Proviso East High School

Proviso East High School
Postcard of tower entrance, early 20th century
Address
807 South First Avenue Maywood , Illinois 60153 United States
Coordinates	41°52′51″N 87°49′56″W / 41.8809°N 87.8323°W / 41.8809; -87.8323
Information
School type	Public Secondary
Opened	1911
School district	Proviso Twp. HS Dist. 209
Superintendent	Dr. James L. Henderson[1]
Principal	Rodney Hull[2]
Faculty	92.80 (FTE)[3]
Grades	9–12
Gender	Co-ed
Enrollment	1,772 (2022–23)[7]
Average class size	22.6[4]
Student to teacher ratio	17.93[3]
Campus	Suburban
Color(s)	Royal Blue   White[5]
Athletics conference	West Suburban Conference
Nickname	Pirates[5]
Newspaper	Pageant[6]
Yearbook	Provi[6]
Website	east.pths209.org/index3.asp

Proviso East High School is a public secondary school in Maywood, Illinois which serves the educational needs of Maywood and three other villages within Proviso Township, Cook County, Illinois: Broadview, Forest Park and Melrose Park. It is the original campus of Proviso Township High Schools District 209. Prior to being split into East and Proviso West High School in 1958, East was known as Proviso Township High School. The school is located at the intersection of Madison Street and First Avenue (which is Illinois Route 171 in that part of Maywood).

Proviso East's history in many ways reflects that of some suburban and urban schools in the United States. While initially serving mostly a Caucasian population, as demographic shifts occurred in the post-World War II years, a larger African-American population moved in, triggering violence and white flight from the white populations whose communities had been initially formed through racially discriminatory real estate codes, as well as cultural and systemic racism.

Despite the tensions that occurred in the second half of the twentieth century, the school is known for its extensive list of notable alumni. While perhaps best known for its connection to notable NBA players (Jim Brewer, Michael Finley and Glenn "Doc" Rivers among the more prominent) and other athletes such as Ray Nitschke, the school has seen other alumni achieve well in other areas, such as Civil Rights Activist and Chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party Fred Hampton, businesswoman Sheila Johnson, actor Dennis Franz, musician John Prine, and astronaut Eugene Cernan, the last man to walk on the Moon.