Santa Cruz High School
Santa Cruz High School is a comprehensive public school in Santa Cruz, California which originally opened in 1897 and now serves an enrollment of about 1,040 students in grades nine through twelve. It is part of the Santa Cruz City School District. The school's mascot is a cardinal.
Santa Cruz High School
- Name
- Santa Cruz High School
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Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Santa Cruz High School • Address — 415 Walnut Ave. • Location — Santa Cruz, California 95060 • Type — Public • Established — 1897 • District — Santa Cruz City School District • Principal — Casey Denning • Grades — 9–12 • Athletics — Baseball, Basketball, Cheer, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Lacrosse, Marching Band, Color Guard, Jazz Band, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Track, Volleyball, Water Polo, Wrestling • Athletic Conference — CIF CCS - SCCAL • Mascot — Cardinal • Staff — 50.90 (FTE) • Ratio — 21.69 • Website — Santa Cruz High School • Enrollment — 1,104 (2023-2024) • Colors — Cardinal white White
History
History
The original Santa Cruz High School building was built in 1895 and first opened in 1897. Previously, all High School classes had been taught on the fourth floor of Mission Hill Middle School. The first class graduated at Smith's Opera House on June 7, 1878, with a total of four pupils: Evelyn Pope, Cornelia Chappelmann, John Cooper, and Underwood McCann, receiving diplomas. In 1894, a vote of 530 to 175 decided that a separate building was needed, leading its construction in 1895.
Newspaper
Newspaper
Much of the historical information known about Santa Cruz High School comes from the old school newspaper, "The Trident". First published in 1906 and edited by George Griffin (class of 1907), it gave accounts of events around the school, student opinion, activities and administration at SCHS. After the boys' Manual Training program was introduced in 1916, the Trident was printed on two small student-operated presses in the printing department. The newspaper continued at least into the 1990s. The newspaper returned in the fall of 2017, but has since ceased operations. There is also a separate Trident Building, now used to teach classes in.
Athletics
Athletics
• Fall — Winter — Spring • Football — Boys Soccer — Baseball • Cross Country — Girls Soccer — Boys Golf • Girls Golf — Boys Wrestling — Boys Lacrosse • Girls Tennis — Girls Wrestling — Girls Lacrosse • Girls Volleyball — Girls Basketball — Softball • Boys Water Polo — Boys Basketball — Swimming • Girls Water Polo — Boys Tennis • Cheer — Boys Volleyball • Flag Football — Track • Girls Beach Volleyball
Extracurricular activities
Extracurricular activities
• Illustration — Santa Cruz High School Cardinal Regiment participating in the Santa Cruz Band Review with the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk in the background
Band
Band
After being established in 1925, the band program is one of the oldest in California. The Cardinal Regiment, the Santa Cruz High School's marching band, is the only competitive marching band left in Santa Cruz County. Santa Cruz High also offers students enrolled in the marching band to join a 0-period jazz band. The band meets before school every morning and travels along with the marching band to play in various competitions and festivals, including the Santa Cruz Jazz Festival.
Drama
Drama
The Drama Club was founded c. 1912, along with the arrival of a stage in the original building. It is a student-run after-school activity that still exists today. Well known actress and alumna ZaSu Pitts participated in school theater productions while attending SCHS, between 1914 and 1915.
Notable alumni
Notable alumni
• Brendon Ayanbadejo, NFL football player (linebacker and specialist), Baltimore Ravens • Obafemi Ayanbadejo, NFL football player, fullback • Joe Brovia, baseball player for San Francisco Seals • Cornelius Bumpus, saxophonist for Steely Dan, The Doobie Brothers, and others • Jason Collins, Mavericks big wave surfer • Ashtyn Davis, NFL player for Miami Dolphins • Wes Gallagher, journalist for the Associated Press • Jeremy Green, son of Dennis Green, former Cleveland Browns director of pro personnel and ESPN analyst • Glenallen Hill, former baseball player for San Francisco Giants and other teams. Whilst playing for the Chicago Cubs, Glenallen Hill is notably the only MLB player to hit a home run onto the 5-story residential building across from the left-field wall of Wrigley Field. • Johnny Johnson, former All-Pro football player (running back) for Phoenix Cardinals and New York Jets • Leo Laporte, radio personality and host of The Tech Guy show on Premiere Radio Networks • Arthur Marcum, screenwriter of Iron Man • Robert Hale Merriman, Chief Of Staff of the Abraham Lincoln Battalion, killed in action in the Spanish Civil War • ZaSu Pitts, actress who starred in many film dramas and comedies • Joshua L. Pomer, filmmaker • Michael Shipley, television writer and producer • Oliver P. Smith, U.S. Marine four star general • Reggie Stephens, former NFL player for New York Giants • Ted Templeman, record producer • Darryl Virostko, Mavericks big wave surfer • Nat Young, WSL pro surfer.
Fire and Reconstruction
On October 1, 1913, at approximately 6:00 in the evening the school caught fire. The cause of the fire remains unknown, however the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported the following day that the blaze appeared to have broken out on the third story of the building. The alarm sounded at 6:40 pm at the firehouse and the beach, the fire department arrived on the scene, and unsuccessfully tried to combat the blaze with its singular "fire auto" and various hoses placed all around the building. Neighbors used their garden hoses from across the street, with reports of people climbing on the roofs of their houses to better aim the jets of water. The frame structure of the building and the ignition point of the fire made it extremely difficult to combat. While the firefighters made several advances, most notably by getting onto the second story balcony at the North corner of the building, they ultimately were forced to retreat. The school was deemed unsalvageable around 7:00, after the water from the fire hoses was dissolved into steam by the heat of the flames. The fire threatened neighboring homes until the building eventually collapsed in on itself. Approximately 5,000 onlookers watched the blaze, according to one source, having abandoned early efforts to salvage school property; however some things, such as 40 new typewriters, and the school records and trophies, were saved. At the time, there were 345 students attending the school and the principal was George A. Bond. For the next few years the classes were held at various locations around town, for example Bay View and Mission Hill schools, until March 17, 1914, when a vote of 5 to 1 made the decision to construct a new building in the same location. The current building was opened in the fall of 1915, is made of reinforced concrete, and contains 27 classrooms and an auditorium with a capacity of 830. It was designed by architect W. H. Weeks, of San Francisco.
World Wars and Memorial
A total of 11 former students were killed in World War I, between 1917 and 1918. In 1919, the graduating class carved the names of those alumni into the marble facing of the wall of the entry hall, as a memorial to those lost in the war. Above the names is carved the inscription, "Freedom Cometh Not Free." George A. Bond wrote a letter in the 1919 year book dedicating it, saying "Their names are carved...not only on the marble of our school walls, but on the ineffaceable marble of our memories and our hearts." In the early 1920s, eleven black walnut trees were planted around the athletic field, one for each of the alumni who died during the war. In 2008, there were tensions between neighborhood residents of Myrtle Street and the Santa Cruz City School District over plans to cut down four of the trees as part of a track renovation project for the Santa Cruz High School Memorial Track and Field. The residents argued that the trees were a valuable part of the school's history and the plans should be altered to accommodate them, whereas the District argued that it would cost too much money and the trees, which showed indications of interior rot, would have to be cut down anyway. As of 2009, two of the trees had been removed, with plans for the removal of the remaining two of the original four disputed trees, much to the displeasure of several members of Veterans of Foreign Wars, who saw it as breaking a "covenant" made when the trees were planted. After WWII, a second memorial was constructed along the same wall as the first, listing the names of the students who had fallen in service. Each year, these students' biographies and photos, as well as those of women who served but were unharmed in the war, are placed next to the names upon the wall.
Woman's Honor Society
The Woman's Honor Society (or Girl's Honor Society, as it was known until 1989), was founded in 1922. It still exists at Santa Cruz High School today.
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Santa Cruz High School, revision 1368107045 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.National Center for Education Statistics. Santa Cruz High.
- 2.0512. www2.santacruzpl.org.
- 3.Archived copy.
- 4."High School Burns to the Ground." Santa Cruz Morning Sentinel 2 Oct. 1913: 1. Print.
- 5.Archived copy.
- 6.Young, Ann. Santa Cruz County History - Santa Cruz Public Libraries. www.santacruzpl.org.
- 7.History of Santa Cruz High School SCHS Alumni Association. santacruzhighschoolalumni.com.
- 8.Bond, G. A. "Presentation of Memorial." Letter to Year Book. 1919. MS. Santa Cruz High School, Santa Cruz, California.
- 9.Brown, J.M. Neighbors intent on saving memorial grove of walnut trees in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz Sentinel. September 8, 2008.
- 10.Brown, J.M. Veterans miffed over memorial trees felled for track. Santa Cruz Sentinel. August 13, 2009.
- 11.Young, Ann. Santa Cruz County History - Santa Cruz Public Libraries. www.santacruzpl.org.
- 12.Location/Maps - Santa Cruz High School. schs.sccs.net.
- 13.Young, Ann. Santa Cruz County History - Santa Cruz Public Libraries. www.santacruzpl.org.
- 14.Matheson, Andrew. Super Bowl 50: Brendon Ayanbadejo delivers ball, golden message to Santa Cruz High. Santa Cruz Sentinel. February 6, 2016.
- 15.Cornelius Bumpus, 58, Rock Saxophonist. The New York Times. February 5, 2004. 0362-4331.
- 16.Santa Cruz's Ashtyn Davis hurdles adversity, ready for next step NFL Draft. Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2020-04-22.
- 17.Grasso, Allen. “Old timer keeps tabs on past.” Cabrillo Times and Green Sheet. 1977-04-21. SCPL Local History.
- 18.Local Roundup: SC alum Green faces child porn charge. Santa Cruz Sentinel. July 10, 2010.
- 19.Seimas, Jim (June 10, 2019). "Glenallen Hill Jr. to sign pro baseball contract with Arizona, forgo college ball at Arizona State". Santa Cruz Sentinel.
- 20.Sports Highlights of the Decade. Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2010-01-03.
- 21.Writer, Gary Swan, Chronicle Staff. Johnny Johnson May Sign Soon. SFGATE. 1995-11-07.
- 22.The Adventures of Wardo. Surfer. July 22, 2010.
- 23.Three time Maverick"s champion Darryl "Flea" Virostko announces retirement. Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2012-01-08.
- 24.Top ranked surfer Nat Young talks to Aptos students about perseverance. Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2016-03-01.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 26 September 2026.
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