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South High School is a historical public
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 the Washington Park neighborhood on the south side of
Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, United States. It is part of
Denver Public Schools The Denver County School District No. 1, more commonly known as the Denver Public Schools (DPS), is the public school system in the City and County of Denver, Colorado, United States. History In 1859, Owen J. Goldrick established the Union Scho ...
, and is one of four original high schools in Denver. The other three are
East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
,
North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...
, and
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
.


History

In 1893, high school classes were established in two rooms of the Grant school (now Grant Middle School). By 1907, an addition was required because of overcrowding. In January 1925, there were 800 students in the senior high school section and more space was desperately needed. A bond issue was voted into effect in October 1925, and funds for a new school were raised. The cost of construction was $1,252,000 ($ in dollars ) and the building was intended to last a century. Denver South officially separated from Grant in fall 1926. South High School was one of 16 schools nationwide selected by the
College Board The College Board is an American nonprofit organization that was formed in December 1899 as the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) to expand access to higher education. While the College Board is not an association of colleges, it runs a ...
for inclusion in the EXCELerator School Improvement Model program, beginning in the 2007–2008 school year. The project was funded by the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was l ...
.


Campus

South High School was designed by the architectural firm of
Fisher & Fisher Fisher & Fisher was an architectural firm based in Denver, Colorado named for partners William Ellsworth Fisher (1871–1937) and Arthur Addison Fisher (1878–1965). The firm was founded in 1892 by William Ellsworth Fisher as William Fisher, A ...
in the time's popular Romanesque style. Sculptor Robert Garrison created many of the building's adornments, including the 3 foot (1 meter) tall gargoyle above the building's main entrance; this symbolic protector of South was inspired by a gargoyle at the Italian
Cathedral of Spoleto Spoleto Cathedral ( it, Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta; ''Duomo di Spoleto'') is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Spoleto-Norcia created in 1821, previously that of the diocese of Spoleto, and the principal church of the Umbrian city of Spo ...
. On either side of the main entrance, bas-relief figures of teachers hold in their hands creatures representing examinations who are attempting to devour students. On the door are friezes of ''Faculty Row'' (a scene resembling the
Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...
, with the principal in the center) and ''Animal Spirits'' (frolicking student-like creatures). Although there are some differences, South's Clock Tower is thought to be a replica of the one at
Santa Maria in Cosmedin The Basilica of Saint Mary in Cosmedin ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin or ''de Schola Graeca'') is a minor basilica church in Rome, Italy. It is located in the rione of Ripa. History According to Byzantine historian Andrew Ekonomo ...
. After the tower's original roof deck began to leak, a State Historical Fund grant was secured to replace the roof and update the electrical work. Many of the changes to the building have been to subdivide former study halls and repurpose other rooms into usable classroom space. The boys' gym, or North Gym, had a balcony allowing for spectator basketball games, which was removed in the late 1950s and early 1960s with the addition of the auxiliary gym, the girls' locker rooms and the new JROTC offices. In 1964 the southwest wing was added, followed in 1989 by a new gymnasium. This completed an expansion planned before World War II but never realized because of the rationing and shortages due to the war. The building was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2022.


Students and academics

The school makes it easy for students to plan for college by offering a college summit course, and a "Future Center", sponsored by the Denver Scholarship Foundation. The Future Center provides students help with anything regarding colleges, such as applications, and how to get financial aid. South is the first battalion in the Denver Public Schools JROTC program.


Demographics

As of the 2020–2021 school year, South High School has a total enrollment of 1,715 students in grades
nine 9 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 9 or nine may also refer to: Dates * AD 9, the ninth year of the AD era * 9 BC, the ninth year before the AD era * 9, numerical symbol for the month of September Places * Nine, Portugal, a parish in the ...
through twelve.South High School Demographics
Denver Public Schools. Accessed 3 November 2021
* White: 45.6% * Hispanic/Latino: 31.5% * African American/Black: 11.8% * Asian & Pacific Islander: 5.7% * Multiple Races: 4.5% * American Indian: <1%


Athletics

The athletic teams of South High School are known as the
Ravens Ravens may refer to: * Raven, a species of the genus ''Corvus'' Sports * Anderson Ravens, the intercollegiate athletic program of Anderson University in Indiana * Baltimore Ravens, a professional American football franchise * Benedictine Ravens, ...
, formerly known as The Rebels. The school competes in multiple athletic divisions - the 4A Metro 2 division for
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
, and the 5A/4A/3A mixed Denver Prep division (comprising mostly
DPS DPS may refer to: Schools United States * Dalton Public Schools, the public school district in Dalton, Georgia * Dearborn Public Schools, the public school district in Dearborn, Michigan * Decatur Public Schools District 61, the public school sys ...
teams) for other sports. As of 2021, the athletic director is Adam Kelsey.Denver South High School Athletics
Accessed 3 November 2021
South's athletic programs have produced multiple professional athletes, including NFL players
Phillip Lindsay Phillip Lindsay (born July 24, 1994) is an American football running back who is a free agent. Lindsay was born in Denver, Colorado, grew up in Aurora, Colorado, and attended South High School in Denver where he became the school's all-time le ...
and
Calais Campbell Calais Mark Campbell ( ; born September 1, 1986) is an American football defensive end for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami Hurricanes football, Miami and was drafted by the Arizona ...
. They also have teams like cheerleading, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, tennis, volleyball, basketball, swim and dive, wrestling, lacrosse, and track and field.


Alumni association

South High School has one of the most active alumni association of all the public high schools in Denver. South High Alumni and Friends, Inc. (SHAFI) has office and museum space in the basement of the high school, in what was once a classroom and the gun range for the JROTC program. In recent years the alumni association has been responsible for the restoration of the clock tower and new flagpole. Among its activities, SHAFI maintains a database of all graduates of South High School, is building a database of faculty and staff of the school, publishes a newsletter several times a year for its members, and maintains a school museum. Due to its prominence as a South Denver landmark the museum has also become the repository for history, artifacts and memorabilia pertaining to Washington Park and the surrounding neighborhood. It also stores the memorabilia of the middle school and elementary schools that feed into the high school.


Controversy

When Denver Public Schools named its four cardinal direction high schools (
East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
,
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
,
North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...
and South), each took a mascot and imagery associated with that direction. For example, West High School took the Cowboy as its mascot. South High School took imagery from the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, specifically from the
Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
. This included taking the "
Johnny Reb Johnny Reb is the national personification of the common soldier of the Confederacy. During the American Civil War and afterwards, Johnny Reb and his Union counterpart Billy Yank were used in speech and literature to symbolize the common sol ...
" head as its mascot, and using the
Confederate Battle Flag The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
and the song "
Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cover ...
". The use of the flag and song ended in 1970 when Denver Public Schools implemented
desegregation busing Race-integration busing in the United States (also known simply as busing, Integrated busing or by its critics as forced busing) was the practice of assigning and student transport, transporting students to schools within or outside their local s ...
as a means of racial integration. The imagery was incorporated into the name of the yearbook, ''The Johnny Reb'', (changing it from ''The Tower Book'') and school newspaper, ''The Confederate''. These images and mascot began to cause controversy in 1970. By 1980, South's first
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
principal, Harold Scott, suggested that the mascot be changed to the Penguin. He did not anticipate the attachment the student body had to the name "Rebel", nor the furor that ensued, and the suggestion was dropped. During the 2007–2008 school year the student body began to discuss changing the mascot. They eventually decided on a gargoyle with the school's famous clock tower in the background. On February 19, 2009, the students made a presentation to the Denver Public School board asking for the change, which was granted. In a compromise with school alumni, the name "Rebel" was kept. On October 23, 2020, South High School officially announced that they would be changing their mascot to the Raven, becoming the South High Ravens.


Notable alumni

*
Harold Agnew Harold Melvin Agnew (March 28, 1921 – September 29, 2013) was an American physicist, best known for having flown as a scientific observer on the Hiroshima bombing mission and, later, as the third director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory ...
, American Physicist * Janet Bonnema, first woman allowed to enter a tunnel project in Colorado *
Stan Brakhage James Stanley Brakhage ( ; January 14, 1933 – March 9, 2003) was an American filmmaker. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th-century experimental film. Over the course of five decades, Brakhage created a large ...
, 1951, experimental filmmaker *
Verne Byers Vincent LeRoy Beyer (March 14, 1918, Denver, Colorado – December 19, 2008 in Las Cruces, New Mexico), known professionally as Verne Byers or Vern Byers, was an American jazz bandleader, double bass player, promoter, and nightclub owner. He brought ...
, 1937, musician and bandleader (known in high school as Vincent Beyer) *
Calais Campbell Calais Mark Campbell ( ; born September 1, 1986) is an American football defensive end for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami Hurricanes football, Miami and was drafted by the Arizona ...
, 2004, football player, Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars,
Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...
*
Conor Casey Conor Patrick Casey (born July 25, 1981) is an American former soccer player. He played for 16 seasons, finishing his career with Columbus Crew SC, before turning to coaching with his former club Colorado Rapids. Playing career Youth and colleg ...
,
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
player,
Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 201 ...
* Ken Charlton, 1959, All-American basketball player at University of Colorado *
Chuck Darling :''A fictional character named Chuck Darling was in the comedy series Back to You.'' Charles Frick Darling (March 20, 1930 – April 6, 2021) was an American basketball player who competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics. Born in Denison, Iowa, Darl ...
, member of
1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...
basketball gold medalists, First team All-American at University of Iowa *
Diana DeGette Diana Louise DeGette (; born July 29, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 1997. A member of the Democratic Party, her district is based in Denver. DeGette was a Chief Deputy Whip from 2005 ...
, U.S. Representative from Colorado's 1st district *
Patricia Elliott Patricia Elliott (July 21, 1938 – December 20, 2015) was an American theatre, film, soap opera, and television actress. Early life Elliott was born July 21, 1938, in Gunnison, Colorado to Clyde and Lavon (née Gibson) Elliott. She claimed dire ...
, 1956, actress and TV personality *
John L. Hall John Lewis "Jan" Hall (born August 21, 1934) is an American physicist, and Nobel laureate in physics. He shared the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physics with Theodor W. Hänsch and Roy Glauber for his work in precision spectroscopy. Biography Born ...
, 1952, Nobel laureate (Physics) *
Marilyn Hickey Marilyn Allene Hickey (born July 1, 1931) is an American Christian minister and televangelist who teaches Bible studies both nationally and internationally. Biography Marilyn Allene Hickey was born on July 1, 1931, in Dalhart, Texas. When she wa ...
, evangelist * Robert Higgins, 1950, zoologist, professor, scholar, marine life researcher, curator at
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
*
Michael Lavine Michael Lavine (born October 13, 1963, San Francisco) is a portrait photographer based in New York City. He grew up in Denver, and graduated from Denver's South High School in 1981. After graduating high school, Lavine headed to the Pacific Northw ...
, 1981, photographer *
Phillip Lindsay Phillip Lindsay (born July 24, 1994) is an American football running back who is a free agent. Lindsay was born in Denver, Colorado, grew up in Aurora, Colorado, and attended South High School in Denver where he became the school's all-time le ...
, 2013, American football player, Houston Texans,
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
* Fred Meissner, world-renowned geoscientist, professor at
Colorado School of Mines The Colorado School of Mines, informally called Mines, is a public research university in Golden, Colorado, founded in 1874. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, science, and mathematics, with a focus on ener ...
and author * Albert Mooney, 1924, founder of Mooney Aircraft Company * Mike Perez, 1983, pro football player, quarterback at
San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
*
Bert Stiles Bert Stiles (August 30, 1920November 26, 1944) was an American author of short stories who was killed in action during World War II while serving as a fighter pilot in the US Army Air Forces. Youth Born in Denver, Colorado he was the son of an e ...
, 1938, author and
Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...
recipient *
James Tenney James Tenney (August 10, 1934 – August 24, 2006) was an American composer and music theorist. He made significant early musical contributions to plunderphonics, sound synthesis, algorithmic composition, process music, spectral music, microtonal ...
, 1952, composer and music theorist *
Robert M. Warner Robert Mark Warner (June 28, 1927 – April 24, 2007) was an American historian who served as the Sixth Archivist of the United States at the National Archives and Records Administration, National Archives, from July 24, 1980, to April 15, 1985.P ...
, 1945, 6th
Archivist of the United States The Archivist of the United States is the head and chief administrator of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) of the United States. The Archivist is responsible for the supervision and direction of the National Archives. The ...
, 1980–1985, pushed for
National Archives and Records Administration The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...
to become own independent federal agency *
LenDale White LenDale Anthony White (born December 20, 1984) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the second round (45th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Seattle Seahawks and De ...
, football player,
USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...
and
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
*
Nick Willhite Jon Nicholas Willhite (January 27, 1941 – December 14, 2008) was an American professional baseball player, a left-handed pitcher. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Willhite grew up in Denver, Colorado and graduated from South High School in 1959. He was ...
1959, baseball player pitched from - for
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
, Washington Senators,
California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...
and
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...


In popular culture

The
Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...
TV series
Good Luck Charlie ''Good Luck Charlie'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on Disney Channel from April 4, 2010, to February 16, 2014. The series' creators, Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen, wanted to create a program that would appeal to entire families, no ...
, which was set in Denver, occasionally used exterior shots of the school. Characters in the show attended a fictionalized version of Denver South High School that featured a ram as its mascot and blue and orange as its school colors; a fictionalized version of North High School was the school's rival.


References


External links

* {{authority control High schools in Denver Educational institutions established in 1893 Clock towers in Colorado Public high schools in Colorado School buildings completed in the 20th century 1893 establishments in Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Denver