Schillerska High School

As some of you may know, I lived in Gothenburg in '98 and '99 as an exchange student. When I was here, I attended a local high school. The school I went to is called Schillerska. And I'm going to take you on a tour of my old school. Ready?
The school was originally started in 1887 and was called Vasa Högre Allmänna Läroverk because it was in a part of the city called Vasastan. In 1966, the name changed to Schillerska to honor the first principal of the school whose last name was Schiller. Today, the school has about 950 students and about 75% are women.

The school is a creative place and students can choose from several programs that pertain to the arts. The school has a well-known photography program. They also have a music studio in the school itself. Other programs include the Humanities and Social Studies.

I ended up taking the Social Studies program with an optional music production course. Good fun. I don't remember a thing about music production, but the class was fun nonetheless.

I came back to see what had changed and what stayed the same. I started by talking with a few current students of the school. Listen to what they have to say about Schillerska:

Jimmy, Amelia, and Ragna study languages at the school. They agreed to chat with me for a few minutes about why they chose the school and what they think about the school. Jimmy chose the school because he had friends who were there and they enjoyed it. He also thinks it has a central location in the city.

Jimmy likes the school because you can be be yourself and you don't have to put on a front.

Ragna didn't know anyone there to begin with but she went to an open house at the school. She liked what she saw and feels like she made a good choice.

Amelia also spoke about being able to be herself at the school. She doesn't have to act like someone who she's not.

I asked another group of students to describe Schillerksa. What is Schillerska?

Ziggy said the school offers a safe place with a lot of diversity. Students can be an individual and not feel like they're going to be judged because of it. He said it doesn't matter where you're from or how much money your parents make, you'll be accepted regardless. It's more about the person and not the status of the person. Ziggy is in his last year at the school and he is satisfied with his choice. He never felt like it was a bad decision and he's very happy he chose it. He summed it up by saying Schillerska is a school for everyone.

Matilda thinks it is an open school with a diverse student body. People won't put you in a certain category there but will accept you as you are. She said there's very little bullying going on at the school and very few who feel outside. She commented on the amount of studying at the school. She thinks it's a good blend because there's not an overwhelming amount of study, yet there's not too little either. It's a good blend and you can do what you like. The teachers don't put too much pressure on you. The students who want to give their all can do so, but those who don't want to do that can also do well. Matilda summed it up by saying that it's an ambitious school for ambitious students.

Angelika talked about the people who choose Schillerska as a school they'd like to attend. She said the people who choose the school are a little different than the norm and said this is a good thing because you have a variety of people represented at the school. The school doesn't have a club atmosphere where you feel like you have to fit in to belong, unlike other schools in the area. You don't have to make a lot of money or have rich parents. Status does not have a bearing on your standing at the school.

Both groups asked me what I thought of the school and I had to agree with their assements. I went there over a decade ago, but it seems like the atmosphere is still alive and thriving at the school.

If you open a classroom door in the school, you'll find a diverse group of creative people, both students and teachers, who focus on who you are and not what you look like or what you have. The school leaders and teachers do a good job of creating a place where students can feel welcomed and safe. They've produced an atmosphere that is conducive to creativity.

And consequently, maybe this is why Schillerska has grown a reputation as "Gothenburg's Fame School". The school has produced an incredible amount of people who've become well-known for their work and accomplishments.

When I went there, the school did not emphasize nor talk about previous students and their accomplishments. I did not know of any famous people that had attended the school. It wasn't mentioned back then. The school has now created a twenty page brochure to show all the people who've studied there before and became well known later on. So, let's go in:

The doors are just as heavy as I remember them. It takes strength the size of a bear to get these doors open. Either that or I'm just a wimp. If you go here all three years, just opening the doors is enough to bring your upper arm strength to its maximum potential.

Once you finally get the doors to budge, you'll find yourself in a small room that leads to the main building. This room has two staircases leading up to the school and has murals on the sides of the walls. This room was renovated in 1996 to its original condition.



The principal's office is on the right hand side. On the left hand side, you'll find classrooms and my old locker. It didn't have a lock on it, so I was able to open it. And guess what's still there?


The tape debris from the poster I hung up in my locker. It was a poster of Ace of Base in Tuff Studio.

If you walk further down the hallway, you'll run into a few classrooms: Each floor has essentially the same layout with a winding staircase in the middle of the building and classrooms on either side of the stairs.

Again, if you go there all three years, you'll have well toned leg muscles from running up and down the stairs each day. The library and main meeting room is on the second floor. The main meeting room is called the "aula" and it is a gorgeously decorated room. That's where many teachers would give exams and general gatherings would happen. It wasn't open yesterday to take any pics of it.

The library was open, however:

There was also a display outside the library of works from former students. Check it out:

Yep, Malin and Jenny Berggren went to this school.

And Emrik Larsson and Magnus Rosen went there too. Would that make Arose the ultimate Schillerska band?



And if you go to the main office and ask for the yearbooks from the years Malin and Jenny Berggren went to the school, you won't find them. They're all gone. They disappeared from the collection years ago, they tell me. That's why you can only look at old yearbooks in the office.
Check out some more random pics from the school:


So, that's the tour of Schillerska. Hope you enjoyed taking a tour of the school.