Every morning, I pass through the gates of our school, as you likely do too. By the time we graduate, we will have crossed through the gates on Lakeville Road by bus, car, or foot, over a thousand times. Yet few times, if any, do we wonder how exactly our school came to be. As the new school year opens and we familiarize ourselves with our new classes, sports, or clubs, it’s as good a time as any to revisit the history of our school, in the style of a tour. Whether you’ve been through those gates once or a thousand times, buckle up for a ride back in time as we explore our school through a new lens.

Standing outside any one of the school gates, you’ll quickly notice rolling hills comprising most of our campus, covered by lush green grass in the early fall and cherry blossom petals in the spring. Serving as excellent training for our school’s athletic teams and perfect scenery, the hills and other beautiful landscapes have remained a recognizable part of our campus since it was first built in 1957.  The land we stand on has barely been altered in the almost seventy-five years that our school has been here. Originally, this area was owned by Henry Phipps Jr., philanthropist and partner of Andrew Carnegie; one of his many mansions stood where South stands today. But during the post World War Two boom, due to Great Neck’s need for school facilities, the Phipps family graciously donated nine acres of the estate, and sold the  remaining one hundred fifteen as long as the district agreed to preserve the natural landscape. The existing Great Neck High School became Great Neck North, and our school was born. Today, the mansion has been converted into the Phipps administration building that proudly overlooks our campus as the central hub of our school district.

After making your way past the gate and through the west gym parking lot, you find yourself on the sidewalk stretching to the main entrance. As you walk this stretch, the floor to ceiling glass windows of the music suite catch your attention. Looking in, you see cellos lined up against the glass in wooden structures, metal lockers filled with wind instrument cases, and you may even catch a glimpse of the hall of soundproof practice rooms. Constructed after a $26,500,000 bond issue was passed for district-wide renovations in 1998, the addition of the music suite has proved essential to our performing arts endeavors: practice rooms offer an accessible place for chamber groups to rehearse, dozen of instruments are available for students to use during class, and the orchestral room itself provides enough space to fit our ever-growing bands and orchestras.

It’s been quite a journey by the time you’ve made it inside, so take a break to catch your breath in the library. The lingering humidity of New York summers is no match for the refreshing AC put on full blast. Renovated in the summer of 2019, our library hasn’t always looked the way it does now, ID scanner and all–it used to only be one large, dimly-lit room, with tables scattered throughout. Thanks to renovations dividing the spacious room into functional sections including a café/eating area, a makerspace room, and, of course, the ever popular quiet study zone, our library has been remodeled to become a great alternative to the courtyard as another place to be at lunch, during free periods, or after school. 

Stepping through the exit at the east gym, let’s conclude our tour back outside where we started. You overlook the tennis courts, football and soccer fields, and track, all built without changing the original landscape, just as the Phippses wished. Yet these  facilities have been upgraded over the years too, due to the administration’s dedication to that exact agreement. Preserving the natural hills created problems with irrigation and flooding, especially during the rainy fall and spring seasons. So, in 2012, the district started major renovations on the football and field hockey fields as well as the track. Additionally, the Girls Lacrosse field began to undergo construction. Looking at the fields dotted with athletes still hard at work as the sun begins to dip lower in the sky, you take in all of South–its people, buildings, and rich history.

Going into this year, take some time to appreciate all the facilities our school offers. Whether it’s a place like the quiet study space in the library that allows you to finish your essay due the next period or the tables scattered in the open courtyard where you can eat lunch and enjoy the sun, let’s all take care of our school for we are a part of South’s history too.