Van Nuys High School
| Van Nuys High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| 6535 Cedros Avenue, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California 91411 |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1914 |
| Principal | Dr. Judith Vanderbok |
| Campus | Country |
| Color(s) | Crimson, Grey |
| Website | Official website |
Van Nuys High School (VNHS) established in 1914, is a high school in the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles, California, belonging to the Los Angeles Unified School District: District 2. The school is home to a Residential Program and three Magnet Programs: Math/Science, performing arts, and Medical.
Several neighborhoods, including much of Van Nuys, portions of Sherman Oaks, Magnolia Woods,[1] and Victory Park,[2] are zoned to this school.
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[edit] History
Van Nuys High School opened in 1915, four years after Van Nuys was established.[3] For years, the only high schools in the Valley were Van Nuys, Owensmouth (now Canoga Park), San Fernando, and North Hollywood. The main buildings and auditorium date from the 1930s.[citation needed]
The Los Angeles Unified School District ordered Van Nuys High School to convert to year-round scheduling in 2001 due to reasons such as overcrowding. Even though it relieved the overcrowding of Van Nuys High School, the Magnet Programs separated tracks, along with the residential students. The Performing Arts Magnet and the Medical Magnet were only available on the A-Track Schedule, while the Math and Science Magnet was only available on the C-Track Schedule. B-Trackers could not take the same classes as C-Trackers, while C-Trackers could only take certain A-Track classes. Teachers that had both A-Track and C-Track students were frustrated because the curriculum had to be synchronized with both tracks.
Van Nuys High School returned to the Traditional School Calendar in 2005. The switch was caused by a decline in the school population and by a new district policy to eliminate year-round schools whenever possible.
The opening of Panorama High School in October 2006,[4] relieved overcrowding at Van Nuys High School.[5]
Van Nuys High School has the highest AP passing rate in LAUSD for two consecutive years.[when?][citation needed]
[edit] Van Nuys Community Adult School
The Adult School is on the same campus as Van Nuys High School. It allows adults as well as high school students to take classes. Most Van Nuys High School students take courses in the Adult School for academic remediation. However, some take classes for Counselor-Identified High School Credit Deficiencies, while others take classes for personal necessities of flexible scheduling.
The Adult School is considered a work-at-your-own-pace program. A student can finish an entire course in just 2–3 weeks, but can take longer depending on the work effort of the student.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Paula Abdul, entertainer
- Ed Begley, Jr., actor/environmentalist
- Julie Brown, actress/comedienne/producer/singer/writer
- Vint Cerf, computer scientist, one of the "fathers of the Internet"[6]
- Stephen M. Cohen, from sex.com
- Steve Crocker, computer scientist, inventor of the RFC series[6]
- Kim Darby, actress who appeared in True Grit
- Dorothy DeBorba, actress who appeared in Our Gang
- Larry Dixon, drag car champion
- Tony Dow, actor
- Don Drysdale, National Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt, actor
- Steve Kanaly, actor
- Stacy Keach, actor
- David Klein, creator of Jelly Belly Gourmet Jelly Beans
- Bruce Kovner, financier, former hedge fund manager
- Scott Mason, Los Angeles Disc Jockey
- Marilyn Monroe, actress
- Bill Paparian, Mayor of Pasadena
- Jonathan Postel, computer scientist, one of "the giants of the internet"[6]
- Robert Redford, actor
- Ricardo Rodriguez - American professional wrestler and ring announcer
- Jane Russell, actress
- David J. Skorton, President of Cornell University
- Bob Waterfield, football player
- Alice Waters, creator of "California cuisine"
- Natalie Wood, actress
[edit] Filming on the Van Nuys High School Campus
The campus was used as a location for the 1982 movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Ridgemont High's mascot in the movie was the same as Van Nuys High School—a wolf, which remains VNHS' mascot today.
The horror films Christine and Sleepwalkers, both written by Stephen King, were filmed at Van Nuys High School.
Some perhaps less well known movies filmed at Van Nuys High include Kid 'n Play's Class Act and My Stepmother is an Alien (featuring Kim Basinger.) Parts of Grease were also filmed at VNHS. Scenes of the disney film "Starstruck" were also shot in VNHS
The Pilot episode of The Wonder Years, and several episodes of Highway to Heaven, as was The Ramones' punk rock movie classic Rock 'n' Roll High School.
The music video of Vitamin C's Graduation song was filmed at Van Nuys High School. An episode of Apple's Way 1974-1975 Vince Van Patten was filmed on the football field. An episode of Scrubs was filmed in the track field. An episode of 7th Heaven was filmed at Van Nuys High School, as was an episode of Twin Peaks.
2009 music video "About a Girl" by The Academy Is... was also filmed in Van Nuys High School.
Several episodes of the 2010 series "Parenthood" were shot in the library and quad area.
VNHS was used as the location for many of the scenes in the 80's TV series "The White Shadow".
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.latimes.com/classified/realestate/news/la-re-guide7may07,1,6749393.story?page=2
- ^ http://www.latimes.com/classified/realestate/news/communities/2005/la-re-guide19jun19,1,3052643.story
- ^ LAUSD School Profile
- ^ http://www.laschools.org/project-status/one-project?project_number=55A67308
- ^ http://www.laschools.org/news/item?item_id=3780496
- ^ a b c Hafner, Katie; Lyon, Matthew (1996). Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of the Internet. ISBN 0684812010. "Steve Crocker and Vint Cerf had been best friends since attending Van Nuys High School in L.A.’s San Fernando Valley.... While Cerf and Crocker were academic stars, Postel, who was twenty-five, had had a more checkered academic career. He had grown up in nearby Glendale and Sherman Oaks, and he too had attended Van Nuys High School, where his grades were mediocre."
[edit] External links
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