- Mills High School
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Mills High School 
Vikings do, Viking does[citation needed]Address 400 Murchison Drive
Millbrae, California, San Mateo, 94030
United StatesCoordinates 37°35′37″N 122°23′24″W / 37.5937°N 122.3900°WCoordinates: 37°35′37″N 122°23′24″W / 37.5937°N 122.3900°W Information School type Public Established 1958 School district San Mateo Union High School District CEEB Code 051972 Principal Paul Belzer Grades 9-12 Age range 14-18 Color(s) Scarlet and Gold [citation needed] Mascot Vikings[citation needed] Newspaper The Thunderbolt (http://www.millsthunderbolt.org/) Website millshigh.org Mills High School is a public high school in Millbrae, California. It is one of seven high schools in the San Mateo Union High School District.
Mills opened its doors in 1958[citation needed] and is now known as an academically rigorous and competitive school, with the highest academic standings in the entire district. Many students take numerous advanced placement (AP) courses as well as participating in a wide variety of extracurricular activities. Mills has been going through extensive remodeling ever since 2003.
Contents
Academics and stats
Current enrollment in grades 9–12 is approximately 1,500. The academic calendar is two semesters of 18 weeks. Classes meet five days per week on a modified block schedule. Three days a week, classes are 51 minutes in duration; and on block days, the classes are 92 minutes in duration.[1]
• This year[when?], Mills received an Academic Performance Index (API) of 845.
• In 2009, Mills High School was granted a six-year accreditation through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.[1]
• In 1988, 1996, and 2009, Mills High School was designated a California Distinguished School for its innovative programs and academic excellence.[1]
• Enrollment in AP classes has grown over the past three years. Current enrollment in AP classes stands at 831. This is a 48% increase from last year's total of 563.[citation needed]
Demographics
The student population is 1% African-American, 52% Asian, 24% Caucasian, 7% Filipino, 13% Latino, 2% Pacific Islander, and 1% other.[citation needed]
The median income for a household in the city of Millbrae was $78,404, and the median income for a family was $92,061. Males had a median income of $51,867 versus $40,249 for females. The per capita income for the city was $33,193. About 2.2% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over. The majority of Mills students are Millbrae residents; others are San Bruno or Burlingame residents. The majority of Mills students come from Taylor Middle School in Millbrae, while some also come from Burlingame Intermediate School (BIS) and Parkside Middle School in San Bruno.[citation needed]
Music and entertainment
2007 Spring Musical - "The Wiz"
2007 Fall Play - "Shakespeare in Hollywood"
2008 Spring Musical - "Homeroom"
2008 Fall Play - "As You Like It"
2009 Spring Musical - "Flower Drum Song"
2009 Fall Play - "And Then There Were None"
2010 Spring Musical - "Smile"
2010 Fall Play - "Inspecting Carol"
2010 Spring Musical - "Once Upon a Mattress"
2011 Fall Play - "Acting Can Be Murder"Mills Cheerleading
On January 2011, the Mills Varsity Cheer squad had the opportunity to perform at the NFL Pro Bowl game in Hawaii. [2] [3]
Mills Robotics Team
In 1997 Mills created Team Themis to participate in the FIRST Robotics Competition. The team in 1998–1999 changed its name to the Mills Robotics Team. For three consecutive years, the team has been the recipient of the Judges’ Award at the NASA Silicon Valley Regional Autodesk Visualization Award[citation needed] in 2004 for an outstanding animation. Mills High School is the first school in its district that has a team participating in this international event.
Theme of animation
- 2006 — "How F.I.R.S.T. Inspires You"
- 2007 — "Thinking Green"
Student government and activities
Mills High School students participate in the M.S. Walk in San Francisco, including the team Angela's Angels headed by a Mills High School teacher. Mills High also has a Dragon Team that participates in the Millbrae Chinese New Year Parade and the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade.[citation needed]
The Student Government is headed by the Leadership Class which is headed by the ASB President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary. The Student Government is divided into separate committees with different responsibilities. The Homecoming dance as well as all school dances are planned by the Student Government. Each class also has a Student Council.[citation needed]
Mills has a wide variety of clubs such as Interact, Save Our World (SOW), G.A.T.E. Club, Filipino-American Alliance (FAA), Words of Wisdom, Spectrum Club, International House of Friends, Mills Dragon Team, Key Club, Mills Robotic Team (MRT), Physics Club, Red Cross, Quiz Kids, and countless others.[citation needed]
Mills High School students have also participated in the Second Annual Harvest Canned Food Drive, March of Dimes, Pennies for Patients, Pennies for Peace, and other charitable activities.[citation needed]
The Thunderbolt is Mills High School's student-run newspaper.
Scheduling
The school used to run the traditional six period day, but starting in the 2006–2007 school year, the school runs under a seven period day. This was added to allow students to fulfill graduation requirements more easily. On Monday, Thursday, and Friday, students attend all periods. Tuesday and Wednesday are block periods, and students attend odd-numbered periods on Tuesday and even-number periods on Wednesday. The only exception to this schedule is during special events, such as holidays, STAR and AP testing, where the school schedule will be modified.
In 2006–07, about two-thirds of the students attended during periods 1–6 with about one-third enrolled from 1st to 7th period. In the 2007–08 school year, about one third of students attended 1–6, one third attended 2–7, and the last third 1–7.
Notable alumni and faculty
- Larry Grenadier — Jazz bassist[citation needed]
- Gordon Lish (faculty) — Editor, author, teacher[citation needed]
- Leslie Maxie — Olympic athlete and World Youth World Record Holder / ESPN Newscaster
- Frank Portman (a.k.a. Dr. Frank) — Lead singer of the Mr. T Experience[4]
- James van Hoften (graduated 1962) — NASA astronaut[citation needed]
- Craig Venter (graduated 1964) — Biologist and businessman[citation needed]
- Adam Tafralis (graduated 2002) — Canadian Football League Quarterback[5] and San Jose State career passing yards record holder
- Nick Verreos---Fashion designer who competed on Project Runway
- Paul Fanaika - NFL Football Player
- Harry Chang Huai-chiu - vocalist of a Taiwan hip hop band - Da Mouth
- Willie Fulton - Lead guitarist of Tower of Power and a original member of The Grass Roots
- Wesley Chan - One of the three members of a popular Youtube Asian American film-making group, Wong Fu Productions
See also
References
- ^ a b c "About Mills High School". http://millshigh.org/about.html. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
- ^ Daily Journal "Representing at the Pro Bowl", San Mateo Daily Journal, January 20, 2011, accessed January 20, 2011.
- ^ Daily Journal "NFL Pro Bowl: Aloha Mills Cheerleaders", Millbrae Patch, January 21, 2011, accessed January 21, 2011.
- ^ "Famous Mills High School Alumni". Mills High School. http://www.millshigh.org/alumni2.html. Retrieved 2006-06-20.
- ^ "Tiger-Cats Football - Adam Tafralis". Hamilton Tiger-Cats. http://www.ticats.ca/roster/show/id/2007. Retrieved 2006-10-12.
External links
High schools Continuation schools PeninsulaAlternative schools Closed schools Categories:- High schools in San Mateo County, California
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