Garces Memorial High School

Garces Memorial High School
File:Garces Memorial HS Bakersfield CA.JPG
Address
2800 Loma Linda Drive Bakersfield, California, (Kern County) 93305 United States
Coordinates
Information
Type	Private, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1947
Oversight	Diocese of Fresno
Principal	Myka Peck
Grades	9-12
Average class size	26
Campus size	32 acres (130,000 m2)
Color(s)	Green Gold and White
Athletics	Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, American football, Golf, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Track & Field, Tennis, Volleyball, Diving, Water Polo
Athletics conference	Southeast Yosemite League
Mascot	Ram
Team name	Rams
Rival	San Joaquin Memorial High School, Bakersfield High School, East Bakersfield High School
Accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges
Yearbook	El Padre
Tuition	$8,985 for Catholics, $9,285 for Non-Catholics
Dean of Students	Guy Dees
Athletic Director	Joan Finch
Activities Director	Blaine Geissel
Website	http://www.garces.org

Garces Memorial High School, commonly shortened to Garces High School, is a Catholic high school in Bakersfield, California.

The school offers college prep, honors, and Advanced Placement (AP) courses in many subjects. As a Catholic institution, the high school requires theology classes for all four years. Electives include art, yearbook, and others.

The Garces sports teams, nicknamed the "Rams," compete in CIF Central Section Division I. The school has 106 valley championships, ranking it fourth all-time in the Central Section. Most notably, Garces took the 2006 valley championship in football, coached by David Fanucchi.

Clubs and activities include mock trial, the theater company, and the Key Club.

Formal and casual galas make up a major part of Garces's fundraising efforts. With help from the students, parents, alumni and the Garces community, numerous items are donated and auctioned off at these events.

History

Founded in 1947, the school is named after Father Francisco Garcés, a Spanish Franciscan friar and missionary who explored much of the southwestern part of North America, including what is now the Bakersfield region. The school is located near the terminus of the Panorama (aka China Grade) Bluffs on the exact site that Father Francisco Garces wrote would make a perfect place for a mission for the local Indian populace in his exploration of the Rio Bravo de San Felipe now known as the Kern River. This site overlooks central Bakersfield atop a bluff that was once the delta of the Kern River.

In the early years, the Dominican Sisters' Congregation of St. Thomas Aquinas taught the girls and handled the school's administration and the Brothers of the Christian Schools (Christian Brothers) taught the boys. The Christian Brothers, due to financial issues within their order, withdrew from the school in 1971 and the school became fully co-educational. In 1978 the administration of the school was taken over by the laity and is currently overseen by the Fresno Diocesan Office of Education, who also oversees Garces' main rival, San Joaquin Memorial High School of Fresno.

In 2007, Garces celebrated its 60th anniversary.

On June 14, 2008, Principal Robert Garcia died from pneumonia at age 58, three years into his tenure.

In 2014, Garces High School became the first Kern County school to implement a 1:1 iPad program.

Notable alumni

• Frank Bidart, poet
• Justin "Raymie" Meyer, winemaker (Silver Oak Cellars)
• "Jackrabbit" Joe Hernandez, former Washington Redskins & Edmonton Eskimos pro-football player
• Mary Margaret Revell, channel swimmer
• Patrick Lencioni, author
• Mike Ariey, former Green Bay Packers lineman.
• Gerald Haslam, author.
• Bob McCaffrey, former Green Bay Packers center.
• Greg Robinson, former defensive coordinator, Michigan; former head coach, Syracuse; former two-time Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator of Denver Broncos.
• Ken Ruettgers, former Green Bay Packers lineman.

External links

• Garces Memorial High School website