Girls Preparatory School
| Girls Preparatory School GPS |
|
|---|---|
| Address | |
|
205 Island Ave., 37405 Chattanooga, Tennessee United States |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Private all-female secondary |
| Motto | Respect, Responsibility, Excellence, Discovery |
| Established | 1906 |
| Founders | Tommie Payne Duffy, Eula Lee Jarnagin, and Grace McCallie |
| Headmaster | Dr. Autumn Graves |
| Grades | 6–12 |
| Gender | Female |
| Enrollment | Roughly 600 |
| Color(s) | Black and blue |
| Mascot | Bruiser |
| Nickname | GPS |
| Rival | The Baylor School |
| Yearbook | Kaleidoscope |
| Website | www.gps.edu |
Girls Preparatory School, or GPS, is an all-female college preparatory school in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1906 by Grace McCallie, Tommie Payne Duffy, and Eula Lea Jarnagin. Its brother school, The McCallie School, had been founded a year earlier by McCallie's brothers. GPS's current Head of School is Dr. Autumn Adkins Graves, former president of Girard College and named one of "O Magazine's" Women to Watch for the Decade in 2010.
In 1906, Duffy and Jarnagin, two public school teachers, asked the city school board to provide a fourth year of high school studies, including modern language and a lab science, so that girls, as well as boys, would apply for college. When their request was denied, they decided to create an independent school to prepare girls for higher education and convinced their friend Grace McCallie to join them.
In twelve weeks, they converted McCallie's former home to a school. The three founders used all of their money, $300, to equip and launch the school. The school opened on September 12, 1906, in a four-room schoolhouse at 106 Oak Street, which had formerly been McCallie's home. The ground floor contained classrooms with second hand desks. There was also an alcove library and cloakroom.
The school welcomed 45 enrolled students on the first day of classes on September 12, 1906. Each girl paid $80 tuition per year, and at the end of the first year one of the students was accepted to and enrolled in Randolph-Macon Woman's College. In 1915, the school relocated to a larger brick building on Palmetto Street. In 1947, GPS again moved, this time to its current home on Island Avenue, with fourteen classrooms, a study hall, library and dining hall. Since the move, the campus has been significantly added on to and revitalized, with the addition of a separate middle school and high school, an 800-seat theater, and a new student center, among other facilities.
Girls Preparatory School celebrated its 100th anniversary during the 2005-2006 school year.
Girls Preparatory School inspires each girl to lead a life of integrity and purpose by engaging her mind, cultivating her strengths, and nurturing her self-confidence and respect for others.
Middle School (Grades 6-8) In addition to core classes, the girls take a computer class twice a week from 6th grade to develop technological, communication, and problem-solving skills. In the 7th grade, they learn French, Spanish, or Latin, and in the 8th grade, each student purchases a laptop for school use. In the past, IBM tablets were the laptops of choice; however the school switched to MacBook Airs in 2011. iPads are also commonly used among students, though the school's policy on their mandatory purchase has changed more than once.
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