Downers Grove South High School

Downers Grove South High School
Location
1436 Norfolk Street

Downers Grove
,
Illinois
60516

United States

41°46′15″N 88°01′15″W / 41.7708°N 88.0207°W / 41.7708; -88.0207
Information
School typePublic
MottoMustang Way[1]
Opened1964[2]
School district
Community HS Dist. 99
SuperintendentHenry Thiele[3]
Principal
Arwen Lyp[4]
Staff179.41 (FTE)[5]
Grades9–12
GenderCo-Ed
Enrollment2,604 (2023-2024)[5]
Average class size
21.0[6]
Student to teacher ratio
14.51[5]
CampusSuburban
Colours  Navy
  Columbia blue[7]
Athletics conference
West Suburban Conference
MascotMarty the Mustang
NicknameMustangs[7]
PublicationCalliope[8]
NewspaperThe Blueprint[9]
YearbookCaracole[9]
Radio stationWDGC (88.3 FM)[10]
Cable TV stationChannel 29[8]
Websitesouth.csd99.org

Downers Grove South High School (DGS, and locally referred to as "South") is a public four-year high school in Downers Grove, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its principal is Arwen Lyp. It is part of Community High School District 99, which also includes Downers Grove North High School. The South campus draws students from Downers Grove (south of 55th St.), the majority of Woodridge, half of Darien (west of Cass Ave.), and small sections of Bolingbrook and Westmont.

History

The school opened its doors in 1964. The student population at Downers Grove High School was split in two, half going to the original structure now named Downers Grove North, and half going to the new building.

It has since undergone significant renovations to bring it up to date, including a $49.5 million voter referendum for the district in 2001. In the summer of 2008, the school embarked on a parking space expansion, which had been plagued by delays. Despite several postponements, parking lot adjustments were prepared in time to effectively start the 2008–09 school year.[11]

On June 22, 2011, at around 8:30 pm, the school's outdoor sports areas were extensively damaged during a two-minute EF1 tornado. Fences around the tennis courts were flattened, portable toilets and rows of bleachers were flipped upside down, and branches fell across the football/soccer field.[12]

In March 2018, the community surrounding the school voted to approve the Master Facility Plan, which laid out plans to completely overhaul both South and neighboring North high school into modern learning facilities. Construction started at the end of the 2018–2019 school year, and was completed at the start of the 2021–2022 school year.[13]

The 2022–2023 school year saw the introduction of a new block schedule. While far from the first implementation of this style, due to concerns from staff, students, and parents, the school board decided on a roughly half-and-half approach to its implementation.[14] This was designed as both a trial run of this schedule type, and as a use for the various common spaces located around the school that were built during the MFP.

Academics

In 2008, Downers Grove South had an average composite ACT score of 22.0, 0.5 points above the state average.[6]

DGS graduated 96.7% of its senior class.[6]

The school has not made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, which with the ACT, are the assessment tools used to fulfill mandates of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. While the school as a whole did make AYP, two of the six student subgroups failed to meet expectations in reading.

Demographics

In the 2022–2023 school year, there were 2,637 students enrolled at the school. In the same year, 56% of students were non-Hispanic white, 22% were Hispanic or Latino, 11% were black or African-American, 7% were Asian, and 3% were multiracial. The school has a student to teacher ratio of 14.6, and 17% of students are eligible for free or reduced price lunches.[15]

Athletics

South competes in the West Suburban Conference. It is also a member of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA), which governs most sports and competitive activities in the state of Illinois. The school teams are stylized as the Mustangs.

The school sponsors interscholastic teams for young men and women in basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, fishing, track & field, Ultimate frisbee, and volleyball. Young men may compete in baseball, football, co-ed varsity cheerleading, and wrestling, while young women may also compete in badminton, bowling, cheerleading, and softball. The DGS Fillies (varsity) and Pintos (JV) dance and pom teams perform at halftime at men's home football and basketball games, and compete at the Team Dance Illinois State Competition every year.[16]

The following teams have won in their respective IHSA sponsored state tournament or meet:[17]

  • Dance team: State Champions (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
  • Co-ed cheerleading: State Champions (2003–04), National Champions (2004–05)
  • Football: 8A State Champions (2001–02)
  • Soccer (boys): State Champions (2004–05)
  • Softball: State Champions (1992–93)
  • Volleyball (girls): State Champions (1996–97, 1999–2000, 2002–03)
  • Volleyball (boys): State Champions (2012–13)

Activities

Downers Grove South has won several state championship for its extracurricular activities, including (as of 2008) three in performance in the round, two in chess, and three from the Fillies Pom and Dance Team.

The speech team has won 18 IHSA state championships, more than any other school.[18][19] In 1997, it became the only team to win the speech state championship four years in a row, and in 2009 became the only school to win that title six years in a row.[18]

The radio station, WDGC – 88.3FM, is run by students during school hours, usually chosen as an elective. Their Marching Band won the 2019 University of Illinois Marching Band Championship.

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "Mustang Way". 13 August 2025.
  2. ↑ History of District 99; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 21 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ "ASC Staff Directory". Community High School District 99. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  4. ↑ "Leadership". Downers Grove South High School. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 "Comm H S Dist 99 - South High Sch". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Class of 2008 school report card; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 24 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  7. 1 2 "Downers Grove (South)". School Directory. Illinois High School Association. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  8. 1 2 Directory of Clubs at DGSHS; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 26 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  9. 1 2 Curricular activities directory for DGSHS; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 26 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ↑ Competitive activities at DGSHS; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 26 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑
  12. ↑ Confirmed: Tornadoes Hit Downers Grove, Mount Prospect « CBS Chicago
  13. ↑ "Master Facility Plan". www.csd99.org. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  14. ↑ "District 99, DGS - Office Hours and Bell Schedules". www.csd99.org. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  15. ↑ "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for Comm H S Dist 99 - South High Sch". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  16. ↑ List of teams, DGSHS Athletic Department; accessed 15 July 2009 Archived 30 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ↑ Season summaries for DGSHS; ihsa.org; accessed 15 July 2009
  18. 1 2 IHSA Individual Events Team Champions and Runners-Up
  19. ↑ IHSA Table of Titles
  20. ↑ "Downers Grove South grad Zack Burdi picked by White Sox in MLB Draft | mySuburbanLife.com". www.mysuburbanlife.com. Archived from the original on 11 August 2016.
  21. ↑ "JBTV Music Television - over 27 Years of Live Performances and Rare Interviews with Upcoming Artists | JBTV Music Television". Archived from the original on 16 August 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  22. ↑ "Scott Daly, 2012 Offensive Center, Notre Dame". Rivals.com. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  23. ↑ "Lauren Frost". IMDb. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  24. ↑ "Bryan Mullins, 2005 Point Guard, S Illinois". Rivals.com. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  25. ↑ "Emo Philips | Actor, Writer, Producer". IMDb.
  26. ↑ Supinie, John (2 February 2010). "Illinois freshman QB Whitmer hopes early start leads to success". The State Journal-Register. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  27. ↑ "Chandler Whitmer, 2010 Pro Style Quarterback, Illinois". Rivals.com. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
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