The Detroit School of Arts (DSA), originally known as the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, is a

blue ribbon The blue ribbon is a symbol of high quality. The association comes from The Blue Riband, a prize awarded for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by passenger liners and, prior to that from Cordon Bleu, which referred to the blue ribbon ...

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

located in Midtown

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

.Midtown location
from the University Cultural Center Association, retrieved 6/9/09 It is a part of the

Detroit Public Schools Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is a school district that covers all of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States and high school students in the insular city of Highland Park. The district, which replaced the original Detr ...

district. Entrance to Detroit School of Arts is based on an audition that takes place at the end of a student's eighth grade year. Students are required to declare a major of study i.e. Dance, Theatre, Instrumental Music, etc. The Detroit School of Arts is one of four

magnet schools In the U.S. education system, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities (usually school boards) as school ...

in Detroit, where the others are

Renaissance High School Renaissance High School is a public high school in the city of Detroit, Michigan. Renaissance is one of four magnet high schools in the Detroit Public Schools district; (the others being Cass Technical High School, Detroit School of Arts, and C ...

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a public high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States.

and Communication & Media Arts High School.

History

Originally named The Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, The Detroit School of Arts was established in 1992 by Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton. Dr. Davis-Cotton served as a principal to the school from 1992 until her retirement in 2010. During the eight hour school day, students follow a rigorous college preparatory curriculum with an intensive study in their chosen major of creative and/or performing arts. When founded, the school held classes in a building known as the Wilbur Wright School prior. This building was located at 4333 Rosa Parks Boulevard in Detroits Woodbridge neighborhood. As enrollment grew and arts instruction continued, the school was met with challenges. The building, which was erected in 1929, was overcrowded and began decaying rapidly causing several health hazards. In 2003, construction began on a new building nearby in Detroit's Midtown. This modern six floor building was to consist of state of the art recording studios, band and choir rooms, art studio spaces, professional green rooms, a large auditorium, and a recital hall named after alumna

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...

. The building was opened to DSA students and staff in 2005 and is still occupied by the school. DSA's building is also the home of Detroit's Jazz and Classical radio station

WRCJ-FM WRCJ-FM (90.9 MHz) is a classical/jazz radio station in Detroit, Michigan. The station is the only classical music station in Detroit. The Detroit Educational Television Foundation, owners of PBS member station WTVS, operates the public radio st ...

. The Wilbur Wright School building was left behind, later being marked as abandoned, and eventually demolished.

Accolades and awards

The school received the Kennedy Center Creative Ticket National Arts School of Distinction Award for the 2002-2003 school year. On May 22, 2012, DSA became the Detroit Public Schools System's first self-governing school.

Notable alumni

, singer and actress *

Teairra Marí Teairra Marí Thomas (born December 2, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress. At the age of 16, Jay-Z signed her to Def Jam and she released her first album, '' Roc-A-Fella Records Presents Teairra Marí''. After disappoi ...

, singer and actress; First woman signed to

Roc-a-Fella Records Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...

Celia Keenan-Bolger Celia Keenan-Bolger (born January 26, 1978) is an American actress and singer. She is known for portraying Scout Finch in the play ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (2018), which earned her a Tony Award. She has also won three Drama Desk Awards and an ...

, Tony award winning actress *Akil Alvin, Business Mogul and Television Producer

References

External links

*
Detroit Public Schools profile

Schools of the 21st Century
��discussion of the school building's architecture {{authority control Public high schools in Michigan Schools of the performing arts in the United States Educational institutions established in 1992 High schools in Detroit Magnet schools in Michigan 1992 establishments in Michigan