Ferndale Public Schools

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Ferndale Public Schools
Ferndale Public Schools Logo.png
2610 Pinecrest
Pleasant Ridge
, Oakland, Michigan, 48220
District information
Type Public
GradesPreK-12 [1]
SuperintendentCamille Hibber [2]
Schools7 [1]
Budget$64,915,000 expenditures 2021-2022 [1]
NCES District ID 2614280 [1]
Students and staff
Students3,176 (2023-2024) [1]
Teachers174.27 FTE (2023-2024) [1]
Staff468.54 FTE (2023-2024) [1]
Student–teacher ratio18.22 (2023-2024) [1]
Other information
Website www.ferndaleschools.org

Ferndale Public Schools is a public school district in Metro Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan, serving most of Ferndale, all of Pleasant Ridge, and portions of Oak Park and Royal Oak Township. [3]

Contents

History

A school was built in the 1870s at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Nine Mile Road. It was replaced by a wooden building on the same site in 1909, but that building burned on December 28, 1914. It was rebuilt a year later in brick, and became known as Ferndale Central School. [4] The building remains as commercial space. [5] [6]

1918 saw the first graduating class of Ferndale--two students. [7] The district was seeing fast population growth and by 1920, Lincoln High School was built at the northeast corner of Livernois and Nine Mile Rd. Although Ferndale's only high school, the district had a tradition of naming schools after United States presidents until the 1950s. When Ferndale High School opened in January, 1959, Lincoln became a junior high. [8]

In the 1950s, the area of the school district serving Oak Park was embroiled in a controversy over progressive education. Andrew Jackson School opened to serve this area in fall 1950. It was unlike existing district schools, both in terms of education and the building itself. Designed by Modernist architect Eberle M. Smith, [9] the school's classrooms were essentially open to the corridors, contained tables rather than desks, and were connected directly to single-stall bathrooms that were not gendered by signage. [10] [a] Principal Scott Street, with the backing of Superintendent Roy Robinson, worked with parents in developing flexible teaching methods that caused disagreement amongst parent-teacher associations at other district schools and some school board members.

Devotees of progressive education were outraged when, in February 1959, the school board demoted Principal Street from his position at Paul R. Best School, a newer school down the street from Jackson School. [11] The School Board claimed Street had been openly campaigning against certain school board members. [12] By that July, eleven teachers had resigned in the district, many in protest of the school board. [13] Street accepted a superintendent position with the U.S. Army in Libya before becoming a principal in Ypsilanti 1962. [14]

Throughout the 1970s, the district was involved in court battles over the racial segregation of Grant Elementary. [15] The district had built Grant in 1926 in Royal Oak Township, a majority-Black area outside of the majority-white city of Ferndale where, even as late as 1944, there was no sewer system and inadequate police protection. [16] A Federal Court judge found that the school district had practiced de jure segregation by allowing Grant to be overcrowded with Black students while other district schools, which were all more than ninety percent white, were under capacity. On October 7, 1980, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan issued a plan by which Ferndale's elementary schools would be integrated by reassigning some students to different schools. [17] [18]

In 2015, the district began an extensive restructuring process, led by the Board of Education and deeply dependent on community involvement. Changes to curriculum, expansion of academic opportunities for students and site transitions [19] were all based on the district's strategic plan. [20]

Schools

Ferndale Schools [21]
SchoolAddressBuiltNotes
Ferndale Early Childhood Center2920 Burdette St., Ferndale1999Preschool, formerly Harding Elementary / Harding Administration Building. Harding School was built in 1921 and rebuilt in 1999. [22]
Ferndale High School881 Pinecrest St., Ferndale1958 [23] Comprehensive high school (9-12)
Ferndale Lower Elementary School23501 Rosewood St., Oak ParkFall 2024 [24] K-2
Ferndale Middle School725 Pinecrest St., Ferndale19586-8, shares a building with Ferndale High School
Ferndale Upper Elementary School24220 Rosewood, Oak Park1954 [25] 3-5, Formerly Kennedy Elementary
Tri-County Educational Center8711 Cloverdale St., Royal Oak Township1926Adult and alternative high school (9-12). Formerly Grant Elementary. [26]
University High School2521 Bermuda St., FerndaleCollege-Prep high school (9-12), formerly Coolidge Intermediate School / Coolidge Middle School [27]

Former schools

Former Schools
SchoolAddressNotes
Best School24220 Rosewood, Oak ParkRenamed Kennedy, now Upper Elementary
Central School130 E Nine Mile Rd., FerndaleBuilt 1915, became district offices, now commercial office space.
Coolidge Intermediate School2521 Bermuda St., FerndaleNow University High School
Grant School8711 Cloverdale St., Royal Oak TownshipBuilt 1926, now Tri-County Educational Center, also Royal Oak Township library and township hall
Harding School2920 Burdette St., FerndaleOriginally known as Urbanrest School. [28] Now Ferndale Early Childhood Center
Jackson School23561 Rosewood St., Oak ParkOpened fall 1950. [29] Became Center for Advanced Studies and the Arts. Demolished 2024, Lower Elementary built on site.
Jefferson Center22001 Republic St., Oak ParkBecame residential units
John F. Kennedy Elementary School24220 Rosewood, Oak ParkFormerly Paul R. Best Elementary, now Upper Elementary
Lincoln High School, later Lincoln Junior High SchoolOpened 1921, district's high school prior to 1958. [30] Demolished 1979. [31]
Ridgewood SchoolEight Mile Rd. at Livernois, FerndaleBuilt 1917, demolished 1927 during the widening of Eight Mile Road. [32]
Roosevelt Primary School2610 Pinecrest Dr, FerndaleFormerly known as Pleasant Ridge School and Ridge Road School. Opened October 1921. Now district offices. [33] Became district administration building in 2024.
Taft Digital Learning Center427 Allen St, FerndaleOpened January 1928, became adult education center in 2002, closed 2016, demolished 2017. [34]
Washington School1201 Livernois St, FerndaleBuilt 1923. [35] Became Kulick Community Center, now closed
Wilson University High School1244 Paxton St., FerndaleBuilt 1923 [36] , closed 2016, demolished 2017. [37]

Notes

  1. ↑ Based on the following quote from the cited news article, the students ultimately created signage for the bathrooms in a project illustrative of progressive education: "On a recent inspection tour, (school board member) Dr. DiGuilio noted that classroom toilets were not marked "boys" and "girls." He claimed that both sexes were using the same facilities. Teachers and Street denied this. They claimed that the use of the proper plumbing by the appropriate sex was no problem. But to bar future critism of this type the toilets are now plainly marked. But in line with their new "functional" teaching methods, youngsters down to the second grade made a project out of the names they wanted on the doors and their proper spelling." Griffith, John. "Oak Park parents defend new methods in education." January 27 1952: Detroit Free Press, page 4.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Ferndale Public Schools". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  2. ↑ Ferndale Public Schools. "Office of the Superintendent" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Maps: School Districts: Ferndale Public Schools" (PDF). Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget . Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  4. ↑ Wilcox, Harold B. (December 10, 1930). "History of Local Public Schools". The Ferndale Gazette. p. 10.
  5. ↑ Ferndale Historical Society. "Ferndale Chronology" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  6. ↑ Zemke, Jon (March 20, 2008). "Foley Mansfield to open new office in downtown Ferndale". Metromode.
  7. ↑ Wilcox, Harold B. (December 10, 1930). "History of Local Public Schools". The Ferndale Gazette. p. 10.
  8. ↑ Ferndale Historical Society. "Ferndale Chronology" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  9. ↑ Smith, Eberle M. (September 1953). "Case history: classrooms without corridors" (PDF). Architectural Record. p. 172.
  10. ↑ Griffith, John (January 27, 1952). "Oak Park parents defend new methods in education". Detroit Free Press. p. 4.
  11. ↑ "Ferndale shrugs off big battle". Detroit Free Press. May 20, 1959. p. 3.
  12. ↑ Cohen, Hal (February 10, 1959). "Principal's firing explained". Detroit Free Press. p. 7.
  13. ↑ "11 teachers quit, two rip board". The Daily Tribune (Royal Oak, Mich.). June 23, 1959. p. 11.
  14. ↑ "Best PTA to hear Dr. Scott Street". The Daily Tribune (Royal Oak, Mich.). March 13, 1962. p. 12.
  15. ↑ Stevens, William K (June 13, 1975). "U.S. Pressing School Integration in a Detroit Suburb". The New York Times.
  16. ↑ McMillan, Tracie. "BONUS: Ferndale, Michigan's Secret Segregationist History: 1944: Memo from then-superintendent of Ferndale schools about Grant Elementary" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  17. ↑ Justia US Law. "United States v. School Dist. of City of Ferndale, Mich., 499 F. Supp. 367 (E.D. Mich. 1980)" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  18. ↑ McMillan, Tracie. "BONUS: Ferndale, Michigan's Secret Segregationist History" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  19. ↑ "Ferndale Forward - Restructuring Schools". ferndaleforward.com. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Strategic Plan". www.ferndaleschools.org. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  21. ↑ Ferndale Public Schools. "Ferndale Public Schools" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  22. ↑ Bondi, Nicole (February 7, 1999). "Out with the old, in with the new at Ferndale district". Detroit Free Press. p. 4B.
  23. ↑ "Ferndale Board tours high school". The Daily Tribune (Royal Oak, Mich.). September 10, 1958. p. 13.
  24. ↑ Ferndale Public Schools (May 31, 2024). "New Lower Elementary opens 2024" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  25. ↑ Silberman, Eve (August 7, 2014). "Reading, Writing & Tolerance". The Detroit Jewish News.
  26. ↑ Ferndale Public Schools. "Recognizing the legacy of Grant School" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  27. ↑ White, Wendy (May 27, 2002). "Ferndale bus drivers rally for co-worker in need". The Daily Tribune (Royal Oak, Mich.). p. 1.
  28. ↑ Ferndale Historical Society. "Ferndale Chronology" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  29. ↑ Griffith, John (January 27, 1952). "Oak Park parents defend new methods in education". Detroit Free Press. p. 4.
  30. ↑ Brown, Nancy (September 24, 1958). "Crowded students eager for new school to open". The Daily Tribune (Royal Oak, Mich.). p. 12.
  31. ↑ Ferndale Historical Society. "Ferndale's Chronology" . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  32. ↑ 8-Wood Blog. "PHOTOS: Ferndale's 89-year-old William Howard Taft School is no more" . Retrieved February 2, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  33. ↑ Ferndale Public Schools (1996). Theodore Roosevelt School: A Brief History, 1921-1996.
  34. ↑ 8-Wood Blog. "PHOTOS: Ferndale's 89-year-old William Howard Taft School is no more" . Retrieved February 2, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  35. ↑ Justia US Law. "United States v. School Dist. of Ferndale, Mich., 460 F. Supp. 352 (E.D. Mich. 1978)" . Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  36. ↑ Justia US Law. "United States v. School Dist. of Ferndale, Mich., 460 F. Supp. 352 (E.D. Mich. 1978)" . Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  37. ↑ 8-Wood Blog. "PHOTOS: Ferndale's 89-year-old William Howard Taft School is no more" . Retrieved February 2, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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