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===Fordson Tunnel===
===Fordson Tunnel===
Built for its main purpose, transferring coal and ore to keep the school warm, many claim the tunnels lead to nearby middle schools; Lowery Middle School, and Woodworth Middle School.
Built for its main purpose, transferring coal and ore to keep the school warm, many claim the tunnels lead to nearby middle schools; Lowery Middle School, and Woodworth Middle School.

===Fordson Senior Pranks===
In 2010 one of the most legendary and quite possibly best senior pranks took place. Two students Kamel Baydoun and Hasan Makki along with a few friends, planned and nearly executed the "Slip n' Slide" prank that was to take place is upper D hall. Early that morning after first hour classes ended, there was anywhere from 500 to 700 students tightly packed in the hallway waiting for the prank to take place. Because of the overwhelming amount of students and the prank being foiled by the administration, it did not take place as planned. Although they failed, the experience was said to be amazing and most memorable. Surprisingly all the students included in the prank walked in their graduation ceremony, thank to Fordson's greatest principal, Mr. Fadlallah. <ref> Fordson High School Class of 2010</ref><ref>Fordson High School Administration</ref>


===Present day===
===Present day===

Revision as of 21:35, 27 June 2013

42°19′48″N 83°10′44″W / 42.33°N 83.179°W / 42.33; -83.179

Fordson High School
Address
Map
13800 Ford Road

Dearborn
,
Michigan 48126

U.S.A.
Information
TypePublic High School
Established1922
School districtDearborn Public Schools
PrincipalYoussef Mosallam
Grades9-12
Enrollment2,400 (approx.)
CampusSuburban
Color(s)Maize and Blue --    
MascotTractors
AccreditationNorth Central Association[1]
NewspaperThe FHS Tower
YearbookFleur de lis
AffiliationMichigan Mega Conference
Websitehttp://fhs.dearbornschools.org/index.htm

Fordson High School is a secondary school located in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was completed in 1928 on a 15-acre (61,000 m2) parcel of land which was then the village of Fordson, named for Henry Ford and his son Edsel Ford.[2]

History

Fordson flagpole

Prior to the opening of the school, students attended the nearby Miller School. Ground was broken for the original school building in 1926 with representatives from each of the four entering grades participating. The senior class president was George E. Sarkozy, one of those that participated in the ceremony. The school was designed by architect Everett Lane Williams of the Detroit architectural firm Van Leyen, Schilling & Keough. The school building cost at $2.2M and was inspired in part by the buildings of the University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor, Michigan as well as the Rushton and Apethore halls in Northamptonshire, England.

The exterior of Fordson is made of granite and uses Briar Hill sandstone trim. The library has hand carved oak paneling, a fireplace, painted wall murals by Zoltan Sepeshy, tapestries and Jacobean fumed-oak furnishings and many bronze and marble statues including, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Nike, Niobe, Venus, and Mercury. The main entrance has ten busts that include philosophers, playwrights, and mathematicians like Plato, Aristedes, Sophocles, Homer, Demosthenes, Aesculapius, Euripedes, Pindar, Archimedes, and Socrates. The main hall also includes a blue and gold Fordson Tractor with lettering of state champions imprinted on its top.[1] The building features architectural sculpture by Corrado Parducci. Fordson's architecture was represented in the 1987 film, The Rosary Murders when the library and tower were displayed. The school also became recognized as a Michigan Historical Site in 1998.

Fordson Tower

The Tower was constructed in 1926 and has been used for innumerable things. During World War II, the Tower was used to spot enemy aircraft that could have been headed for the River Rouge Plant, where tanks were in production. The media center used the Tower for archival storage, classes, and media center office space. Students of Fordson hung signs over the Tower including a "for sale" sign in the 1950s and the most recent in 1993 exclaiming Fordson's State Championship in football.

Renovations and additions

In 2005, an addition was adjoined to the northwestern body of the school. A cafeteria, ten classrooms including science and computer labs, and the replacement of the greenhouse comprised the new wing. The addition preserved the structure and appearance of the school by using the altering dark and light limestone scheme and proceeding with the same architectural model developed from the school's inception. Consequently, Fordson received the Governor's Award for Historic Preservation and has been featured in many publications including the Masonry Institute of Michigan [2] and the architects of the addition, TMP architecture. [3]

In 2007, the athletic facility underwent an extensive renovation. The football field formerly encompassing grass and the practice field on the eastern side of the athletic campus were replaced to AstroTurf. The track and tennis courts were replaced as well. Behind the tennis courts on the northern side of the campus, the sidewalk was expunged for trees. Sarkozy field, the prior soccer field for the school was sold to the city of Dearborn for $800,000. The total cost before the sale was $1.6 Million.

Fordson Tunnel

Built for its main purpose, transferring coal and ore to keep the school warm, many claim the tunnels lead to nearby middle schools; Lowery Middle School, and Woodworth Middle School.

Fordson Senior Pranks

In 2010 one of the most legendary and quite possibly best senior pranks took place. Two students Kamel Baydoun and Hasan Makki along with a few friends, planned and nearly executed the "Slip n' Slide" prank that was to take place is upper D hall. Early that morning after first hour classes ended, there was anywhere from 500 to 700 students tightly packed in the hallway waiting for the prank to take place. Because of the overwhelming amount of students and the prank being foiled by the administration, it did not take place as planned. Although they failed, the experience was said to be amazing and most memorable. Surprisingly all the students included in the prank walked in their graduation ceremony, thank to Fordson's greatest principal, Mr. Fadlallah. [3][4]

Present day

As of 2010, the principal of Fordson is Youssef Mosallam, who was a graduate of the Fordson Class of 1994. Fordson is located in Dearborn, the largest Arab community outside the Middle East, where more than 40% of the residents are of Arab ancestry. This is reflected at Fordson, where approximately 95% [5] of the 2,400 student body is of Arab ancestry. According to SchoolMatters, in 2006, 91.6% of students passed the Michigan reading test while 80.4% passed the math portion. Of the students taking the ACT, the average score was 19.7 out of a possible 36.[6]

In 2011 North Shore Films produced Fordson- Faith, Fasting, Football and the American Dream, highlighting the Fordson football tradition and its deep roots within the Dearborn community.

Administration

As of the 2012-2013 school year and afterwards:

  • Amal Alcodray - 9th grade assistant principal
  • Martha Burch - 10th grade assistant principal
  • Chadi Farhat - 11th grade assistant principal
  • Ben Gurk - 12th grade assistant principal

Traditions

Fordson has many traditions within its history. Every class that graduates from Fordson provides the school with a gift. The class of 1956 presented seventy-six flags representing members of the United Nations of that year. The flags have been used at every graduation since then with many other flags being donated over the years. Football has a strong tradition within the school and the helmet is a basic element of this example. The helmet at Fordson comprises yellow with two blue stripes over the top for the varsity team, one for the junior varsity team and zero for the freshman team. Also tradition, the stripes are made with electrical tape.

Winthrop Trip

Every spring since 1991, a few Fordson juniors and seniors have had the opporutunity to travel by train across the country to Winthrop, Washington. They visit Liberty Bell Junior-Senior High School and teach the local elementary students about the history and politics of Michigan. [4]

Athletics

Fordson is a member of the Western Wayne Athletic Conference. The Fordson Tractors have a strong tradition in its athletics. Their primary rivals are intracity foes Dearborn High School and Edsel Ford High School while also having a longtime rivalry with Monroe High School, an opponent since 1928 when Fordson was established. The school's strongest program lies within its football team. Fordson Football has accumulated 4 state championships (1930, 1943,1971, 1993) and 3 state runner-up seasons (1980,1982,1984). Fordson had an undefeated season in 1972, but was not regarded as the number one team. The Tractors have won more league championships than any team and have the only state championship in playoff play within the 11-member conference. The wrestling team has enjoyed much success recently. In 2002, Fordson became the first school in the city of Dearborn to win a regional championship in the sport. Currently, Fordson is in the Blue division, the highest division in the Western Wayne Athletic Conference and has won seven consecutive district and all-area championships. The girls' tennis team has prospered in the past decade. They have gone on to the state finals four times. Fordson also accomplished rare feats in Michigan girl's tennis. During three seasons from 2000–2002, Fordson won 31 consecutive matches, and 30 consecutive conference wins placing the team fifth and ninth respectively in Michigan's girl's tennis history. [5]
Fordson sports include (achievements are since 1999-2000 season):

State Champions and Runners-up

Year Sport Result Class
1928 Boy's Basketball State Runners-Up
B
1930 Football State Champions
B
1935 Boy's Swimming State Runners-Up
OPEN
1940 Boy's Basketball State Runners-Up
A
1943 Football State Champions
A
1944 Boy's Track State Runners-Up
A
1952 Boy's Swimming State Champions
A
1953 Boy's Basketball State Champions
A
1953 Boy's Swimming State Champions
A
1954 Boy's Swimming State Champions
A
1971 Football State Champions
A
1975 Basketball State Runners-Up
A
1975 Volleyball State Champions
A
1976 Volleyball State Champions
A
1980 Football State Runners-Up
A
1982 Football State Runners-Up
A
1984 Football State Runners-Up
A
1993 Football State Champions
AA
  • Fordson won the 1975 State Volleyball Championship albeit it was not an MHSAA-sanctioned tournament. The MHSAA started sponsoring volleyball in 1976. [6]

Notable alumni

Notes

  1. ^ Institution Summary, AdvancED, Retrieved 2012-07-08
  2. ^ http://detroit1701.org/FordsonHS.htm
  3. ^ Fordson High School Class of 2010
  4. ^ Fordson High School Administration
  5. ^ "Arab Students Seek Prom Balance". CNN.com. Archived from the original on 2006-05-28. Retrieved 2006-08-11. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  6. ^ "Fordson test scores". SchoolMatters. 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-04.

Ted Kulfan - Sports Writer The Detroit News and author of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: History of the Detroit Red Wings.

References

Retrieved from "https://wiki.riteme.site/w/index.php?title=Fordson_High_School&oldid=561880301"