Gutenberg-Gymnasium Erfurt

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The Gutenberg-Gymnasium Erfurt is a gymnasium (secondary school) located in Erfurt, Germany. It opened in 1991 and has approximately 750 students between the ages of 10 and 19.

[edit] History

The Gutenberg-Gymnasium was formed from the earlier "Gutenberg School" which was built in 1908. Before the German reunification the Art Nouveau building housed a "polytechische Oberschule" (polytechnic secondary school), the standard secondary school form in the GDR, quite different from a West-German-style gymnasium.
In 2001 the school celebrated its tenth anniversary with a series of events such as dances.
It shares a twin-school relationship with two other schools, one in Mainz and the other in Kentucky, United States.

[edit] Massacre

Main article: Erfurt school shooting

On April 26, 2002, 19 year old Robert Steinhäuser, a recently expelled student, brought two firearms to school and moved from classroom to classroom shooting teachers, and altogether killed 13 teachers and 2 students. When police arrived on the scene, he shot an officer in the head, killing him instantly. He was then locked in a room by a teacher, where he committed suicide. Subsequent to these events, the school was closed for renovations and officially re-opened more than three years later on August 29, 2005. German chancellor Gerhard Schröder spoke at the ceremony.