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Maine South High School




Maine South High School is a public high school located in the Chicago suburb of Park Ridge, Illinois , and has sister schools of Maine East High School (northern Park Ridge), and Maine West High School ( Des Plaines ).

Founded in 1964 , to meet the growing educational needs of the area, Maine South serves mainly the city of Park Ridge, but it also serves some of Niles , Harwood Heights , Norridge , and unincorporated Norwood Park Township. The school population is approximately 2,600 and has been growing throughout the 1990s and 2000s.


ACADEMICS

Maine South's academic programs range from remedial/academy class, to accelerated honors/AP classes. Maine South High School's test scores score in the top 15% in the country, and Maine South is considered to be in the top ten public high schools (according to the Illinois State Achievement Test) in the Chicagoland area.


ACADEMIC COMPETITION


The Maine South Constitution Team has won the Center for Civic Education's "We The People" competition in Illinois for the past twelve straight years. In 1999 the team won the National competition in Washington D.C. .

The Chess Team won back-to-back state titles in 2002 and 2003, and has remained near the top finishing schools in the years since then.

The Scholastic Bowl team recently finished its third consecutive season with 40 wins.


ATHLETICS

Along with its academics, Maine South also has excellent athletic programs. Maine South has won state titles in Boys' Basketball (1979 AA), Football (1995 5A and 2000 6A), and Girls' Swimming (1975). Maine South High School plays in the Central Suburban League Conference, which incorporates many of the large public schools in Chicago's near north suburbs.

The school colors are red and white, with black acting as a third color, unofficially. The team mascot is "Hawks".


Football

Maine South Football has been one of the most successful programs in Illinois in recent history. They have played in the Class 8A (largest school) State Championship game each of the past 3 years. The Hawks are lead by head coach David Inserra. Coach David Inserra took over the program from long-time coach Phil Hopkins in 2001 after he won the state championship in his final season.


Wrestling

Maine South Wrestling has won four regional titles in the past six years. The team has placed in the State Sweet 16 once in that time, and has won numerous Conference titles.


Soccer

The Maine South Soccer team is one of the most academically accomplished teams in the nation, earning the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Award four times in the past five years. The award is given to teams who average a GPA of greater than 2.15 on a 4.0 scale.


NOTABLE ALUMNI



MUSIC

The Maine South marching and concert bands, led by Joel Matter, are two of the most respected music programs in the area. Rebecca Pascal directs the award winning orchestra.
The choirs at Maine South are directed by David Danckwart who has been teaching at the school for 18 years. Band at Maine South carries a rich tradition, with well over 30 members of the Maine South band turning professional in the last 20 years.


TRIVIA

  • Maine South is built on a landfill.

  • In the final scene of The Breakfast Club , the Maine South football field is featured. Most of the movie was actually filmed at the now-defunct Maine North High School building.

  • Maine South's varsity baseball diamond hosted a Schuamburg Flyers game in 2001.



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