William A. Shine Great Neck South High School
Great Neck South High School | |
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Great Neck South High School as it appeared in 2007. | |
Location | |
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Information | |
Type | Public high school |
Established | 1958[1] |
Principal | Mr. Randolph H. Ross[2] |
Assistant Principals | Sharon Applebaum John Duggan[3] |
Website | www.greatneck.k12.ny.us/GNPS/SHS/index.htm |
William A. Shine Great Neck South High School or simply "South High School" is a high school, comprising grades 9 through 12. It is located in Great Neck as part of the Great Neck School District.
National publications often include Great Neck South High School among the top secondary schools in the country. These publications have based their conclusions on surveys of groups such as college admissions officers, the Carnegie Foundation, the Institute for Educational Leadership at George Washington University, and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.[3]
More than 82 percent of South High students achieve a “B” average or better. Over 98 percent of the South High School Class of 2006 entered college. Approximately 1,230 students are enrolled in South High School for the 2006-2007 academic year. Eight percent were recognized as Finalists or received Letters of Commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.[3]
Academic Excellence
Great Neck South was rated the 31st best school in Newsweek Magazine's recent listing of "America's Best High Schools" in the May 8, 2006, issue,[4] with each twelfth grader averaging 4.321 Advanced Placement courses.
The school ranks number one among large high schools in the percentage of test-takers receiving 3 or better on the AP Psychology test.[5] The school boasts an 80% passing rate for the Advanced Placement Program AP Calculus AB examination and a near perfect passing rate for the AP Calculus BC examination.
The music department presents a full-scale opera performed by the students each year. To date, it is the only public high school opera company in the U.S. The production consists of a full cast and pits orchestra, and is usually performed on the last weekend of March. Past performances include Carmen (2006, 2000), Les Miserables (opera/musical 2005), Sweeney Todd (2005), Die Fledermaus (2004), The Tales of Hoffman (2003), The Magic Flute (2002, 2007), The Marriage of Figaro (2001), Pirates of Penzance (1999) and Candide (1998).
The department was selected as a 2005 and 2003 Grammy Signature School among the top 40 high school music programs in the U.S. by a panel from the Grammy Foundation. It has also been named a Grammy Signature School Finalist (top 100) in 2003, 2004, and 2005. The Great Neck District was selected as one of the top "100 Best Communities for Music Education in America 2005" by the American Music Conference.[6]
The Great Neck South High School Chamber Music Society has been selected as a winner of the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society's "Young Musicians' Program" Chamber Music Competition in seven out of the last eight years (2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 & 1998). This regional high school competition selects between eight to ten chamber groups from participating schools throughout the New York metropolitan area, Long Island, Westchester, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Winning ensembles receive three coaching sessions from members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and have an opportunity to perform at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center at the Young Musicians' Concert in April.
Academic Offerings
South High School offers major sequences in several fields of study. In addition to courses required for graduation, students elect many others according to their abilities, interests, and future plans. Also offered are an independent study program that provides an opportunity for students to explore their own academic pursuits, guided by a teacher; a music program that has earned international, national, and state awards; and a choral program that results in a full-scale opera each year. Educational opportunities include Advanced Placement (AP), Independent Study, Honors (H), Regents, accelerated courses, career training, special education, TESL, nine languages, including Mandarin Chinese and American Sign Language, and remedial education. AP courses are available in art, art history, biology, calculus, chemistry, computer science, economics, English, French, government, history, Latin, music, physics, psychology, Spanish, and statistics.[3]
Demographics
The student body in the school year of 2004-2005 consists of:[7]
- 61.1% Caucasian
- 29.6% Asian American/Pacific Islander
- 5.8% Hispanic
- 3.4% African American
Information
- Address: 341 Lakeville Road Great Neck, New York 11020
- Year-round schedule: No
- Magnet school: No
- Charter school: No
- Coeducational: Yes
- Mascot: The Rebel
- School colors: Orange and Blue
- School district: Great Neck Union Free School District
- Newspaper name: The Southerner
- Yearbook name: Vista
Extracurricular activities
Math Team
Great Neck South has a strong math program which is shown in the ranking of its math team in state and county math leagues. The math team is part of the Nassau County Interscholastic Math League [2] where it has placed 1st in six of the past seven years; 2000,[8] 2001,[9] 2002,[10] 2003,[11] 2005,[12] 2006,[13] it also placed 2nd in 2004.[14] During the Spring 2006 UTD/UWW Mathematics Meet the math team has also placed 2nd out of 538 teams.[15] [16]The advisor is Ms. O'Connor.[17]
Literary Magazine
The school's annual literary magazine is named "Exit 33", since the building is located off Exit 33 of the Long Island Expressway. The Faculty Advisor is Mr. Ehrlich.
Southerner
Southerner is the school's monthly newspaper. It typically covers news and events within the school but includes editorials and news from the surrounding community. The advisor is Mr. Wheeler.[18]
Trivia
- Great Neck South High School was renamed in honor of William A. Shine, the district's immediate past superintendent[19].
- Great Neck South High School is most commonly abbreviated as GNSHS or GNS.
- A student threatened the school in an April 22, 2007 Internet posting, and was arrested.[20]
Notable alumni
- Nikki Blonsky, actress who will star as Tracy Turnblad in the 2007 film version of Hairspray
- Quinn Early - National Football League player[21][22].
- Jamie Gorelick - former Deputy Attorney General of the United States.[23]
- Mark J. Green - Politician.[24]
- Talia Shire, actress.[23]
- Dawn Steel, movie studio executive.[23]
References
- ^ History; URL accessed July 27, 2006.
- ^ Principal's name; URL accessed March 11, 2007.
- ^ a b c d [1] Great Neck Public Schools Web site, PDF document titled "Great Neck Public Schools: South High School", accessed April 28, 2007
- ^ America's Best High Schools, Newsweek, May 8, 2006.
- ^ Advanced Placement: Report to the Nation p66; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ Best 100 (101!) Communities for Music Education in America, 2005, accessed December 12, 2006
- ^ School Comprehensive Information Report (PDF); URL accessed June 5, 2006.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 1999-2000; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2000-2001; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2001-2002; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2002-2003; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2004-2005; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2005-2006; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ TOP THIRTY TEAMS 2003-2004; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ Online Mathematics Meet Co-Sponsored by UTD and UWW; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ Spring 2006 Meet -- Winners; URL accessed May 9, 2007.
- ^ Math Team; URL accessed May 12, 2007.
- ^ Southerner; URL accessed May 12, 2007.
- ^ South High To Be Named for Bill Shine; URL accessed July 13, 2006.
- ^ Student threatened the school; URL accessed April 29, 2007.
- ^ "Famous Great Neck Alumni From the 1980's", Great Neck Public Schools; URL accessed March 29, 2006
- ^ "Quinn Early" at ESPN; URL accessed March 29, 2006
- ^ a b c Famous Great Neck Alumni from the 1960s, accessed May 12, 2007.
- ^ OurCampaigns.com: Mark Green, accessed December 12, 2006
External links
- National Center for Education Statistics data for Great Neck High School
- On February 28, 2007 the girls varsity basketball team won their semifinal championship game against Garden City at Freeport High School