Gunn High School

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Gunn High School
Location
Palo Alto, California, United States
Information
Principal Noreen Likins
Type Public
Grades 9-12
Mascot Timmy the Titan
Established 1964
Homepage Official Website

Henry M. Gunn High School is one of two public high schools in Palo Alto, California. Gunn High School, is a four-year high school with a current enrollment of approximately 1900 students. The Class of 1966 was the first class to graduate from Gunn High School.[1] The academic year is comprised of two semesters with 240 minutes of weekly instruction for every class. The school's schedule operates on a rotating bell schedule with classes assigned to lettered "periods" from A through G.

Established in 1964, Gunn High School was named after the late Henry M. Gunn (1898-1988), who served as the Palo Alto superintendent from 1950 to 1961. In 1964, the Palo Alto Unified School District announced it would name the district's third high school after him.

The ethnic and racial makeup of the 2007 student population is 2.5% African-American, 6.5% Hispanic, 30% Asian, 4.5% Asian Indian, and 52% Caucasian.[1]

The mascot of the school is Timmy the Titan.[2] The student newspaper is The Oracle, part of the High School National Ad Network. The internal student-run television news show is the Titan Broadcast Network.

Contents

[edit] Academic reputation

Newsweek ranked Gunn 53rd in the United States in 2003,[3] 70th out of America's top 1,000 high schools in 2005,[4] 79th out of 1,200 in 2006,[5] and 81st out of 1,300 in 2007. [6]

The average SAT score for Gunn seniors hovers around 1200-1300 on the former 1600 scale (1249 in 2004, 1291 in 2005, 1263 in 2006).[7]

Education in mathematics and computer sciences is particularly strong. In 2004, 5 students qualified for the USAMO out of around 250 nationally, and during the 2004-2005 school year 5 out of the approximately 35 American students in the Gold Division of the USACO were from Gunn.[citation needed]

[edit] Robotics Team

The acclaimed[8][9] Gunn Robotics Team (GRT), established in 1997 and advised by teacher and former NASA employee Bill Dunbar, has consistently placed in the top 25 at the FIRST Robotics Competition.

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b 2007 Schooll Profile. Retrieved on 2008-03-22.
  2. ^ The skinny on Timmy. The Oracle. Gunn High School (December 14, 2005). Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
  3. ^ Mathews, Jay (2003-05-24). 2003 List: The Top High Schools - Newsweek America's Best High Schools. Newsweek. Archived from the original on 2006-10-20. Retrieved on 2006-10-20.
  4. ^ The Complete List of the 1,000 Top U.S. Schools - Newsweek America's Best High Schools. Newsweek (2005-05-16). Archived from the original on 2006-10-20. Retrieved on 2006-10-20.
  5. ^ The Complete List: 1,200 Top U.S. Schools - Newsweek America's Best High Schools. Newsweek (2006-05-23). Archived from the original on 2006-10-17. Retrieved on 2006-10-20.
  6. ^ The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,300 top U.S. high schools. Newsweek (2007). Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
  7. ^ Gunn High School's School Accountability Report Card Page 15. Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
  8. ^ NASA Ames Research Center (March 10, 2006). "NASA Previews Robotics Engineers of the Future". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
  9. ^ Malone, Michael S.. "The Fix-It Kids Take Over", Forbes Magazine, Forbes.com Inc., March 25, 2002. Retrieved on 2008-05-22. 

[edit] External links