History of Servite Catholic High School

In 1923 with the fast growing east side of Detroit a new church named St. John Berchmans Catholic Church was founded. It was built for the mostly Belgian immigrant neighborhoods around what would become Servite. The very first mass of St. John Berchmans was held on July 2nd, 1923 in a small machine shop on Mack Avenue. Lacking pews or kneelers, the 30 or so worshipers knelt on the bare wooden floor. At the end of the service the call went out for people to help build a new church, and work progressed so quickly that by the following Sunday, Mass could be held in a small frame building on Mack and Chalmers. The congregation used the single room church as a school during the week, teaching all eight grades at once. A year later work began on a new church and school building on Warren Avenue at Lakeview Street, the cornerstone of which was laid down on September 28th, 1924. The church and school were in the same building, with classrooms located around and behind the sanctuary. Due to the cost of the building the parish struggled with debt, and was asked to be taken over by member of the Servite Order in 1927. By 1942 the debt had been controlled due to major success in with church membership and school enrollment with enrollment reaching 1,300 students in 1943. Up to this point the church had taught only up to 8th grade going under the name St. John Berchmans Elementary School, but in 1948 a High School wing was built on the back of the church and included the construction of 25 classrooms, science labs, a library, and a gymnasium work started in January of 1949 and was finished in the fall. When it opened it was one of the most modern Catholic schools in Detroit, opening with overhead projectors, televisions, and a full size gymnasium. Servite formed rivalries with several other Catholic schools, and maintained a notable rivalry with St. Ambrose, competing for the "Fleming Trophy," and St. Agatha, competing for a "hub cap" trophy. Servite would go on to win championships in football, basketball, and cross-country running, as a Double-A division school, and competed in the Catholic High School League as the Panthers. As Servite contined to grow so did its buildings in 1957 a convent was built across the street on Coplin St. The church sanctuary was completely renovated between October of 1967 and December of 1970, modernizing the upper and lower halls. A former Chrysler-Plymouth dealership on the corner of East Warren and Lakeview was turned into the parish hall in 1971, hosting weddings, meetings, and bazaars. In 1970 Servite had reached its peak enrollment for both the school and membership of the church. As many parochial schools closed in 1971 under the order of Archbishop John Dearden, when taxpayer funding was cut in 1970 to Michigan Private Schools. Servite was not selected as one to close due to its still steady enrollment at the time. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that Servite would begin to lose large numbers of enrollment. While starting off as a B sized school in sports, it became a C then a D school until the school and church closed after the 1986-1987 school year when Servite merged with St. Juliana. For 10 years it remained unused however became a charter school in 1996 under the name Colin Powell Academy often referred to as CPA. The school was operated by Central Michigan University, and the location was chosen to help provide education to a area that had low test scores. Students were required to follow a strict code of conduct, and wear uniforms. Just a year after opening the school was visited by General Powell himself then a a retired four-star general and statesman. He spoke to students and gave them a list of rules to abide by. Early success was seen at Powell as test scores continued to grow compared to their public school counterparts. However financial problems plagued the school from the beginning, as the old building was expensive to maintain. Powell also went through a number of leadership changes, with 10 different administrators over 15 years. As test scores fell and the financial viability of the school was in doubt, Central Michigan University announced in 2010 that it was revoking the charter for the Powell Academy. The school closed permanently on June 30th, 2010.