H. Grady Spruce High School
Encyclopedia
H. Grady Spruce High School is a public school in the Pleasant Grove area of Dallas, Texas
. H. Grady Spruce High School, which covers grades 9-12, is a part of the Dallas Independent School District
.
Spruce serves several sections of Dallas, including Pleasant Grove, Balch Springs, Seagoville
.
in 1972).
The school is named for Henry Grady Spruce, a native of Omen, Texas, who earned degrees from Southern Methodist University and the University of Chicago. He devoted much of his 35-year YMCA career to youth, including 25 years as director of the Dallas YMCA's Camp Crockett near Granbury.
When it opened, Spruce's student body reflected the community and was predominately Caucasian
(White
and Hispanic
with some Black
students and other ethnic groups). Beginning in 1973 Spruce was selected to take part in Busing. Black
students became a majority in the 1990s as the demographics of the Pleasant Grove area changed.
From 1963-1998, the mascot of Spruce High School was the "Mighty Fighting Apache
s" which was proudly born by the student population and staff. Due hyper-sensitivity centering on the use of names that were originally derogatory toward Native American
(ex: "redskin") as nicknames for school mascots, the "Apache" mascot was changed to the Timberwolves. This was done despite the fact that "Apache" was not derogatory or used as such. Also interesting is that the timberwolf is not common to east Texas.
On June 26, 2008 the Dallas ISD board voted to move all 10th and 11th graders from Spruce High School and released all staff from their contracts. As a result, Spruce disbanded all athletic teams during the 2008-2009 school year; thus, seniors who participate in athletics are eligible to transfer to other DISD schools as well.
The ethnic makeup of the school is 53% Hispanic
, 43% Black
, 3% White
, non-Hispanic, less than 1% Asian/Pacific Islander
, and less than 1% American Indian
/Alaskan Native
.
The average class sizes at Spruce are 23 students for English
, 23 for foreign language
, 25 for math, 25 for science
, and 26 for social studies
.
Teachers at the school carry, on average, 14 years of teaching experience and 2% of the teachers on staff are first-year teachers.
The following elementary schools feed into Comstock and Spruce
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. H. Grady Spruce High School, which covers grades 9-12, is a part of the Dallas Independent School District
Dallas Independent School District
The Dallas Independent School District is a school district based in Dallas, Texas . Dallas ISD, which operates schools in much of Dallas County, is the second largest school district in Texas and the twelfth largest in the United States.In 2009, the school district was rated "academically...
.
Spruce serves several sections of Dallas, including Pleasant Grove, Balch Springs, Seagoville
Seagoville, Texas
Seagoville is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Dallas. A small portion of Seagoville extends into Kaufman County. The population was 10,823 as of the 2000 census. The city is located along U.S. Highway 175 and the Southern Pacific Railroad ten miles from Downtown...
.
History
H. Grady Spruce High School was built in 1963, replacing Rylie High School (which was turned into a junior high school, and later a middle schoolMiddle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
in 1972).
The school is named for Henry Grady Spruce, a native of Omen, Texas, who earned degrees from Southern Methodist University and the University of Chicago. He devoted much of his 35-year YMCA career to youth, including 25 years as director of the Dallas YMCA's Camp Crockett near Granbury.
When it opened, Spruce's student body reflected the community and was predominately Caucasian
Caucasian race
The term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western Asia , Central Asia and South Asia...
(White
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
and Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
with some Black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
students and other ethnic groups). Beginning in 1973 Spruce was selected to take part in Busing. Black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
students became a majority in the 1990s as the demographics of the Pleasant Grove area changed.
From 1963-1998, the mascot of Spruce High School was the "Mighty Fighting Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
s" which was proudly born by the student population and staff. Due hyper-sensitivity centering on the use of names that were originally derogatory toward Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
(ex: "redskin") as nicknames for school mascots, the "Apache" mascot was changed to the Timberwolves. This was done despite the fact that "Apache" was not derogatory or used as such. Also interesting is that the timberwolf is not common to east Texas.
On June 26, 2008 the Dallas ISD board voted to move all 10th and 11th graders from Spruce High School and released all staff from their contracts. As a result, Spruce disbanded all athletic teams during the 2008-2009 school year; thus, seniors who participate in athletics are eligible to transfer to other DISD schools as well.
Statistics
72% of the students at H. Grady Spruce High School are economically disadvantaged, 12% enroll in special education, 6% enroll in gifted and talented programs, and 20% are considered "limited English proficient."The ethnic makeup of the school is 53% Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
, 43% Black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
, 3% White
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
, non-Hispanic, less than 1% Asian/Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander , is a geographic term to describe the indigenous inhabitants of any of the three major sub-regions of Oceania: Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia.According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, these three regions, together with their islands consist of:Polynesia:...
, and less than 1% American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
/Alaskan Native
Alaska Natives
Alaska Natives are the indigenous peoples of Alaska. They include: Aleut, Inuit, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Eyak, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures.-History:In 1912 the Alaska Native Brotherhood was founded...
.
The average class sizes at Spruce are 23 students for English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, 23 for foreign language
Foreign language
A foreign language is a language indigenous to another country. It is also a language not spoken in the native country of the person referred to, i.e. an English speaker living in Japan can say that Japanese is a foreign language to him or her...
, 25 for math, 25 for science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, and 26 for social studies
Social studies
Social studies is the "integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence," as defined by the American National Council for the Social Studies...
.
Teachers at the school carry, on average, 14 years of teaching experience and 2% of the teachers on staff are first-year teachers.
Feeder patterns
As of 2007, E. B. Comstock Middle School feeds into H. Grady Spruce High School.The following elementary schools feed into Comstock and Spruce
- William M. Anderson
- W. A. Blair
- Rufus C. Burleson
- Gilbert Cuellar, Sr.
- Julius Dorsey
- Frederick Douglass
- Henry B. Gonzalez
- Richard Lagow
- B. H. Macon
- Nancy Moseley
Notable alumni
- Steve Rhodes (football player) (1976) – Former NFL Player for the St. Louis CardinalsArizona CardinalsThe Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
- Gregory K. Riggen (1978) – Former District Superintendent, Kansas District United Pentecostal Church; Pastor, New Life Pentecostal Church of Olathe, Kansas http://www.newlifepc.com (1986–Present)
- Jitter Fields (1980) – Former SaintsNew Orleans SaintsThe New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
, ColtsHistory of the Indianapolis ColtsThe Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls....
and ChiefsKansas City ChiefsThe Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
defensive back (1984, 1987); played for UTUniversity of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin... - Charles Washington (1984) – Former NFL defensive back for the Colts, Chiefs, and Falcons
- Stevin SmithStevin SmithStevin L. Smith is an American professional basketball player and former college star, who is also known for his involvement in the 1994 Arizona State point-shaving scandal.- Early life :...
(1990) – Former Dallas MavericksDallas MavericksThe Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
(1997) guard - C.J. Richardson (1991) – Former Arizona CardinalsArizona CardinalsThe Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
safety (1995); played collegiately at MiamiUniversity of MiamiThe University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12... - Maceo BastonMaceo BastonMaceo Demond Baston is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent.-College career:After graduating from Dallas' H. Grady Spruce High School, Baston played college basketball at the University of Michigan. At Michigan, he was part of an all-star recruiting class that...
(1994) – Toronto RaptorsToronto RaptorsThe Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's re-expansion...
forward; played basketball at MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan... - Cedric Bonner (football player)Cedric Bonner (football player)Cedric Bonner is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League, his last team being the Washington Redskins. A 1997 graduate of H...
(1997) – Former NFL Atlanta FalconsAtlanta FalconsThe Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
(2005) receiver