Saratoga High School

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Saratoga High School
Location
Saratoga, California
United States
Information
Type Public high school
Religious affiliation(s) None
Established 1959
School district Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District
Principal Jeff Anderson
Enrollment 1,249[1]
Color(s) Scarlet (primary), Navy Blue, Grey
Mascot Falcon
Communities served Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos
Website http://www.saratogahigh.org/

Saratoga High School is a high school in Saratoga, California, United States, part of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District. The school is jointly accredited by the California Department of Education and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Student enrollment averages around 1350. According to US News, Saratoga High is ranked #93 amongst public high schools in America based on AP test scores.[1]

Contents

[edit] Academics and activities

[edit] Academics

SHS Football Field and Track

Saratoga High is locally known for its rigorous academic program. 98% of graduates go on to college or technical school. In 2005, 98% of the students took the SAT with a mean of 1283. In 2006, 908 AP exams were taken with 89% receiving qualifying scores. 23% of the class of 2007 were semifinalists or commended students in the National Merit Scholarship Program [1]. In 2003, the school's California State Academic Performance Index (API) score was 911, the leading score among all comprehensive public schools in the State of California. The school's 2005 API score was 914 [2], its 2009 API score was 933 [3], and its 2010 API score was 931 [4]. Its long time athletic rival is Los Gatos High School and its academic rivals are Lynbrook High School, Gunn High School and Monta Vista High School. Many of Saratoga's alumni have gone on in droves to UC schools, Ivy League schools and other top schools. It is common for students to apply to Stanford University, Harvard University, Yale, Princeton, Penn, and MIT. In recent years, five Saratoga High alumni have been awarded the Rhodes Scholarship [5].

[edit] Music Department

Saratoga High School is well known for its award-winning and accomplished Music Department. The Music Department is under the supervision of department chair Michael Boitz, who directs the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, the Saratoga Symphony Orchestra, and the Saratoga Strings. Other faculty members include teacher Seth Jones (Symphonic and Jazz band director), Jim Yowell, Choir director, and administrative assistants Janet Verson and Takako Hasegawa.

The Saratoga High School Music Department travels to world events every three years. In 2006, the band, choir, and orchestra went to Australia to perform in the Sydney Opera House. The tour band premiered "The Sails of Time" by David Gillingham. Past events include performing in Europe (2009),(2003) and Hawaii (2000). The Saratoga High School Choir will travel to Italy in the summer of 2012. In 2010, the Saratoga Strings and the Saratoga Wind Ensemble was invited to be featured performers on March 8, 2011 at the 2011 New York Wind Band Festival. They performed in the Evening Showcase Concert at Carnegie Hall in New York. On May 13, 2011, it was announced at the high school that the Saratoga High Marching Band had been selected to perform in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2012.[2]

[edit] Marching Band

The Saratoga High School marching band currently has 220+ members, which is over 15% of the school population. In the Western Band Association (WBA) Championships in 2006; The Saratoga High School Marching Band competed and advanced into finals competition for the first time where they placed in State.

In 2007, the marching band purchased new uniforms, breaking the 20 year tradition of its previous uniform. The new uniforms are in the color red, white, and black, replacing the colors of the venerated 20 year old uniforms, which were red and cream.

The band director for the Saratoga High School Marching Band is Michael Boitz, a student favorite.

Year Show WBA Class Championship 5A Prelims WBA Grand Championship Finals
Placement Score Placement Score
2005 "The Wind and the Lion" 10th 83.25 * –
2006 "The Process of Invention" 8th 84.80 10th 83.89
2007 "Boundless" 6th 88.05 8th 87.40
2008 "Mirror Images" 9th 86.44 11th 87.08
2009 "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" 6th 89.85 6th 89.00
2010 "Thoughtcrime" 6th 88.70 ^ –
2011 "In the Beginning" 4th – 5th –

* = Did not Advance to Finals

^ = Rained Out

[edit] Chess Team

At the 2005 National Grade Level Chess Championships in Houston, the 9th graders were national champions, led by team captain Jeff Young, and the 10th graders took second [6][7]. At the 2006 National High School Chess Championships in Milwaukee, the school chess team placed 3rd out of more than 50 teams from across the nation. David Chock beat the then IM Alex Lenderman, and Jeff Young beat IM Salvijus Bercys to make the two largest upsets of the tournament. The team has won the NorCal State Championship 6 consecutive years (2004–2010) which is a record for state tournaments. In 2008 the Saratoga player Jeff Young tied for 1st at the individual level to secure a team win. The most recent win came in April, 2010 when SHS edged out Mission San Jose in the last round and won the record 6th consecutive State Championship [8][9].

[edit] Sports and Athletics

Because of neighbor complaints, American football lights have been slow to come to Saratoga High's football field until recently. In the past, the team has had to play at Los Gatos High School. In April 2006, the Trustees of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District approved permanent lights for the football field [10]. The lights were first used in the Fall of 2006.

SHS football is known for its yearly rivalry with Los Gatos High School. In 1983, LGHS began a 27-year winning streak that SHS has tried to end year after year. On October 22, 2010, history was made; SHS's 27-year losing streak ended when the Saratoga Falcons defeated the Los Gatos Wildcats 21-17. This event was momentous all around the community and even Seattle Seahawks' head coach, Pete Carroll, gave the Falcons a shoutout from his Twitter, saying "congrats to the saratoga falcons for beating los gatos 21-17 last night... 1st win over los gatos in 29 years!"

Saratoga Football has won 5 CCS championships: 1973, 1976, 1980, 1987, 1996.

SHS Baseball won a division II CCS championship in 1999.

The golf team has won six league titles in the last seven years, and is currently on a five-year winning streak. The boys tennis team won the league title in 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2008. The badminton team held the league title for three consecutive years, from 2003 to 2005.

The cross country team has seen success in its past in both the women's and men's teams with state champions William Kraemer and Alicia Follmar

Saratoga Falcons

In 2009, the girls' varsity tennis team defeated rival Monta Vista High School 5-2 for their first CCS championship in the history of the tennis program.

[edit] Drama Department

Saratoga High School has a strong and talented Drama Department. The Drama class is taught by Karin Babbitt. The Department produces a Fall Play and a Spring Musical every year, each directed by an outside director. The most recent Fall Plays have been Our Town, On the Razzle, and Romeo and Juliet. The past three Spring Musicals have been Jekyll & Hyde, Anything Goes, and Grease.

Saratoga High School is also home of International Thespian Society Troupe #6354. Every year, the members of Troupe #6354 travel down to Ontario and participate in multiple events at the Southern California Thespian Conference. The Drama Club now has a website for members to stay informed about the program.[3]

[edit] McAfee Performing Arts and Lecture Center

McAfee Performing Arts and Lecture Center at Saratoga High School.

The McAfee Performing Arts and Lecture Center, a community facility, was recently completed on the campus. It was originally planned for the early 1960s but construction was postponed and the funds used for seismic upgrades to the Los Gatos campus. Public and private funds were raised 40 years later and it was scheduled to open in early-2004, but budget and construction delays pushed the completion date back to August, 2005. The center is named after Saratoga residents Eric and Marguerite McAfee, who donated $1 million towards its construction. The lecture center is now being operated by Adrian Stapleton, a stage tech director. [11]

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] Principals

  • Vernon Trimble (1959–1971)
  • Donald Brand (1971–1980)
  • Tod Likins (1980–1990)
  • Patricia Dickson (1990–1993)
  • Kevin Skelly (1993–2004)
  • Bill Richter (interim) (2004–2005)
  • Harry Bettencourt (interim) (2005)
  • Jeff Anderson (2005-2012)

[edit] Assistant Principals

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
  • Gerald Zapelli (1959–1976)
  • Karen Hyde (1977–2012)Special Ed, Activities, and Community Service
  • Henry Rogalsky (1980–1990)
  • Jerry McClosky (1990–1996)
  • John Martin Nichols (2000–2002)
  • Dan Fowler (2002–2003)
  • Brian Safine (2003–2005, 2008–present) In charge of Guidance and Curriculum
  • Gail Wasserman (2004–2008)
  • Markus Autrey (2005–2006)
  • Joe Bosco (2006–2010) Was in charge of Athletics, Facilities, Discipline, Attendance
  • Chris Cerbone (August 2010-December 2010) Was in charge of Athletics, Facilities, Discipline, Attendance
  • Kevin Mount (2011–Present) In charge of Athletics, Facilities, Discipline, Attendance

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b http://education.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-high-schools/listings/california/saratoga-high-school
  2. ^ http://saratogamusic.org/documents/2011nywbf/1-2011_SHS_NYWBF_Invitation.pdf
  3. ^ http://groups.google.com/group/thespiantroupe6354

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 37°15′58″N 122°1′44″W / 37.26611°N 122.02889°W / 37.26611; -122.02889

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