John J. Pershing High School is a four-year

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools ( Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in ...

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 ...

. It is in

Conant Gardens Conant Gardens is a historically Black neighborhood in northeast Detroit, Michigan. The neighborhood was once the most exclusive Black neighborhood in that city, and residents of Conant Gardens comprised the most highly educated Black enclave in De ...

in proximity to the residential areasConant Gardens produced talent
" ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the ''Detroit Tribune'' on Februar ...

''. June 20, 2001. Retrieved on November 6, 2012. "The Conant Gardens neighborhood near Pershing High School never .. Conant Gardens is bounded by East Seven Mile, East Nevada, Ryan and Conant." - Also in
Conant Gardens' inspiring past comes alive
" ''

''. June 28, 2001. and also serves

Krainz Woods Krainz Woods (colloquially known as Krainz and Krainz Park) is a neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. The neighborhood was named after Captain John Krainz Jr., a World War II hero from Detroit. The neighborhood was once home to Malcolm X, who live ...

. Pershing was governed by the Education Achievement Authority (EAA), which oversees failing schools, from 2011 until 2017, when all schools were transferred back to

Detroit Public Schools Community District 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 ...

. AlHajal, Khalil.
Teacher fired for using broom to break up Detroit classroom fight
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MLive MLive Media Group, originally known as Booth Newspapers, or Booth Michigan, is a media group that produces newspapers in the state of Michigan. Founded by George Gough Booth with his two brothers, Booth Newspapers was sold to Advance Publications ...

''. May 6, 2014. Retrieved on May 8, 2014.

History

Pershing High School opened in 1930 with capacity to serve more than 2,200 students. It was named after General John J. Pershing, a senior officer in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, best known for his involvement in the

American Expeditionary Forces The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought along ...

on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

. General Pershing's troops were called doughboys, which was adopted as the high school's mascot. In 2012,

Kettering High School Kettering High School was a four-year high school within the Detroit Public Schools system. The school, located in the low-income Gratiot Town/Kettering neighborhood, was around 1,200 students under capacity at its closure in 2012. History Ket ...

closed due to poor performance and some students were rezoned to Pershing. Pershing had also been fraught with academic performance issues for nearly two decades; in 2011, the governor moved Pershing and four other at-risk public high schools into a separate district called the Education Achievement Authority (EAA). This district was a state initiative to reinvigorate struggling schools through a partnership with

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

, but lacked funding, planning, and sufficient governance. EAA was closed in 2017 due to its low performance and the expiration of its partnership with Eastern Michigan University, and its schools were returned to the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Concern over school closures continued and in 2017, discussions about which schools needed to go escalated. Closure criteria were initially based on test scores, then, after significant pushback from Detroit families, based on school capacity. At this point, Pershing was only at 25% capacity and had test scores in the bottom 5% for 2014, 2015, and 2016, and so was named one of 24 schools slated to close in June 2017. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

in 2020, Pershing was one of several technology hubs in the district and served as a meal distribution site, provided mobile COVID-19 screenings, and provided resources for childcare and utility bills.

Legal trouble

In 2014, English teacher Tiffani Eaton-Davis attempted to break up a fight between two boys in her classroom with a broom after her attempts to reach security via walkie-talkie were unsuccessful. A cell phone video of the incident was posted online and EAA fired her the next day for violating the policy against corporal punishment; they faced immediate pushback by school, district, and state officials, as well as the Pershing community. EAA quickly rescinded their decision and offered her a job at any school in their district, but she declined and, in 2015, she sued. The lawsuit stated that she was not warned or prepared to break up violent fights every day; that one of the students in the fight had been suspended for gang-related activity and was not supposed to be on the premises; and that she was discriminated against for being a woman and for being Black, as white teachers in the same scenario were not disciplined. In 2016, she was awarded a settlement of $390,000.

Student Body

Pershing is a

Title I The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) was passed by the 89th United States Congress and signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on April 11, 1965. Part of Johnson's "War on Poverty", the act has been one of the most far-rea ...

-eligible school with Black students making up 95% of its enrollment as of 2020. Nearly 60% of the student body is male and 87% is free-lunch eligible.

Academics

In 2020, Pershing had a graduation rate of 72.15%. During the 2017-2018 academic year, less than 5% of students achieved a SAT score that indicates proficiency in math or reading; the district as a whole scored more than 50% lower than the state average. Electives include ACT prep, choir, dance, Jobs for America Graduation,

JROTC The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC -- commonly pronounced "JAY-rotsee") is a Federal government of the United States, federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools acr ...

, music theory, Police Cadet, and robotics. After-school programs include Credit Recovery,

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

C2 Pipeline, and driver's ed. The standard curriculum includes: English language arts 9, 10, 11, and 12; algebra I, geometry, algebra 2, and probability and statistics; biology, chemistry, forensics for science, and physical science; civics, economics, US history, world history; Spanish I and II; and health, JROTC, and physical education.

Athletics

Pershing offers eight sports: baseball, softball, basketball, cheerleading, track, cross country, football, and volleyball. The Doughboys are part of the

Detroit Public School League The Detroit Public School League (PSL) is a high school conference based in the city of Detroit, Michigan and is governed by Detroit Public Schools (DPS) Office of Athletics. The PSL is affiliated with the MHSAA. Current members Defunct high s ...

, which is associated with the

Michigan High School Athletic Association The Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) is a service organization for high school sports in Michigan and is headquartered in East Lansing. It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). Unlike ...

Extracurriculars

Some of the activities offered at Pershing are robotics, the Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program (DAPCEP),

, and STEM Club. A recording studio was created on-campus through a partnership with JDilla Music Foundation (now called the James Dewitt Yancey Foundation), an organization created in honor of Pershing alumnus

J Dilla J, or j, is the tenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its usual name in English is ''jay'' (pronounced ), with a now-uncommon vari ...

, who died from lupus-induced cardiac arrest in 2006.

Notable alumni

* Willie King (1915-1965), former professional basketball player in the National Basketball League * Ed Opalewski (1919-1993), late NFL player for the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at For ...

Harry Szulborski Harry Marion Szulborski (May 23, 1927 – August 4, 2017) was an American football player and coach. Szulborski played college football as a halfback for Purdue University from 1946 to 1949 and was selected a first-team player on the 1947 and ...

(1927-2017), late basketball player and Emerson High School basketball coach *

Mable John Mable John (November 3, 1930 – August 25, 2022) was an American blues vocalist and was the first female signed by Berry Gordy to Motown's Tamla label. Biography John was born in Bastrop, Louisiana, on November 3, 1930, the eldest of at ...

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

blues, gospel, and R&B singer * Lenny Green (1933-2019), late MLB player for multiple

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

teams *

Abdul "Duke" Fakir Abdul Kareem Fakir (born December 26, 1935), professionally known as Duke Fakir, is an American singer. He is a founding member of the Motown quartet the Four Tops, from 1953 to the present day. A first tenor, Fakir is the group's lone survivin ...

(born 1935), current and sole surviving original member of the

act the

Four Tops The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet from Detroit who helped to define the city's Motown sound of the 1960s. The group's repertoire has included soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz, and show tunes. Founded as the ...

* Levi Stubbs (1936-2008), late lead vocalist of the

act the

Chuck Shonta Charles Shonta (born August 29, 1937 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive back for the Boston Patriots of the American Football League (AFL). He played college football for the Eastern ...

, former AFL player and All-Star for the

Boston Patriots Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and football coach for

Northville High School Northville High School is the public high school of Northville Public Schools located in Northville Charter Township, Michigan, with a Northville postal address. Within Wayne County the school serves most of Northville Township and the county' ...

* Fred Julian (1938-2013), late NFL player and West Catholic High School and

Grand Rapids Community College Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) is a public community college in Grand Rapids, Michigan. History Grand Rapids Junior College was established on September 21, 1914, after University of Michigan faculty passed a resolution encouraging the ...

football coach * George Genyk (1938-2017), late football player and coach *

Tom Cecchini Thomas A. Cecchini (born December 9, 1944) is a former American football player and coach. He played college football as an All-Big Ten Conference linebacker at the University of Michigan, and he held coaching positions with Xavier University, Un ...

(born 1944), former football player and coach * Mel Daniels (1944-2015), late ABA All-Star and MVP, 2x ABA MVP, 7x ABA All-Star, inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame * Willie Iverson (born 1945), former ABA basketball player * Ted Sizemore (born 1945), former MLB player; 1969 Rookie of the Year; and CEO of the

Baseball Assistance Team The Baseball Assistance Team is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization affiliated with Major League Baseball. The organization's mission is to "confidentially support members of the ''Baseball Family'' in need of assistance." The baseball family inc ...

Gino Washington George "Gino" Washington (born 1946?) is an American singer from Detroit, Michigan. During his recording career, Washington recorded in the genres of rhythm and blues, rock and roll and Northern soul. While attending Pershing High School, he ach ...

(born 1946), R&B and rock singer who released local hits "Out of This World" and "Gino Is a Coward" *

Spencer Haywood Spencer Haywood (born April 22, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player and Olympic gold medalist. Haywood is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2015. High school career In 1964, Hayw ...

(born 1949), former

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

and NBA champion; Olympic gold medalist (1968); All-American at the

University of Detroit The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Roman Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catholic univers ...

;

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

inductee * Ralph Simpson (born 1949), former NBA player and 5x ABA All-Star * Marvin Lane (born 1950), former MLB player for the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

* Glenn Doughty (born 1951), former NFL player for the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

, later founded the Shake and Bake Family Fun Center and the Career Information and Training Network * Paul Seal (born 1952), former NFL player for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's Nationa ...

* Robert Hawkins (basketball) (1954-1993), late NBA player *

Brenda Lawrence Brenda Lulenar Lawrence (born October 18, 1954) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative from Michigan's 14th congressional district from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, Lawrence served as mayor of Southfie ...

(born 1954), former mayor of

Southfield, Michigan Southfield is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 76,618. As a northern suburb of Detroit, Southfield shares part of its southern border with Detroit. The city was original ...

and member of the

US House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Michael "Clip" Payne Michael "Clip" Payne (born William Michael Payne on September 25, 1958 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American musician. He has been a member of Parliament , Funkadelic, The P-Funk Allstars and the Parliament-Funkadelic collective since 1977. Career ...

(born 1958), musician for

Parliament-Funkadelic Parliament-Funkadelic (abbreviated as P-Funk) is an American music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, primarily consisting of the funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic, both active since the 1960s. Their distinctive ...

since 1977, often referred to as "The Man in the Box" *

Tim Meadows Timothy Meadows (born February 5, 1961) is an American actor and comedian. He was one of the longest-running cast members on ''Saturday Night Live'', where he appeared for ten seasons and for which he received a nomination for the Primetime Emm ...

(born 1961), actor and comedian, former member of

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

* Kevin Willis (born 1962), former NBA All-Star and champion, second oldest NBA player in history * Steve Smith (born 1969), current

basketball analyst A sports analyst is a person looking through technical, tactical, physiological, and psychological performance metrics /sup> working with the sports coach and sports science team to improve athlete performance. They will often use Video motion a ...

for Turner Sports; former

and

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...

;

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...

All-American; and

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

gold medalist * Enchantment, soul/R&B band formed at Pershing, composed of Emanuel "EJ" Johnson, Joe "Jobie" Thomas, Bobby Green, Edgar "Mickey" Clanton, and David Banks * James "J Dilla" Yancey (1974-2006), late music producer, rapper, and member of the group Slum Village * Willie Mitchell (born 1975), former CBA and ABA player, and the 1994 Mr. Basketball of Michigan * Larry Foote (born 1980), former NFL player and current assistant coach for the

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 th ...

, 2x

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the gam ...

champion with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

Arthur Johnson Arthur Johnson may refer to: Sports * Arthur Johnson (athletic director), athletic director for Temple Owls * Arthur Johnson (boxer) (born 1966), U.S. Olympic boxer * Arthur Johnson (rugby league), Widnes and Great Britain 1908/09 - 1922/23 * Arthu ...

(born 1982), basketball player * Ron Dorsey (born 1983), former basketball player * Andre Ricks (born 1986), basketball player, trainer, and coach * DeShawn Sims (born 1988), basketball player for

Pistoia Pistoia (, is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of a province of the same name, located about west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno. It is a ty ...

in Italy's Serie A2 * Slum Village, hip hop group formed by Pershing alumni Baatin, T3, and

* Derrick Nix (born 1990), NBA basketball player for the Windy City Bulls in the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA D ...

Keith Appling Keith Damon Appling (born February 13, 1992) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Michigan State University. High school career Appling played high school basketball at Pershing High School in De ...

(born 1992), former NBA player * Sherron Dorsey-Walker (born 1993), basketball player for Wilki Morskie Szczecin in the

Polish Basketball League Polska Liga Koszykówki (PLK) (English: Polish Basketball League) is a professional men's club basketball league in Poland. It constitutes the first and highest-tier level of the Polish league pyramid. The winning team of the final round are crow ...

Kay Felder Kahlil Ameer "Kay" Felder Jr. (born March 29, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Shanxi Loongs of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Felder, a point guard, declared for the 2016 NBA draft at the conclusion of his ...

(born 1995), former NBA player * Justin Tillman (born 1996), basketball player for

Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv ( he, הפועל תל אביב) is a sports club in Israel, founded in the 1920s, and part of the Hapoel association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, suc ...

in the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl ( he, ליגת העל, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional competition in Israeli club basketball, making it Israel's primary basketball c ...

References and notes

External links

Pershing High School
(Archive)
EAA Pershing High School
(Archive) {{authority control Educational institutions established in 1930 Public high schools in Michigan High schools in Detroit 1930 establishments in Michigan Detroit Public Schools Community District