History of Healy Elementary School

Healy Elementary School was built in 1951, at 16,750 sf. is the smallest of the remaining 24 city owned schools in the City of Detroit. While a addition was supposed to be added on shortly after it was built, it never was. This addition would have been a T shaped design on the western side of the building and would have included the Gymnasium and Auditorium however this addition that would have tripled the size of the school never came, however the flat wall absent of windows shows were this addition was too be placed. “Temporary common areas” set up shortly after the school opened still exist today due to this. The gymnasium for example is a simple 8ft tall box once a classroom on the northern of the building. Basketball hoops have been placed in to give a feel of a real gymnasium. Due to its flat glass block window design Healy is often used as a prime example of a 1950s era Detroit School build, the school had a capcity of 385 students, and while originally Healy would have served grades K-8 it was reduced to K-6 after Hubert School (Demolished 2025) established a junior high school in 1959. This same year Healy’s northern boundary of land was expanded to allow for the construction of a playground and the improvement of the grounds with the installation of new trees, shrubs, and flower gardens. In the late 90s Healy’s name was changed to Healy International Academy to compete with charter schools. Despite high academic achievements at the school, due to declining enrollment and the school’s small size, it was closed in 2007 and was one of the earlier closures in the district.