San Diego High School

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San Diego High School, located in Downtown San Diego's East Village, was established in 1882 by Joseph Russ. While Lowell High School (San Francisco), Sacramento High School, and Los Angeles High School are older in establishment, San Diego High School is the oldest high school in California still on the original site. The school mascot is the Cavers (from the original Cavemen), and the colors are blue and white. The school has gone through numerous facelifts, from that of the old eight-room building (1882-1907), to the Grey Castle (1907-1974) to its contemporary building complex today constructed in 1976. Among the remnants of the old San Diego High campus are the 500 building (constructed in 1950), the 600 building (constructed in 1940), the 700 building (constructed in 1938), the large planter in front of the school created from gargoyles that used to adorn the exterior of the old Russ Auditorium, and a water fountain that used to be in the old 100 building's main courtyard. The school's Balboa Stadium, once with a seating capacity of 34,000, was the original home of the San Diego Chargers when they first moved to San Diego in 1961 and has also played host to music legends the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, and U.S. Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The school's newspaper is still called "The Russ" and it's yearbook is called "The Old Grey Castle".

1 Small Schools
2 Magnet Programs
3 Honors
4 Alumni
5 External links

[edit] Small Schools

In 2004, San Diego High School was transformed into the San Diego High Educational Complex. In order to raise test scores and give students more personal attention, the school was divided into six smaller schools. Sports teams and school organizations are still open to the entire complex.

The small schools are:

International Studies
Media, Visual and Performing Arts
Business
Science and Technology
LEADS (Lead, Explore, Achieve, Discover, Serve)
CIMA (Communications in a Multicultural Atmosphere)

Many of the small schools have nicknames between the students of the complex. For example, the School of International Studies is abbreviated to "I.S.", and The School of Media, Visual and Performing Arts is abbreviated to "Mvapa" or "School of the Arts".

[edit] Magnet Programs

San Diego High has three magnet programs, designed to attract students from other areas of the district. International Baccalaureate, housed in the school of International Studies, provides a rigorous curriculum for which students can earn college credit. The Writing Academy emphasizes writing skills in all subjects, and the Language Immersion program helps students to learn Spanish or French.

[edit] Honors

In May 2006, Newsweek magazine ranked 1,200 public high schools in the U.S. and named San Diego High's International Studies school #22, making it the highest ranking in San Diego County and the second highest in the state of California.