Grimsley High School
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| Established | 1899 |
|---|---|
| Type | public |
| Principal | Anna Brady |
| Students | 2,200 |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Location | 801 Westover Terrace, Greensboro, North Carolina, |
| District | Guilford County Schools |
| Mascot | Whirlies |
| National ranking | 82nd |
| Website | Grimsley High School] |
Grimsley High School is one of the oldest institutions of public secondary education in Greensboro, North Carolina. It was founded in 1899, and it is currently part of the Guilford County Schools system. The school has an enrollment of around 2,200 students in grades 9-12.
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[edit] Academics
Grimsley provides a strong academic tradition for its students, having been rated #67 among high schools in the nation by Newsweek in 2005 and #72 in 2006. In 1995 the International Baccalaureate program was instituted at Grimsley. Most of the courses also offered under the Advanced Placement program. The Advanced Placement courses include Physics, Chemistry, Music Theory, and Latin. Many students participate in both programs.
Aside from the AP and IB programs, the school also has a College Preparatory program and a careers program that includes a Health Careers track and a Computer Science track, among others. The school is an avid contender in academic competitions such as Science Olympiad.
The school report card can be found here. In 2005 it was rated as one of the top 100 high schools in the nation by Newsweek. It operates on a traditional bell schedule that has 6 periods (7 if a zero period is taken) in a day for the entire year as opposed to the block, college-styled schedules in place for many of the other local schools. Kevin Fleming has been the principal of Grimsley since July 1st, 2007. During the 2006-2007 school year, John Eldridge replaced Rob Gasparello as principal.
[edit] Facilities
A recently renovated media resource center provides access to resources and technology for student use, including access to resources at the local University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
The main campus consists of 5 main buildings of classrooms, plus the cafeteria, the media resource center and student health center, including a building dedicated to music, one that mainly services the arts, one that mainly services mathematics, another the sciences, with the humanities spread out the remaining areas.
A notable place of gathering is "the grove" where shades from trees and picnic tables make it a hotspot for lunch and breaks for students.
[edit] Colors and Mascot
The school's colors are blue and white, and its mascot is the "Whirlie," a tornado-like symbol. The school's original color was purple, but because it was hard to find the matching purple when football uniforms had to be changed and because they faded easily in the wash, it was changed to blue and white. The mascot was originally the Purple Whirlwinds, but local papers found that to be a mouthful and shortened it to Whirlies. Later, a costumed mascot in the form of a bird, known as the "Whirlie Bird," came into existence. The costume has since then fallen into disuse, making only very rare appearances and existing only in the memories and stories of old. There used to be a strong rivalry between Grimsley and High Point Central High School before Grimsley's rivalry with Walter Hines Page High School was sparked.
[edit] Athletics
Grimsley is a 4A school with a strong athletic program, with sports programs in soccer, basketball, football, tennis, swimming, lacrosse, golf, baseball, wrestling, track, cross-country, volleyball, among others. A "boosters program," alumni, and the annual Grimsley-Page rivalry football game generate much of the funding for both the sports programs and other needs of the school.
Grimsley has one of the largest high school football stadiums (with a 400m track) in the state and services many local events that include fundraisers, special olympics, the NCCA East-West All-Star Game and an annual fireworks display for the city on Independence Day.
The school has 2 gyms, the larger for most indoor sports such as basketball and volleyball, while the smaller has been converted into locker rooms, a weight room, classrooms and practice areas. The larger gymnasium has an attached pool building opened to the public. The basement of the building also serves as ROTC classrooms. The tennis courts are located next to the main gym building, behind which is a practice field for the football, soccer and softball teams. The baseball field is located behind the football stadium opposite the main campus of the school. A trail in the woods is also accessible via the practice soccer and lacrosse fields behind a nearby middle school (Kiser Middle School) for cross country training.
[edit] Extracurriculars
The high school provides a wide selection of extracurricular activities and organizations for its students which has included:
- Honors Societies
- National Honors Society (Torchlight)
- National Technical Honors Society
- National Art Honors Society
- Service
- TAGS (Teens Active in Greensboro Service)
- Student Council
- Habitat for Humanity
- Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC)
- Academic
- Language Clubs (including Spanish, Latin, and French)
- Women's Studies
- Academic Teams and competitions (including Science Olympiad)
- Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA)
- High IQ Bowl
- Model United Nations Club
- Fine Arts
- Band
- Chorus (including the award-winning Grimsley "Madrigal Singers")
- Orchestra
- Marching Band
- Drumline, called "Blue Steel"
- Art Club
- Step Team
- Playmasters Drama Club
- Literature and Publications
- Book Club
- Literary Magazine, Blue (Quarterly)
- Yearbook, Whirligig
- Newspaper, High Life (Monthly)
- WHRL (Live daily news show)
[edit] Notable alumni
- Joe Inman '65, PGA Tour Player, PGA Champions Tour Player
- Rick Dees '68, radio disc jockey
- Dr. Josephine Boyd Bradley '57, first African-American to graduate from an all white school in North Carolina
- Keith Holiday '71, Former Mayor of Greensboro, succeeded by Yvonne Johnson
- John Inman (golfer) '80, PGA Tour Player 1985-1995, UNC Men's Golf Coach
- Carl Pettersson '96, PGA Tour Player
- Mark McGuinn '86, American country singer-songwriter
- George Preddy
- Ted Tally '71, Screenplay writer. Academy Award winner for his screenplay adaption of Thomas Harris's novel, The Silence of the Lambs. Screenplays also include White Palace, All the Pretty Horses, Before and After, and Outbreak.
- Ethan Albright American football player Washington Redskins
