Gabriel Richard Catholic High School, usually referred to as Gabriel Richard or simply GR, 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 ...

coed Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

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 ...

in Riverview,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, United States, south of

Detroit 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 th ...

. Named after Father

Gabriel Richard Gabriel Richard (pronounced rish-ARD) October 15, 1767 – September 13, 1832, was a French Roman Catholic priest who ministered to the French Catholics in the parish of Sainte Anne de Détroit, as well as Protestants and Native Americans liv ...

, the school was established in 1965, with the first class graduating in 1969. It currently has approximately 300 students and approximately 25 full-time

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

s, giving a student-to-teacher ratio of approximately 12:1. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit, Gabriel Richard Catholic High School has also been fully accredited by the

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), also known as the North Central Association, was a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states engaged in educational accreditation. It w ...

since the 1993–94 school year.

History

Unlike many other Catholic schools (for example Cabrini High School in nearby

Allen Park, Michigan Allen Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 28,638. Ford Motor Company is an integral part of the community. Many of the company's offices and facilities lie within the city limit ...

) Gabriel Richard is not tied to a specific

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

. In the early 1960s, a group of parish priests from the Downriver area decided that a new Catholic high school needed to be built. The school was to be built in Wyandotte but no suitable site could be found and the school was built at its current location in Riverview. The building was completed in 1965 and the school began accepting students for the 9th grade.

Coed status

The school was designed to be a coed school. However, the original architectural plans called for the separation of the male and female students. The males would use one wing of the building (the east) and the females would use the other (the west). The

cafeteria A cafeteria, sometimes called a canteen outside the U.S., is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school ...

, gymnasium, band room,

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

, and

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

were to be shared, but used at different times by the boys and girls. However, due to scheduling problems, the school was never operated in the way it was originally planned. Evidence of the original design can still be seen in the layout of the building though. The men's

restrooms A public toilet, restroom, public bathroom or washroom is a room or small building with toilets (or urinals) and sinks for use by the general public. The facilities are available to customers, travelers, employees of a business, school pupils ...

are all in the east wing, while the women's restrooms are all in the west.

Notable alumni

Brooke Elliott Brooke Elliott (born November 16, 1974) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in musical theatre, including the US tours of ''Beauty and the Beast'' and ''Wicked'', and the Broadway productions of ''Taboo'' and '' The Pirate Queen'' ...

– Television/film/stage actress and singer *Rep.

Darrin Camilleri Darrin Camilleri (born January 28, 1992) is an American politician from Michigan who represents the 4th District in the Michigan Senate since 2023. He previously represented the 23rd District in the Michigan House of Representatives. A member ...

– American politician, currently serving in the Michigan House of Representatives https://housedems.com/darrin-camilleri/ Darrin Camilleri - State Representative , 23rd House District *

Trevor Rosen Trevor Joseph Rosen (born February 18, 1975) is an American country music songwriter and musician. He is also a member of the American country music band Old Dominion, in which he plays guitar and keyboards. Early life Trevor Rosen grew up in W ...

- Songwriter, Member of Old Dominion (band)

Extracurricular activities

Clubs and groups

The following is a partial list of student clubs at Gabriel Richard: *Art Club * Band *Drama/Theater Group *

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achi ...

*Student Ambassadors *

Student Government A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...

Yearbook A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a type of a book published annually. One use is to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school. The term also refers to a book of statistics or facts published annually. A yearbook often ...

Sports

References

External links

* * * * {{authority control Catholic secondary schools in Michigan Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit Educational institutions established in 1965 Schools in Wayne County, Michigan 1965 establishments in Michigan