The Louise S. McGehee School is an all-girls private, independent school in the Garden District in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The McGehee campus, which is one city block, has ten buildings and over of space. Louise S. McGehee School was founded in 1912 by Louise Schaumburg McGehee and opened in September of that year at 1520 Louisiana Avenue and in 1914 relocated to 1439 Louisiana Avenue. In 1929, Miss McGehee's School moved to the current location at 2343 Prytania St. and became a corporation known as the Louise S. McGehee School. In the fall of 1929, there were 209 students and classes began with the fifth grade. In 1962, a new Lower School building was dedicated for grades K through sixth and in 1973, the first Pre-Kindergarten class started school. In the 1990s, McGehee started an Early Childhood Program "Little Gate" which is a co-educational program for ages one through four. Today, Little Gate has an enrollment of over 150 students. Eli S. Evans, author of The Provincials: A PersonalHistory of Jews in the South, described the school as "he debutante West Point, the playing fields of Eton, the New Orleans version of Choate-Chapin-Cordon Bleu all rolled into one".
History
The school, founded by Louise McGehee, opened in September 1912. It was originally called Mrs. Chapman's School. It later moved into a mansion in the Garden District. The 1938 Works Progress Administration New Orleans City Guide described it as one of the most popular private schools in New Orleans. In 2005 Evans wrote that "For decades McGehee has been the institution by which the elite in New Orleans shield their young women from the blacks, the Jews, the poor, and the different, protecting them from ideas and associations that might lure them from their manifest destiny." Historically many graduates of McGehee matriculated to H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College of Tulane University. Louise S. McGehee School was founded in 1912 by Louise S. McGehee and opened in September of that year at 1439 Louisiana Avenue with thirty students. In 1929, Miss McGehee's School moved to the current location at 2343 Prytania St. and became a corporation known as the Louise S. McGehee School. In the fall of 1929, there were 209 students and classes began with the fifth grade. In 1962, a new Lower School building was dedicated for grades K through sixth and in 1973, the first Pre-Kindergarten class started school. In the 1950s, the school added grades Kindergarten through fourth grade. In the 1990s, McGehee started an Early Childhood Program "Little Gate" which is a co-educational program for ages one through four. Today, Little Gate has an enrollment of over 150 students. Pre-Hurricane Katrina the school had about 500 students. After Katrina hit in August 2005, the school resumed classes in October and by November 2005 the school had about half of its pre-Katrina enrollment.
Campus
The campus of McGehee has evolved quite a bit since moving to the current Garden District location. McGehee currently encompasses almost an entire city block with nine buildings and over 100,000 square feet of space. The school celebrated its centennial celebration during the 2011-2012 school year. The Bradish Johnson House serves as the main building for McGehee and was formerly a private home in the Garden District. It was designed by James Freret and constructed in 1872 for Bradish Johnson, a man whose family fortune was based on sugar cane plantations. According to tradition, the home was built at a cost of $100,000. The Louise S. McGehee School moved to its present campus in 1929. Located in the Bradish Johnson House are the school libraries, classrooms and the office of the Headmistress.
Little Gate
McGehee's pre-school Little Gate is a co-ed early childhood program based on the Reggio Emilia philosophy. Little Gate focuses on developing the whole child – intellectually, socially and emotionally. 2015-2016 enrollment at Little Gate is 162. The age range for Little Gate varies from 2–4 years old.
Academics
Lower School science lab and specialist immerse young girls in scientific concepts as early as Pre-K. Lower School uses "Everyday Math" curriculum developed by University of Chicago. French language begins in Pre-K, with French and Spanish offered in Middle and Upper Schools. Latin requirement in Middle School Nationally recognized Service Learning program in Middle School Oldest Honor Code in the city, adopted in 1921 Honors courses offered in every academic discipline in the Upper School Senior student/faculty mentorship program In 1997 McGehee was the oldest surviving New Orleans school that offered the German language as a course subject.
Technology
1:1 Laptop program integrated in grades 5-12
Extracurricular
Competitive athletic program including volleyball, cross country, soccer, softball, tennis, basketball, swimming, golf, and track Volleyball team captured the State Championship title in 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2015. Extracurricular opportunities include choir, Service-Learning, student government, and Mock Trial, 2008 State Champions.
Service Learning
McGehee is a National Service Learning Leader School and was awarded the NAIS Leading Edge Award in Community Service.
Students
2015-2016 enrollment of 515 students Student retention rate of 96% Minority enrollment of 18% and 20 different cultures represented 100% of McGehee graduates attend college
