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San Rafael High School

Coordinates: 37°58′15″N 122°30′48″W / 37.97083°N 122.51333°W / 37.97083; -122.51333[1]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
San Rafael High School
Address
Map
150 Third St.

,
94901
Coordinates37°58′15″N 122°30′48″W / 37.97083°N 122.51333°W / 37.97083; -122.51333[1]
Information
School typePublic, High school
MottoesSan Rafael High School main building
Founded1888
School boardSan Rafael City Schools Board of Education
School districtSan Rafael City Schools
OversightWestern Assn of Schools and Colleges, Accrediting Commission for Schools
SuperintendentMichael R. Watenpaugh
AdministratorJoe Ryan Dominguez
Assistant PrincipalsShannon Erby
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,265 (2022–23)[2]
LanguageEnglish, Spanish (ELD program)
AreaCentral Marin County
Campus typeSuburban
Color(s)  Red and
  White
Team nameBulldog
RivalTerra Linda High School
Communities servedSan Rafael, California Park, Peacock Gap, Point San Pedro, The Canal, Santa Venetia
Feeder schoolsSan Rafael Elementary School District
  • Davidson Middle School and Gallinas/Venetia Valley Middle School
    • Bahia Vista Elementary School
    • Coleman Elementary School
    • Glenwood Elementary School
    • Laurel Dell Elementary School
    • San Pedro Elementary School
    • Sun Valley Elementary School
Affiliationnone
Websitehttp://sanrafael.srcs.org/
San Rafael City Schools, SRHS Demographics
San Rafael City Schools, Our Schools

San Rafael High School is a public high school located at 150 Third St. in San Rafael, California, United States.

The school is part of the San Rafael City Schools school district. Its official nickname is the Bulldog; however, its athletic teams have been known casually as the Dawgs since the mid-1980s.

The school is located on a 33-acre (130,000 m2) campus in central San Rafael.[3]

Residents of the high school district may choose either San Rafael High or Terra Linda High School.[4] The high school district includes San Rafael, Santa Venetia, Lucas Valley-Marinwood, and a portion of Larkspur.[5]

History

[edit]

San Rafael High School opened in 1888. The school's current campus opened in 1924.[3]

Benny Bufano's 1940 statue of Louis Pasteur in stainless steel and granite,[6][7] said to be the site of the original 1971 420 gatherings.

The school is cited as the 1971 origin of the time and codeword 420 in cannabis culture. Originally "420" served as a code word for "The Waldos", a group of students who would meet in front of the 1940 Benny Bufano statue of Louis Pasteur at 4:20 p.m. to smoke marijuana, both near the statue and at other clandestine locations on campus grounds. The "420" moniker was in widespread use on campus during the 1974–1976 timeframe by the school stoner community. As the usage spread, the original connotations of the term "420" faded away.[8]

San Rafael High School served as the setting for the video of the 1984 power ballad "Sister Christian" by Night Ranger.[9]

KSRH is the school's radio station, which is completely operated by students. The station broadcasts with 10 watts of power on 88.1 FM and 107.3 Cable FM. The station takes requests during school hours at (415) 457-KSRH.[citation needed]

Facilities at the school were upgraded with funds from bond measures passed in 1999 and 2002.[citation needed]

Beginning with the 2001–2002 school year, San Rafael High School moved to an A/B rotating block schedule.[citation needed]

In 2006, the school scored 680 on the Academic Performance Index (API), the California Department of Education’s program for measuring school accountability. It also passed all Adequate Yearly Performance (AYP) criteria required by the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001.[citation needed]

In September 2008, the school served as a primary location for the independent feature film The Prankster. School was in session while filming took place and some students and teachers had background roles in the movie. Former principal Judy Colton had a small speaking part with Kurt Fuller, who played Dean Pecarino in the film.[citation needed]

In 2019 construction began on a new two-story building to house the school's administrative offices, a kitchen, general student commons area and classrooms along with support spaces for Madrone High School, a continuation high school on the campus of San Rafael High School.[citation needed]

Notable alumni

[edit]

Professional baseball

Professional football

Stage and screen

Miscellaneous

  • Harold Haley (1922) - former Marin County Superior Court Judge
  • Eleanor Garatti (1928) - Swimmer, Olympic Gold Medal winner in 1928 and 1932; 1929 world record in the 100-meter freestyle
  • Nikki Tyler (1990) - Adult film actress

References

[edit]
  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: San Rafael High School
  2. ^ "San Rafael High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
  3. ^ a b San Rafael City Schools
  4. ^ "School Attendance Boundary Information". San Rafael City Schools. Retrieved 2023-04-29. What about High School?[...]
  5. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Marin County, CA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2023-04-28. - Text list - The Miller Creek Elementary School District is listed as the "Dixie Elementary School District."
  6. ^ "Daily Independent Journal from San Rafael, California". November 20, 1954. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  7. ^ Chronicle, San Francisco (1962). The San Francisco Chronicle Reader. McGraw-Hill. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  8. ^ Snopes.com, "420"
  9. ^ Night Rangers revisit 'Sister Christian' and San Rafael November 11, 2005|By Carolyn Jones, San Francisco Chronicle https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Night-Rangers-revisit-Sister-Christian-and-San-2595773.php
  10. ^ San Rafael City Schools, Board Members, accessed March 23, 2008