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Encinal High School

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Coordinates: 37°46′22.7″N 122°17′21.37″W / 37.772972°N 122.2892694°W / 37.772972; -122.2892694
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37°46′22.7″N 122°17′21.37″W / 37.772972°N 122.2892694°W / 37.772972; -122.2892694

Encinal High School
Location
Map
210 Central Avenue
Alameda, California 94501

United States
Information
TypePublic
Established1952
FacultyApproximately 60
EnrollmentApproximately 1,300
Color(s)Royal blue and white
MascotJet
Information(510)748-4023: Phone
(510)521-4956: Fax
Websitehttp://ehs.alamedausd.ca.schoolloop.com/

Encinal High School is a public coeducational high school serving grades 6-12. It is located in Alameda, California, United States, and is part of the Alameda Unified School District.

Threatened closure

The school was one of several in the Alameda district that was said to face closure depending on the success or failure of Measure E, a $150-per-parcel property tax increase voted on by mail-in ballot.[1] Measure E was defeated when it failed to garner the required two-thirds majority; however, the school did reopen in fall 2010.

Demographics

The student body is 23% African-American, 20% White non-Hispanic, 39% Asian, 15% Hispanic or Latino, 1% American Indian or Alaskan Native, 1% Pacific Islander, and 1% multiple ethnicity or no response, according to the California Department of Education, for the 2005-2006 school year.[2]

College and work preparation

SAT

  • 56% of students take the SAT.
  • Average SAT scores are 400 verbal and 420 math.

Continuing education

Courses offered

  • Encinal offers 14 Advanced Placement courses: Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, Economics, English Language, English Literature, Environmental Science, European History, French Language, US Government, US History, Spanish Language, Statistics, and Studio Art.
  • The school also offers five special school-to-career programs in automotive technology, child development, computer programming and technology, cosmetology, and finance and marketing

Other

  • Encinal High School has an Academic Performance Index of 7/10. However, when compared to socioeconomically similar schools, its API is a 9/10.[3]
  • Encinal is the only high school in the city of Alameda to have open-enrollment AP classes.
  • Encinal High School shared its campus with the Alameda Community Learning Center but since the 2013-2014 school year it has shared the space with the Junior Jets (a 6-8 middle school)
  • Encinal High School has an armory below its gym, where JROTC is taught. The current instructor is retired U.S. Army, 1SG William R. Allen. Students can take JROTC, in place of Physical Education. This program teaches citizenship skills, along with leadership skills and communication skills. It teaches a cadet how to become a better citizen, how to work in a team and become a leader, and public speaking skills.

Student budget protests

April 1st, 2010 budget teach-in

On April 1, 2010, about 200 students attending Encinal High School staged a "teach-in" protest in light of possible further budget cuts from the AUSD and closure of the school. Teachers and students planned a series of classes that were divided into two sessions with a break in between that included free food (from the Barbeque Club) and live music from certain Encinal staff members. Most of the classes were led by teachers, but two were taught by seniors (including a "no boundaries" music class led by Matt Ortega). The students who attended showcased their Jet Pride by participating in a variety of unique classes including how to make salt water taffy through chemistry, protest poetry and art, a music class with no musical boundaries, and cow eyeball dissection. A small point that the coordinators of this event wanted to get across was the date that was chosen for it: April 1, 2010 was the Thursday before Encinal's spring break began.[4]

March 2008 student walkouts

On March 5, 2008, about 1,000 students from Encinal High School walked out of class to protest the budget cuts for the 2008-2009 school year. The budget cuts were a result of the $4 billion budget cut approved by California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The cuts would eliminate many school sports and Advanced Placement classes, and lay off about 46 teachers. The walkout began at Encinal High where students marched to the Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) offices located on the Alameda High campus, where the 1,000 Encinal students were joined by many more students from Alameda High. After about a half-hour of chanting protests outside the District offices, AUSD superintendent Ardella Dailey invited the walking out students into the Kofman Auditorium to try to explain why the cuts were required.[5]

Text messaging technology, as well as social networking sites, such as MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube, helped the students coordinate and announce the walkout. Before they reached the district office, many Encinal students text messaged students at Alameda High. Aware of the walkout only when the Encinal students reached the district office, Alameda High officials were unable to prevent their students from leaving class.They were all marked with cleared absences.

Other student activities

Athletics

File:EHSJetsHelmet.jpg
Encinal Jets football

fEncinal High has several varsity sports, including:

  • Badminton
  • Basketball
  • Baseball
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross country
  • Football
  • Golf
  • Soccer
  • Softball
  • Swimming
  • Tennis
  • Track & field
  • Volleyball
  • Water polo

The Jets are a member of the West Alameda County Conference (WACC 12).

Encinal High, Alameda High School, and St. Joseph Notre Dame High School collectively field men's and women's rugby union teams.[6]

Partnership with Jetsetters

Jetsetters has partnered up with Encinal to provide ROP classes for students such as Drivers' Education, Dancing, and Arts & Crafts. They also have an after school program designed to help students in need.

Clubs

Sanctioned clubs at the school include:

  • Anime Club
  • Art Club
  • Badminton Club
  • Black Student Union
  • Chess Club
  • Chinese Club
  • Creative Writing Club
  • DECA
  • East African Club
  • French Culture Club
  • Filipino Club
  • Gender and Sexuality Alliance
  • Gaming Club
  • Hispanic Club
  • Interact Club
  • Jets for Jesus
  • Junior State of America
  • Key Club
  • Manga Club
  • National Honor Society
  • Philosophy Club
  • Spanish Club
  • Red Cross Youth Club
  • Vietnamese Club

Other activities

The Encinal High Jets band, the Marching Jets, is the island's only high school marching band, and is led by Band Director Armen Phelps. Throughout the year, the musicians compete in band reviews all over Northern California and hold the Island Winterguard show every March. Perhaps one of the most anticipated events is the Encinal Extravaganza of Bands, where more than 3000 musicians, guard units and spectators come to watch the marching band competitions. During the 2005-2006 school year, the band placed in the top three in every review they entered.

Encinal High School also has a rich dramatic arts program, run by Robert Moorhead. The drama department has in past years performed critically renowned productions of Les Misérables, Hamlet, and The Sound of Music. In the spring of 2006 Encinal High performed Cats. In the winter of 2007, Encinal High School performed Twelve Angry Men.

In 2008 they performed Angels in America. They were the first high school to do so, and were extremely well received. They also performed Carousel.

In 2009 they became one of the first schools in the country to perform the school edition of Rent.

In 2010 they performed the classic musical West Side Story.

In 2011 they performed their version of Seussical, a Dr. Seuss musical.

In 2012 they performed the classic musical Anything Goes.

In 2013 they performed a high school version of the musical Hair, although without the nudity of the traditional version.

In 2014 they performed the musical Hairspray.

In 2015 they performed In the Heights.

In 2016 they performed Annie.

In addition, the school has a nationally recognized JROTC program.

Miscellaneous

  • The school mascot is a Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk attack jet, a tribute to the military heritage of the town and to the now-closed Naval Air Station on the west end of the island. In 2004 there was a dispute as to whether the mascot symbolized war, and some people wanted to have it removed. The jet was not removed, after a show of support from the students and the community.
  • Most students come from the Academy of Alameda (formerly Chipman Middle School) or Wood Middle School.
  • The TV show MythBusters sometimes uses the school's facilities in its experiments, including the pool and football field. In 2006 Mythbusters held a Q&A event in Alameda to raise funds for the school.
  • Eileen Walsh, spouse of Jamie Hyneman from MythBusters, was a teacher at Encinal High School.
  • President Obama posed for a photo with Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage from MythBusters while holding an Encinal Jets hooded sweatshirt in December 2009.
  • Because of the continuing budget crisis in California, Encinal High School has been rumored to be closing within the next two years. If it remains open, it will most likely become a 6-12 school.[1]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ a b Voters face tough choice: pay up or shutdown
  2. ^ CA Department of Education, "Student Ethnicity", http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ca/other/6, 2005-2006
  3. ^ CA Department of Education, "API Index", http://www.greatschools.net/modperl/achievement/ca/6, 2005-2006
  4. ^ Encinal students stage learn-in April 2, 2010
  5. ^ Student Walkout In Alameda Over Budget Cuts, March 5, 2008
  6. ^ "Alameda Rugby".
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