Grand Blanc Community High School

Grand Blanc Community High School is a public high school in Grand Blanc, a suburb of Flint, Michigan, USA. It is managed by Grand Blanc Community Schools.

The current principal is Dr. Jennifer Hammond. The High School has two separate campuses; West Campus for the freshmen and East Campus for sophomores, juniors and seniors. The East Campus was built in 1964, and the West Campus, previously Grand Blanc Middle School, was built shortly thereafter. During February 2006, a new gymnasium addition opened. The new gym was part of the $94 million bond proposal passed several years prior, and features an indoor track, new weight room, as well as a higher seating capacity than the old gym. In 2007, the new gym was renamed the Robert Tartoni Athletic Center, after the late Robert Tartoni, a teacher who had died several years earlier. The swim, golf, and soccer teams of Grand Blanc have achieved notable local acclaim, dominating their Big 9 conference.

The school has been in the top 5 percent of schools in the state of Michigan with high test scores in the MEAP and the new MME. The school typical score was about 90. All students are required to get a 1, 2, or 3 on the MME to graduate. Students are also required to have an exit interview at a job sight to graduate.

The school Academics are very high. In order to graduate from the high school, students need to take 4 years of English, 4 years of math, 3 years of science, and 3 years of social studies. Also students need to have a 1/2 semester of a computer class. Starting with the class of 2011, students need to have a full year in art, and have to take an online course. Students have to take 6 classes a semester and must have 24 credits to graduate.

As of the 2006-2007 school year it is currently the largest high school in Genesee County and one of Michigan's largest with over 2,500 students.

Activities

There are many activities for students to choose from. Some of the well known programs are Quiz Bowl, HOSA, BPA, The Rocket Club, Debate Team, Mock Trial, and the Robotics "EngiNERDS" team. All these have students compete, and most of the students that participate win an award. HOSA has had six people that have gone to nationals since the 2006-2007 school year. The Debate and Mock Trial Teams place in the top 10 in the state of Michigan. During the 2007-2008, Grand Blanc High School finally were able to have a Robotics team, which compete at Kettering University and placed 9th international.Other clubs include Foreign Language Clubs, Creative Writing, Anime, Chess Club, UNITE, Muslim Student Association, Student Council, and National Honor Society.

Grand Blanc has sport programs where most teams are involved in the Big 9 conference.

The school has excellent choir and band programs. The drama department is excellent for students going into theatre. They perform three plays in a year. The first is the fall play, the second is a musical, and the third is a senior directed play.

Bob Dole Visit

During his 1996 presidential campaign, republican Bob Dole held a campaign rally at the Grand Blanc Community High School football field during the school day. All students were required to attend, even though most were too young to vote. At the rally, Dole said he planned to visit every high school whose mascot was a bobcat like Grand Blanc. For example, he also visited Frankenmuth High School (also the known as The Bobcats).

Mitt Romney's Visit

During January 2008, Mitt Romney, an unsuccessful candidate in 2008 Republican nomination for president, spoke at the High School.  "Students and staff were honored to learn from the wisdom of this accomplished man," said 2008 Senior Stephanie Johnson.  "Not only that, but he is a prime example of the modern American family man, and he still finds time to stay sexy," added Hannah Freedman. Romney returned the warm feelings, stating how proud he was to speak at one of the high schools that his father visited during his campaign in 1968.  Despite the fact that neither of the Romney men were successful in this aspect, Mitt Romney received a great deal of athletic support in Michigan.Other notable visits include Dick Cheney during George Bush's Presidential campaign in 2000.  Mr. Cheney also participated in a commemorative coin tossing during a Grand Blanc football game that took place on Grand Blanc's Frank Thomas Field.  The game was against Flushing High School.

Notable alumni

* Stephen Smale, winner of the 1966 Fields Medal for mathematics.
* Rob Paulsen, voice of Raphael from the 1987 TV series "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", voice of Pinky from Pinky and the Brain, and hundreds of others
* Pierre Dukes, Oakland University point guard. Also hit game winning shot to launch Oakland University into the NCAA Tournament
* Reggie Benton, #2 All time Leading rusher in the state, All American running back
* Norman Riopelle, one of the top poker players in the world
* Geena Gall, 2008 NCAA 800m Outdoor Champion and 7 time All-American at the University of Michigan, and Collegiate record holder (4 x 800, and 4 x 1500) , Three time high school national champion in track (800m) while at GBHS.
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0888321/ Steve Van Wormer] star of [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120645/ Meet The Deedles] . His father James also teaches at Grand Blanc Community High School.
*James C. Moore, "New York Times" bestselling author of:
** "Bush's Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential"
** "Bush's War for Reelection: Iraq, the White House, and the People"
** "The Architect: Karl Rove and the Master Plan for Absolute Power" Moore also appeared in "Fahrenheit 911" and is frequent political commentator on "Countdown with Keith Olbermann", "Hardball with Chris Matthews" and other political programs. Moore is also a featured blogger on "Huffington Post."

GBH-TV

Grand Blanc Community High School runs an educational access television channel named GBH-TV. It shows reruns of sports and extra cirricular activities from the entire Grand Blanc Community School system, as well as school system related announcements. It is available on Comcast Cable Channel 18 to residents of the Grand Blanc School District.

External links

* [http://grandblanc.high.schoolfusion.us/ Official Website]
* [http://mswww.grand-blanc.k12.mi.us/newschools/newalbums/My%20Webs/newalbums/highschool/index.htm New Gym Construction Pictures]