- Menlo-Atherton High School
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Menlo-Atherton High School Address 555 Middlefield Road
Atherton, California, USACoordinates 37°27′40″N 122°10′30″W / 37.46111°N 122.175°WCoordinates: 37°27′40″N 122°10′30″W / 37.46111°N 122.175°W Information Type public comprehensive Established 1951 School district Sequoia Union High School District Staff 125 Grades 9–12 Number of students 2,090 (2005) Color(s) Maroon, Gold Mascot Bear Website www.mabears.org Menlo-Atherton High School (known as M-A to locals) is a four-year comprehensive secondary school located in Atherton, California which was established in 1951. Menlo-Atherton is part of the Sequoia Union High School District.
When the school first opened on September 24, 1951, it had an initial enrollment of 1,015 students. As of 2005, the school has 2,090 students enrolled. The school mascot is the bear and the school colors are maroon and gold.
Menlo-Atherton has been named one of the top secondary schools in the nation by the United States Department of Education as part of its National School Recognition Program. It was also selected as a California Distinguished School by the California Department of Education. In 2005, Newsweek ranked the school as the 259th best school in the United States.[1] Menlo-Atherton also offers the most Advanced Placement courses in the district with sixteen, ranging from Studio Art to US History.
Since the closure of Ravenswood High School, Menlo-Atherton has been racially diverse, drawing from Atherton, Menlo Park, Redwood City, East Palo Alto, and Portola Valley. The school's motto is "Strength in Diversity."
Contents
Academics
Menlo-Atherton in 2011
Typically, 96% of graduates continue their education. Of these, 33% opt for two-year colleges, 61% go to four-year colleges, 2% go to vocational schools and 4% take a job.
MA offers the following Advanced Placement courses: Biology, Calculus AB/BC, English Composition/Language, English Literature, European History, French Language/Literature, Latin, Physics, Spanish Language/Literature, Statistics, Studio Art, and US History. It also has the Advanced Via Individual Determination program and the Computer Academy, both programs for students seeking a smaller, supportive learning environment.
Art, business, journalism, Russian literature, guitar, web design, child development, gender studies, industrial arts, computer science, piano, choir, concert band, three jazz bands, living skills, psychology, and work experience are offered as electives. In the Technology Wing, there are classes in computer science, networking, and integrated science. Students who enroll in journalism as an elective can either be a part of the Bear News, which runs the M-A Bear News website [1], or The MArk, the school's printed magazine, first released in 2010.[2]
Students taking six periods begin school at 8:45 on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays, 9:25 on Wednesdays, and 9:40 on Thursdays. Students taking seven periods begin at 7:50 on all days except for Wednesday, when they begin at 9:25. Release everyday is at 3:15.
With teacher supervision and administrative approval, a student may undertake independent study in one course. Through concurrent enrollment in local community colleges juniors and seniors take advanced and special-interest courses.[3][4]
Athletics
Menlo-Atherton offers a wide array of varsity and junior varsity level sports, including badminton, tennis, basketball, baseball, wrestling, water polo, swimming, lacrosse, soccer, cross country running, track and field, softball and volleyball.
Menlo-Atherton won the Central Coast Section title for football in 2002 and 2008.[5]
The student-run Ultimate frisbee team began in the fall of 2008. The team placed 3rd in the 2010 state finals.
All divisions of water polo and swimming are Peninsula Athletic League champions. The girls' water polo team is the Northern California champion.
The soccer team tied for first place in the Peninsula Athletic League with Burlingame High School in the 2010-2011 season.
Fine arts
The band program flourished under the band director, Frank Moura, who retired in 2010 after forty-two years of teaching. The Advanced Jazz Ensemble regularly travels to festivals around the world, including the annual Reno Jazz Festival (where it placed first in 2010) and the Montreux Jazz Festival. The band consistently places highly in competitions. With the completion of the Center for the Performing Arts in October 2009, the band now has a state-of-the-art venue to perform in.[6] The guitar and choir classes also perform in the Center.
The Center is also home to Menlo-Atherton's chapter of the International Thespian Society, usually called simply ITS among students. Currently, they put a play and a musical each year, as well as producing a Spring Arts Festival with the help of the band and choir classes. In the 2010-2011 school year, they put on Pride and Prejudice and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The latter earned them nominations for the San Jose Top Honors awards. This fall, they produced "Stage Door" to rave reviews and look forward to producing Once Upon a Mattress come springtime. ITS meets weekly to discuss upcoming events, plan field trips to see local theater, and raise money for the department. Drama Club, a separate organization, also meets weekly to watch filmed stage productions, do group improv, and work scenes at lunch.
The theater tech club helps to runs all school plays and musical performances, all well as many outside performances. These students create many aspects of school productions, such as the lighting plot, sound design and set. They are also part of ITS, as they are such an integral part of the production process.
Other extracurriculars
The school is home to nationally competitive FIRST robotics team 766. Founded in 2002, this team placed third in the 2005 nation-wide championships in Atlanta, Georgia and generally competes at the Silicon Valley Regional, the Sacramento Regional, and CalGames each year.[7]
The Menlo-Atherton Speech and Debate team competes regularly in policy and congressional debate at local and national levels.
Menlo-Atherton is the home of KCEA, a radio station specializing in big band music and high school sports.
Notable alumni
- Greg Buckingham, Olympic Silver Medalist in swimming; brother of Lindsey[8]
- Lindsey Buckingham, singer and guitarist with rock group Fleetwood Mac[8]
- Cheryl Burke, Professional dancer on Dancing with the Stars[9]
- Greg Camarillo, NFL wide receiver (Minnesota Vikings)[10]
- Anne Cribbs, Olympic Gold Medalist in swimming, Rome 1960
- Chris Dorst, Olympic Silver Medalist in Water Polo, Los Angeles 1984
- James Gaughran, Olympic Water Polo Athlete, Melbourne 1956
- Bob Melvin, current manager of the Oakland Athletics
- Stevie Nicks, singer with rock group Fleetwood Mac
- Elizabeth Osborn, Top-ranked Woman Equestrian Vaulter United States, 2008[11]
- Dick Roth, Olympic Gold Medalist in swimming, Tokyo 1964, Olympic and World Record Holder 400IM
- Courtney Thorne-Smith, actress
- Bob Weir, singer, guitarist and founding member of The Grateful Dead[8]
- Steve Westly, Venture Capitalist, former California State Controller, 2006 gubernatorial candidate, and executive at eBay
- Richard L. Wright, political leader[8][12]
References
- ^ The 1,200 Top U.S. Schools - Newsweek America's Best High Schools - MSNBC.com
- ^ “The MArk” Day Makes a Mark
- ^ Mnelo Atherton High School: About M-A
- ^ 2009/10 M-A Fact Sheet
- ^ Menlo-Atherton beats Wilcox 39-33 for Large School Title
- ^ http://www.thecenteratma.org/?2144Nav=%7C&NodeID=90
- ^ "Robot blog: How M-A's robotics team grabbed third place in nationals". The Almanac. May 18, 2005. http://www.almanacnews.com/morgue/2005/2005_05_18.robot.shtml. Retrieved 2009-08-17.
- ^ a b c d "Menlo Atherton High School History Page 6". Menlo Atherton High School Alumni Association. http://www.mabears.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=406. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ Hunt, Mary Ellen. "Cheryl Burke: 'Dancing With the Stars' tour". SFGate.com. http://articles.sfgate.com/2008-12-14/entertainment/17132054_1_new-dance-dance-studio-cheryl-burke-dance. Retrieved 26 December 2010.
- ^ "TEAM:Roster Greg Camarillo Profile - MiamiDolphins.com". http://www.miamidolphins.com/newsite/team/roster/playerBio.asp?docid=28584. Retrieved 2008-04-26. "First-team All-Peninsula Athletic League and All-San Mateo County as senior at Menlo-Atherton High School in Menlo Park, Calif"
- ^ Wick, Carrie (July 2, 2008). "Three women with Woodside Vaulters head to world vaulting championships". The Almanac. http://www.almanacnews.com/story.php?story_id=6486. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ Bumiller, Elisabeth (August 13, 1999). "Teammate Collects Dollar Bills for Bradley". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1999/08/13/nyregion/public-lives-teammate-collects-dollar-bills-for-bradley.html?pagewanted=1. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
Categories:- Educational institutions established in 1951
- High schools in San Mateo County, California
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