Simley High School
Simley High School is a public high school in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, United States. The school opened in 1961 with a graduating class of 19 pupils. The school currently has approx. 1200 students enrolled in grades 9–12. The current principal is Gerald Sakala.
| Simley High School | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Address | |
2920 80th St E , 55076 United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public secondary |
| Established | 1960 |
| School district | Independent School District 199 |
| Principal | Gerald Sakala |
| Faculty | 55.12 (FTE)[1] |
| Enrollment | 1,111 (2018-19)[1] |
| Student to teacher ratio | 20.16[1] |
| Color(s) | Columbia blue, scarlet and white |
| Yearbook | Simley Spartan Yearbook |
The school is a member of Independent School District 199 (Inver Grove Schools) and is a member of the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL). The school is a member of the Metro East Conference. For the last five years, Simley High School has been recognized by the Washington Post as one of the Nation's Best High Schools.
Simley High School was named for I.T. Simley, the retired Superintendent of Schools from South St. Paul who served as a consultant to Inver Grove Heights during the District’s transition years. Simley’s first graduating class was the Class of ’61, with 19 graduates.
Today, Simley High School is a comprehensive secondary school with a student population of about 1,200 in grades nine through twelve. The school is staffed by more than 75 professionals.
Computers are used in both computer labs and in the classroom.
Advanced classes are offered in mathematics, science, English, social studies, art and more. Students in AP classes are tested in May and may become eligible to earn college credit depending on the results of their AP test. Special education services are available in the areas of learning disabilities, emotional/behavioral disorders, mildly/moderately mentally disabled, speech/language delays, and adapted physical education.
Simley's Alternative Learning Program is a high school educational experience designed to meet the needs of students who, for a variety of reasons, are not successful in the traditional school setting. Challenge based learning opportunities drive the program. Collaboration and technology integration are the two main components of challenge based learning. Students aged 16–21 are eligible to attend the alternative program.
Simley students are able to select activities from a variety of athletic and fine arts programs. In addition, students are challenged in academic organizations such as Knowledge Bowl, Quiz Bowl, Math Team, Speech and Destination Imagination.
The school year is divided into three trimesters, spanning approximately twelve weeks in length each. To be eligible for graduation from Simley High School, a student must have earned 66 trimester credits in grades 9–12.
Academic performance
The Washington Post and Newsweek rankings
The Washington Post ranked Simley High School 14th-most challenging high school in Minnesota and one of the top 100 in the Midwest. Newsweek named Simley the 24th-best high school in Minnesota.
2012 National Merit Scholarship winner
- Avery Garon - National Scholar
- Kristen Jung - Corporate Scholar
- Angelina Omodt-Lopez - National Scholar
2013 Team Academic All-State Gold Award
Simley's girls' track and field team received an Academic All-State gold award from the Minnesota High School Track Coaches Association with a cumulative 3.961 grade-point average. It's the third year in a row that the girls' track team has received the gold award.
2013 Team Academic All-State Gold Award
- Simley's gymnastics team received an Academic All-State gold award from the Minnesota Girls' Gymnastics Coaches Association.
- Simley's wrestling team received an Academic All-State gold award from the Minnesota Wrestling Coaches Association.
2013 Team Academic All-State Silver Award
- Simley's boys' basketball team received an Academic All-State silver award from the Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association.
2012 National AP Scholars
Granted to students in the United States who received an average grade of at least 4 on all AP exams taken, and grades of 4 or higher on eight or more of these exams.
- Aleczander Hartung
- Kristen Jung
2012 AP Scholars with Distinction - Granted to students who receive an average grade of at least 3.5 on all AP exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. 22 Students.
2012 AP Scholars with Honor
Granted to students who receive an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams.
- Simley High School had 26 students achieve AP Scholar with Honor status in 2012.
2012 AP Scholars
Granted to students who receive grades of 3 or higher on three or more AP exams.
- Simley High School had 43 students achieve AP Scholar status in 2012.
2012 TIES Exceptional Teachers
- Ron Haala, high school mathematics, Simley High School
- Lori Haak, high school science, Simley High School
Demographics
In 2017, 60.4% of students were white, 22.0% of students were Hispanic, 0.9% of students were black, 0.3% of students were Asian and 0.1% of students were American Indian. Other demographics were:
- English learners (May 2012) - 7%
- Students whose primary language was not English (fall 2011)- 489
- Students receiving special education services (May 2012) - 16%
- Students receiving free/reduced price lunch (2017) - 34.3%
- Graduation rate (2011) - 97%
- Graduates accepted to a four-year college (2012) - 55%
- Graduates accepted to a two-year college (2012) - 30%
- Average ACT score (2013) - 23.4
- Average AP score (2011) - 2.858
Sports
Baseball: The 2014 baseball team finished with an 11-9 record. It did not make it into the Section tournament. Anthony Poole led the team in strikeouts.
Boys' basketball: In the 2014-15 season, the boys' varsity basketball team finished with a final record of 18 wins and 8 losses. Its last game of the season was against Saint Paul Johnson in the Section 4AAA semifinals. The Spartans triumphant run ended with a 93-65 loss with a great effort by Jack Stensgard with 18 points and double figures by others.
Dance: Members of the B-squad, junior varsity and varsity dance teams are dancers from seventh and eighth grade students of Inver Grove Heights Middle School and freshman, sophomores, juniors and seniors of Simley. In the 2014-2015 season, the Simley varsity dance team was second in kick and first in jazz in the section tournament. In the Minnesota State Tournament, they were eighth and ninth respectively.
Golf: The golf team had two participants in the state tournament last year, senior Nick Battis and junior Aaron Leafgren. Mitch Vogel, a senior, was lucky enough to score an ace during a tryout round at Inverwood Golf Course on the par 3 6th hole.
Boys' hockey: The Spartans play at the Veteran's Memorial Community Center. They are in the Metro East Conference and compete in Section 4A. The Spartans have made multi-section final appearances (most recently during the 2017-18 season) and two state tournament appearances in 1996 and 2003.
Wrestling: The Spartans have won the state championship under Will Short more than 4 times since 2000, including 2015.
Academic activities
Other activities include First Robotics Team, Speech Team, Math Team, Simley Theatre Guild, Quiz Bowl Team, Yearbook, German Club, Simley Marching Band, International Club, National Honors Society and Spanish Club.
Conference
Simley High School joined a new conference in the 2014-2015 school year, The Metro East Conference. It joined this conference after the Classic Suburban Conference dissolved. The other schools include Hastings High School, Henry Sibley High School, Hill-Murray School, Mahtomedi High School, North High School, South Saint Paul Secondary and Tartan Senior High School.
References
- "SIMLEY SENIOR HIGH". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved May 4, 2020.