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Cretin-Derham Hall High School

Cretin-Derham Hall High School (CDH) is a private, co-educational Catholic high school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, it is co-sponsored by the Brothers of the Christian Schools and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. Cretin High School was named for Joseph Crétin, the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Saint Paul, while Derham Hall High School was named for Hugh Derham, a Minnesotan farmer who donated money to start an all-female Catholic boarding school. The school describes itself as committed to "Christian values" and "academic excellence." It claims its "academic rigor" and "commitment to service" prepare each student for success in both post-secondary education and in life.

History

Cretin High School was founded as a secondary school for boys in 1871 by the Christian Brothers. Derham Hall was established by the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1905 as a college preparatory school for girls. In 1987, the two merged to become Cretin-Derham Hall a co-educational institution.

Athletics

Cretin-Derham Hall is part of the Suburban East Conference in the Minnesota State High School League. Prior to joining the Suburban East Conference, Cretin-Derham Hall played in the Saint Paul City Conference for twenty six years, until they were asked to leave in the 2002-2003 season. After being turned down by nine other metro conferences, and being forced to play the 2003-2004 season as an independent team, the Minnesota State High School League recommended that Cretin-Derham Hall be placed in the Suburban East Conference, one of the conferences that initially turned them down. Then they were accepted in 2004 and began playing in this conference in 2005–2006. In 2005–2006 season, the Cretin-Derham Hall Varsity Hockey team placed first in the Minnesota High School State Hockey Tournament

Cretin-Derham Hall's 2003-04 enrollment for grades 10-12 is 985 compared to Hastings' 1,380, the SEC's smallest school. Stillwater, the largest SEC school has an enrollment of 2,235. In terms of geography, Cretin-Derham Hall is located in Saint Paul, and truly is not close to any of the SEC schools.

Its chief rival schools are St. Thomas Academy, Woodbury High School, Eden Prairie High School, and Henry Sibley High School.

State Championships

State Championships
Season	Sport	Number of Championships	Year
Fall	Cross Country Running, Boys	1	1975
Fall	Football	1	1999
Winter	Hockey, Boys	1	2006
	Basketball, Girls	1	1999
	Basketball, Boys	2	1991, 1993
Spring	Baseball	11	1981, 1982, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2007
	Ultimate Frisbee, Boys	2	2004, 2007
	Ultimate Frisbee, Girls	3	2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Total		23

Arts

Cretin-Derham Hall additionally has a strong arts program both in terms of co-curricular and extracurricular opportunities. The Cretin-Derham Hall theatre department has achieved first place in the Minnesota State High School League One Act Competition although the school no longer participates.

In the summer of 2005 the theater department was one of about 20 schools invited to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. This invitation was "based on their most recent bodies of work, awards, community involvement, philosophies, and recommendations.

Feeder School Patterns

While certain exceptions definitely exist, the traditional feeder schools have been K-8 Catholic grade schools of Saint Paul and surrounding areas. Such schools are:

Nativity of Our Lord
Highland Catholic
Holy Spirit
IHM-St. Luke's
St. Joseph's
St. Mark's
St. Odilia's

Notable alumni

Derham, Cretin and Cretin-Derham Hall has been attended by several persons of note in its history, including:

Fr. John A Ryan (1887) - Economist, Theologian, and well-known social justice theorist of the early 20th century
Jim Kowalski - Entrepreneur, owner of Kowalski's Market
Michael Floyd, current wide receiver for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Kate Millet - Author, Sexual Politics
Joe Mauer - Catcher, Minnesota Twins
Matt Birk - Center, Minnesota Vikings
Josh Hartnett - Hollywood actor (non-alumnus)
Heidemarie Martha Stefanyshyn-Piper - Astronaut, assisted in initial reassembly of the International Space station with NASA
Paul Molitor - Baseball Hall of Famer
Steve Walsh - Former NFL quarterback
Chris Weinke - Quarterback, 2000 Heisman Trophy winner
James E. Duffy Jr - Justice on the Hawaii Supreme Court (term 2003-2013)
James E. Thornton - Computer pioneer, helped engineer Control Data Corporation's first super computer with Seymour Cray and William Norris
Tim Tschida - Umpire, Major League Baseball
Mark Wegner - Umpire, Major League Baseball
George Sweeney - Umpire, American League (1979)
Chris Coleman - Mayor, Saint Paul, MN (2006-Present)
Ryan Harris - NFL Offensive Lineman (Denver Broncos 2007 Draft Pick)
Corbin Lacina - Guard, Minnesota Vikings
Jack Hannahan - Infielder for the Oakland Athletics. Drafted 3rd Round (87th overall) by the Detroit Tigers in 2001.
Ryan McDonagh - 12th overall pick by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft
John Vachon - Photographer for the FSA (Farm Security Administration), Life magazine, and Look magazine
Dave Duevel - Charter Member of Delta Upsilon Mu Beta