Dąbrówka High School in Poznań (officially in Polish: VII Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Dąbrówki w Poznaniu,ąbrówkaHighSchoolPoznań in abbreviated version known also as VII LO or colloquially simply as Dąbrówka) is a public school, located in the Poznań district of Jeżyce; it offers education to teenagers above 15 years of age. Founded in 1919, until 1967 it operated as an establishment for girls only. Currently its somewhat distinctive profile is marked by bilingual, Polish-German curriculum, complete with the Deutsches Sprachdiplom II exams. In terms of educational performance the school ranks among mid-range college-type schools in Poznań.
Foundation and beginnings (1919)
When in late 1918 political power in Poznań was claimed by the local Polish structures of Naczelna Rada Ludowa, all city schools for girls, the so-called Höhere Mädchenschule, were German in terms of instruction language and general outlook. The oldest and the most prestigious of them was the public Luisenschule. In the early 1919 the establishment was paralyzed by a conflict between German staff and the NRL delegate, Maria Swinarska, tasked with introducing instruction in Polish. It is not clear whether the strife contributed to the future fate of the school. In May the Polish schooling board, Prowincjonalne Kolegium Szkolne, decided to break with the Luisian tradition, perceived as tantamount to Germanisation. In somewhat obscure circumstances the school was renamed after a medieval princess Dąbrówka; the choice was supposed to underline patriotically Polish, anti-German and regional identity. The institution commenced the schooling year of 1919/1920 as Państwowa Uczelnia Żeńska Dąbrówki. Until then most German staff had left, partially replaced by newly hired Polish teachers; Maria Swinarska was nominated the new headmaster. Official ceremony emphasized re-launch rather than continuity; the 40-year-old premises taken over from Luisenschule were consecrated and following a solemn parade across the city the students joined erection of the Liberty Mound. All paperwork, until mid-1919 conducted in German, was switched to Polish.
The Dąbrówka School took over from Luisenwschule a large compound located at the Western side of the Młyńska Street; it consisted of a front building, running along the street, and two large perpendicular buildings in the back, called the Northern One and Southern One; the backyard in-between was used as a sporting ground for PE lessons. Though with no electricity and no central heating, the premises were in perfect running condition. It seems that staff shortages were addressed fairly quickly, as in late 1919 there were 24 Poles among 35 teachers listed. The school retained its female profile; an unspecified number of girls commenced education in Luisenschule, but completed it already in the Dąbrówka School. Recruitment scale is not clear; the number of girls admitted in the very early 1920s ranges depending upon the source from 538 to above 1057. A huge number of candidates triggered opening of a new similar female school in the Łazarz district, where some of the students admitted have been re-directed.
Ethnic composition of the girls is far from agreed; some authors claim that the Germans were in minority, others claim that they dominated; none of the sources consulted provides information on Jews, traditionally forming a significant fraction of the Luisenschule students. The number of schooling groups slightly exceeded 30, some 2/3 with instruction in Polish and 1/3 in German. Initially the school offered curriculum according to various teaching schemes and some sources claim that in fact there were five formulas co-existing: gymnasium, lyceum, high lyceum (seminar for teachers), practice unit (training ground for seminarians) and a so-called economy school (of unclear formula). Given vastly different teaching modules, girls barely in teenage years might have mixed with young women.
Dąbrówka School (1919-1939)