Hinsdale South High School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Established | 1965 |
|---|---|
| Type | Public secondary |
| Principal | Dr. Claudia Geocaris |
| Faculty | 185 |
| Students | 1,913 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | 7401 Clarendon Hills Rd. Darien, Illinois, USA |
| Campus | Suburban, 42-acres |
| Colors | Black, Gold |
| Mascot | Hornets |
| Yearbook | Vespa |
| Newspaper | Stinger |
| Website | south.hinsdale86.org/ |
| Hinsdale South District Link | |
Hinsdale South High School, or HSHS, and locally referred to as "South," is a public four-year high school located at the corner of 75th Street and Clarendon Hills Road in Darien, Illinois, a southwestern suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. Hinsdale South also serves residents from the nearby towns of Burr Ridge, Willowbrook, and Westmont. It is part of Hinsdale Township High School District 86, which also includes Hinsdale Central High School. Hinsdale South is the regional feeder school for deaf and hard of hearing students in the Chicago area.
Contents |
[edit] History
In 1962, a referendum for a second high school was passed, and Hinsdale South opened its doors in the fall of 1965 to 418 freshmen and sophomores.[1] A new wing of school, solely designated for the Science department, was opened to students at the beginning of the 2003-2004 school year. The wing includes eight new classrooms, preparatory rooms, a new science department office, and a greenhouse. The school's library contains four computer areas/laboratories.
[edit] Academics
According to Newsweek's 2007 Complete List of 1,200 Top High Schools, Hinsdale South ranks within the top ten high schools in the state of Illinois.[2]
The class of 2006 included 498 graduates, 95% of whom were college bound, with 70% of students attending a four-year college or university. Three were National Merit Finalists, six were National Merit Commended Students, and 49 were Illinois State Scholars. The average SAT score was 1228 (Math and Critical Reading)and the average ACT score was a 21.9. In 2006, 523 students took 824 Advanced placement examinations with 82% of reported scores a 3 or higher.[3] The average class size at South is 19.8.
Hinsdale South has made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, a state test part of the No Child Left Behind Act.[4] The staff comprises 185 teachers, 78% of whom hold an advanced degree. Fifty percent of the faculty have more than sixteen years of teaching experience. The College Board Advanced placement Program is heavily encouraged with 24 courses offered.
[edit] Technology
The school currently provides all teachers with Tablet PCs, and the school is fully equipped with wireless internet technologies. Tablet PC carts and stations are also available to students. Also, students at Hinsdale South are allowed the option of bringing a computer laptop or personal digital assistant for note taking and word processing. Carts with 20+ laptops each are available for check-out to teachers to provide to their students for use during class time. As of 2004, the school has four large computer labs located in its library.
[edit] Athletics
Hinsdale South competes in the West Suburban Conference. Its mascot is the Hornets. Its main sports rivals are its sister school, Hinsdale Central High School, and also Downers Grove South High School.
In recent years, the Hinsdale South Hornet Football Program has been performing increasingly well in their division. The team made it to the State Quarter-Finals in Fall 2000, 2001 and 2005. The 2001 team posted the school's first ever and only perfect regular season record, going 9-0 and beating both rivals Downers Grove South and Hinsdale Central by a score of 35-27. The 2001 team also beat Mount Carmel High School (Chicago) in the second round of the state playoffs, eliminating the Caravan from contention for the state title. This marked the only year in the five years spanning 1998-2002 that Mount Carmel would not win a state championship. The annual Hinsdale Central vs. Hinsdale South football game almost always has sellout crowds and is annually one of the most popular high school football games (based upon attendance) in the Chicago area.
Hinsdale South is traditionally a strong state competitor in both Girls Tennis and Badminton. They have won numerous state championships and accolades for both sports including a recent IHSA State Championship title in Badminton in 2005 and 2006.
There are seven gyms, including a multipurpose gym used for Physical Education, assemblies, and volleyball and basketball games. There is also a pool, wrestling gym, gymnastics gym, field house, a fitness center/gym, and a general use gym. Outdoor facilities include a new track, a stadium, 4 baseball/softball diamonds, soccer fields and nine tennis courts.
[edit] Activities
Activities and clubs are also heavily stressed at Hinsdale South. Over 90% of graduates have taken part in the more than sixty organizations available to all students.[5] Several of Hinsdale South’s competitive organizations, such as Math Team, Speech Team, Orchestra, marching band, scholastic bowl, and science olympiad consistently do well in IHSA competitions. The Chess team has been conference champions for the past three years. Model U.N. and Youth in Government also do very well in their competitions. The flagline, which marches in competitions and at halftime with the marching band has been state-recognized and performs exceptionally well at competitions, usually sweeping away all first place awards.
Hinsdale South takes pride in all of the service organizations that its students can participate in, such as: Key Club, National Honors Society (NHS), National French Honor Society, National German Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society, National Art Honor Society, French Club, Latin Club, Environmental Concerns, various bands and choirs, Drama, Habitat for Humanity (H4H), Student Council, Peer Leadership Network (PLN), Cosmopolitan Club, JETs, Ambassadors, Diversity Club, Amnesty International, The J. Kyle Braid foundation, the Principal's Student Advisory Council (PSAC), and many others.
The newspaper is The Stinger, and the yearbook is VESPA, which is Latin for hornet. Hinsdale South is also the home of WHSD 88.5 FM, the local radio station.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Kevin Kasper, 1996, Professional Football player, member of the 2005 Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots
- Tony Pape, 1999, Professional Football player, member of the San Diego Chargers
- Matt Walsh, 1982, Professional Actor
- Barbara Alyn Woods, 1980, Professional Actress
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- IHSFW.com's Hinsdale South football page (News website)
|
|||||
