With Another State Title On The Books, North High's Renaissance Continues
North High School in Minneapolis is having quite a year. For the second time in 2016, their athletes have won a state championship.
On Saturday, the football team won the Class 1A Prep Bowl against Rushford. The victory made North the first Minneapolis public school to win a state football title since 1977.
The high school isn't just making a comeback in sports, but Saturday's game was still a moment to remember.
"It was so exciting. It was like a dream come true," North High Principal Dr. Shawn Harris Berry said.
These days, Harris Berry seems more like a proud parent.
"I cried because I was so excited," he said. "I was excited because they won for the Northside. North High is the pride of the Northside."
In 2010, student enrollment and academic performance were both so low at North High that the district nearly closed the school. But in 2012, a rebuilding process began with just 67 students in one class -- 9th grade.
"We had to borrow, beg and steal kids to try to get kids to come to North High School," Berry said. "Now we get calls on a regular basis."
Berry says today there are more than 400 students in grades 9-12, and last year 93 percent of the seniors graduated.
"We are a family here at North High School. We are more than just a school. We really wrap around our kids. We really know our kids personally," he said.
Charles Adams is the football coach.
"It's an opportunity for us to be prideful again, and give these kids some encouragement -- that things are going good here," he said.
Adams says he reinforces the message that grades matter.
"Just being consistent and letting them know your athletic ability is technically a waste if you don't have it academically," he said. "I say you gotta do both."
Isaac Johnson is a senior on the football team.
"It means a lot. It means we are not just a basketball team, we can get it done in any sport," he said. "The whole city was behind us. Everybody was with us."
The school district says last year, 100 percent of North High seniors who were in sports graduated on time with at least a 'B' average. The Polars have won six state basketball championships -- the most recent was last spring.
