Southside High School – A Brief History
The following history was compiled for the 2000 SACS review team, using data from school files and eyewitness accounts of those who remembered the early days. It has been slightly revised and clarified as of May 2004.
W. Glenn Walker, SACS Chairperson
Southside High
School is located approximately five miles southeast
of Selma, Alabama, on
the historic Civil Rights Trail, U. S. Highway 80 East. The original main
building and auditorium / gymnasium (current resource media center) was built
in 1946 to accommodate the families of the returning military personnel
following World War II. Many of the school’s families lived on nearby Craig
Air Force Base, which was deactivated in the early eighties.
The original school building contained 13,425 square feet of living space. Land for the school site was donated by the Harrison and Reeves families. A product of the Baby Boom generation, the school has continually expanded over the years as shown in the table below.
|
Year |
Structures Built |
Area Added |
|
1946 |
Original Building with Gym/Auditorium |
13,425 sq. ft. |
|
1951 |
Four Classrooms |
+3,744 sq. ft. |
|
1957 |
Four Classrooms & Two Restrooms |
+4,480 sq. ft. |
|
1958 |
Four Classrooms |
+3,696 sq. ft. |
|
1961 |
Cafeteria, Four Classrooms, Four Restrooms |
+8,807 sq. ft. |
|
1963 |
Tens Classrooms & Chemistry Lab |
+11,872 sq. ft. |
|
1965 |
Home Economics, Band, Choir Rooms |
+8,806 sq. ft. |
|
1966 |
Two Classrooms & Vocational Arts Shop |
+2,448 sq. ft. |
|
1967 |
Gymnasium (Collins Multi-Purpose Bldg.) |
+7,200 sq. ft. est. |
|
1971 |
Three Classrooms |
+2,592 sq. ft. |
|
1975 |
New Cafeteria |
+ 4,500 sq. ft. est. |
|
1998 |
New Gymnasium & Four Classrooms |
+10,000 sq. ft. est. |
|
TOTAL |
|
81,570 sq. ft. |
The original school was located approximately one mile northwest of the present site. This old wooden structure burned down, forcing students to meet in a private home until the current brick building could be constructed. When Southside first opened its doors in 1946, it consisted only of grades 1-3. Students would then travel either to Collierville (no longer exists) or Selma (Parrish High) to attend later grades. The school grew from three grades to six, and finally to twelve. Over the years, the lower grades were transferred to newer schools that were being built to support the growing population. Today, Southside is a senior high school, containing approximately 530 students in grades 9-12.
The campus has also expanded over the years. A football field with concrete stadium seats and a press box, a field house, a concession stand, a baseball field, and a football practice field all now exists on the site. A paved parking lot at the rear of the school serves as a bus parking lot, band practice area, and ROTC review platform. Throughout the years of growth, portable classrooms have come and gone. We are thankful at this time that continued capital improvement has allowed portable classrooms to be removed from our campus.
The original gymnasium, which was located in the current media center, had goals that would retract into the ceiling for auditorium events. The basketball court moved into the new Collins Multi-Purpose Building in 1967. This gymnasium was named in honor of B. W. Collins, Dallas County Schools Superintendent from 1950-1963. A new gymnasium with expanded seating and comforts was built in 1998, leaving the old gymnasium for physical education classes and special events.
The original auditorium is now a state-of-the-art media center, allowing electronic checkouts and inventories. The cafeteria, located in its own building since 1975, once occupied the area behind the current media center. Today, this old cafeteria space is used as the Business Education computer classroom. The old vocational arts room is now a futuristic technology laboratory. The old home economics building is now occupied by the 961st Unit of the Air Force Junior ROTC program, a group that instills much pride and discipline into our students. Our award-winning unit has been in operation here since 1997, and has been selected as a Distinguished Unit for AYs 2002-2003, 2003-2004, 2004-2005 and 2005-2006.
Currently, every classroom and office is wired for the Internet, and technology is a part of everyday life on campus. Our school website has been in operation since 2002, allowing alumni and friends to contact us and stay up to date on what’s happening here. In 2003, a campus beautification project added new shrubbery, new trees, and a year-round, experimental flower garden.
As Southside High continues to grow and improve to meet the needs of our community, we will always hold high expectations of our students and staff. We are poised to meet the needs of the 21st century global environment, with pride, dedication, and professionalism.
