is a voluntary, non-profit association for the support and governance of interscholastic activities at high schools in Minnesota, United States. The association supports interscholastic athletics an ...
's championship tournaments in speech, one-act play, boys' and girls' basketball, football, boys' soccer, boys' and girls' track-and-field, wrestling, cross country, and baseball. DeLaSalle students have succeeded in other programs not directed by the MSHSL, including competitive cheer (eight state titles), Quiz Bowl (eleven straight years qualifying for the National Championships), and musical theatre (20 group or individual awards earned in the annual Spotlight Program of the Hennepin Theatre Trust in 2017). Of note, nearly 45 percent of the students are in a music program, one of three bands, two choirs or orchestra. DeLaSalle is a member of the
Tri-Metro Conference The Tri-Metro Conference is a MSHSL-sanctioned athletic conference composed of schools found in the Twin Cities metro area. The conference competes in the majority of sports offered in the MSHSL. Most teams in the Tri-Metro compete in basketball a ...
, a mix of private and public high schools throughout the Twin Cities that sponsors competitions, leadership programs, and other collaborative activities. Over its history, several dozen DeLaSalle alums have continued to participate in college athletic and arts programs, many with scholarship support from their colleges.


Notable alumni

*
John R. Arlandson Jihn R. Arlandson (born April 30, 1944) was an American lawyer and politician. Arlandson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and graduated from DeLaSalle High School (Minneapolis), DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis. He received his bachelor's d ...
, Minnesota state legislator and lawyer * James R. Casserly, Minnesota state legislator and lawyer * Patrick M. Daugherty, '46, Minnesota state legislator *
Thomas Dubay Father Thomas Edward Dubay (December 30, 1921 – September 26, 2010), S.M., was an American Catholic priest, author, and retreat director. He wrote over 20 books on Catholic spirituality, in which he emphasized the importance of renewed conversi ...
'39, Catholic priest, author, and retreat director * Bishop Emeritus John Kinney '55, Bishop of the St. Cloud diocese from 1998 to 2013. *
Bob Wetoska Robert Stephen Wetoska (born August 22, 1937) is a former American football offensive tackle who played ten seasons in the National Football League for the Chicago Bears. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame and was draf ...
'55, Notre Dame '59, retired NFL player *
Albert Hofstede Albert "Al" J. Hofstede (September 25, 1940 – September 3, 2016) was an American politician who served two non-consecutive terms as mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota, both times representing the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Polit ...
'58, former mayor of Minneapolis *
Roy Gagnon Roy Joseph Maurice Gagnon (January 6, 1913 – June 29, 2000) was an American football guard who played one season with the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Oregon The University ...
, retired NFL player * Bishop John Levoir '64, Bishop of the New Ulm diocese from 2008 to present *
Dennis Newinski Dennis Roman "Denny" Newinski (August 21, 1944 – February 10, 2009) was an American politician and machinist. Newinski was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He graduated from DeSasalle High School, Minneapolis, in 1963. Newinski went to Dunwo ...
'63, Minnesota state representative and machinist *
Larry Pogemiller Lawrence "Larry" J. Pogemiller (born September 18, 1951) is an American politician from Minnesota, and the Commissioner of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education. A member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, he represented northeast ...
'69, retired Minnesota Senate Majority Leader *
Jim Rice James Edward Rice (born March 8, 1953), nicknamed "Jim Ed", is a former Major League Baseball left fielder and designated hitter. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Baseball Hall of Fame on July 26, 2009 Baseball ...
- Minnesota state legislator *
Mark Dienhart Mark Dienhart (born October 11, 1953) is an American educational administrator who is the former Senior Vice President at the University of St. Thomas. He was the men's athletic director at the University of Minnesota from 1995 to 2000. He is cur ...
'71, Executive Director of the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation and former Director of Men's Athletics at the University of Minnesota *
Don Zierden Donald Casper Zierden, Jr. is an American basketball coach. From 2007 to 2009, Zierden served as the head coach of the Minnesota Lynx in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Early life and education Zierden, a Minneapolis native, g ...
'76, longtime coach in the NBA, WNBA and CBA *
Derreck Robinson Derreck Robinson (born March 3, 1982) is a former American football defensive end. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football at Iowa. Robinson has also been a member of the Miami Do ...
'00, retired NFL player * Alan Anderson '01, former NBA basketball player *
Reid Travis Reid Travis (born November 25, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for Shimane Susanoo Magic of the B.League. He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. He began his college career with the Stanford Cardinal, where h ...
'14, University of Kentucky and Stanford University basketball player *
Tyrell Terry Tyrell Nate Terry (born September 28, 2000) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Stanford Cardinal. Terry was selected 31st overall in the 2020 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks. He spent one ...
'19, Former Stanford University basketball player and former NBA basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies * Thomas E. Ticen, Minnesota state legislator and lawyer


Notable faculty

* Walt Dziedzic, politician, police officer, and baseball player


Gallery

Image:060701-DeLaSalle-08.jpg, Entrance to the 'A' building and former main entrance to the school Image:060701-DeLaSalle-07.jpg, Entrance to the 'B' Building Image:060701-DeLaSalle-05.jpg, Founders Park and site of former 'C' Building


References


External links


DeLaSalle High School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delasalle High School (Minneapolis) High schools in Minneapolis Catholic secondary schools in Minnesota Lasallian schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 1900 Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis 1900 establishments in Minnesota