Hillsdale High School (San Mateo, California)

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Hillsdale High School
Hillsdale High School Logo.jpg
Address
3115 Del Monte Street
San Mateo, California 94403
United States
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Information
Type Public Secondary
Established 1955
Principal Jeff Gilbert
Faculty 77 [1]
Number of students 1,349 (2014-2015) [2]
Campus Suburban
Color(s) Columbia Blue, Scarlet Red
         
Mascot Fighting Knight
Rival Aragon High School
Website

Hillsdale High School is a public high school in San Mateo, California serving grades 9–12 as part of the San Mateo Union High School District. Hillsdale generally serves the residents of San Mateo and Foster City. Feeder schools include: Abbott, Borel, Bowditch, and Bayside Middle Schools.

History

Hillsdale High School has received a number of notable awards and honors:

Campus

The original 1955 campus is noted for the model it set for other area schools, in particular the use of natural lighting, landscaping, and a combination of exterior and interior passages. SMUHSD residents approved Measure D [8] in 2000 and Measure M in 2006,[9] which directly funded the repair and modernization of District schools, including Hillsdale.

In 2003, the city of San Mateo approved funding for Hillsdale to put in Small Learning Communities (SLC's). Hillsdale is divided into six SLCs (aka "Houses"): Kyoto, Marrakech, and Florence in the 9th and 10th grades and Cusco, Jakarta, and Timbuktu in the 11th and 12th grades. The Houses are designed to be individual small schools of 200-280 students each.[10] Hillsdale's academic performance, as measured by the Academic Performance Index (API), has increased from a score of 662 in pre-SLC school year 2002-03 [11] to 818 in 2012-13,[12] exceeding the statewide API performance target of 800 for all schools.

In 2008, Hillsdale put in new batting cages for the boys baseball and girls softball teams and received a new turf field. Also, the track field was re-done as a turf field in 2008 so that football games could be played at "Home" and other sports could have access to the field as well. There are two gyms [Big (Homer P. Zugelder) and Small], and two theaters [Little Theater and Auditorium]. There are three levels of the high school, which all have accessibility ramps, and an elevator is right beside the main office.

Academic reputation

Hillsdale High School has been recognized nationally for its academic excellence. In 2013, it was ranked 711th in Newsweek's Top 2,000 Public High Schools [13] and 999th nationally by The Washington Post's ranking of "America's Most Challenging High Schools."[14]

Statistics

Demographics

2014-2015[2]

  • 1,349 students: 689 Male (51.1%), 660 Female (48.9%)
White Hispanic Asian Two or More Races Filipino African American Pacific Islander American Indian Not Reported
535 350 202 132 74 29 24 2 1
39.7% 25.9% 15% 9.8% 5.5% 2.1% 1.8% 0.1% 0.1%

Standardized testing

SAT Scores for 2013–2014 [15]
Critical Reading Average Math Average Writing Average
Hillsdale High 528 554 526
District 546 576 548
Statewide 492 506 489


2013 Academic Performance Index
2009 Base API [16] 2013 Growth API [12] Growth in the API from 2009 to 2013
774 818 44

Theatre

Hillsdale was the birthplace of Broadway by the Bay, a community theater organization originally known as the San Mateo Community Theatre. Beginning in the summer of 1963, high school and college students from throughout the Bay Area gathered at the school to perform in a series of musical productions, presented in the school's little theater. The first three productions were Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. In 1966, rehearsals were held at the school for the theater group's first musical comedy, Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, which was performed at the College of San Mateo. Beginning in 1967, performances were moved to San Mateo High School's auditorium, where they have been ever since. But if you go to the school today there is a theatre department run by the school's drama teacher and director Allison Gamlen who has been keeping traditions alive. Each school year there is a fall musical following a spring play. Recent plays include Gypsy Fall 2008, Romeo and Juliet Spring 2009, Urinetown Fall 2009, Laramie Project Spring 2010, Fiddler on the Roof Fall 2010, Princess Bride Spring 2011, Little Shop Of Horrors Fall 2011' A Midsummer Night's Dream Spring 2012, and Cabaret Fall 2012. Those performances have been directed by Gamlen but students have an opportunity to direct a One-Act in the late winter where emerging actors have opportunities to act and direct. The school also has an improv team known as the H.I.T. (Hillsdale Improvisational Theatre) Squad, led by Lisa Rowland. More info can be found at http://www.hhs.schoolloop.com/drama

Student life

There are many extra curricular activities to participate in. The school has a variety of clubs which are all student run and very active in the school's community. Clubs include:

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  • Art Club
  • Black Student Union
  • Boost Confidence Club
  • Cake and Discussion Club
  • Christian Crew
  • CSF Club
  • Drama Club
  • Engineering Club
  • Environment Club
  • ESports Club
  • Equality Club
  • Filipino Club
  • Gaming Club
  • The Hillsdale Effect
  • Improv Club
  • Jam Club
  • Kendama Club
  • Knoisy Knights
  • Latinos Unidos Club
  • Leo Club
  • Magic Club
  • Math Club
  • Mock Trial Team
  • Middle Eastern Club
  • Minecraft Club
  • Manga Club
  • Quiz Kids
  • Red Cross Club
  • Science Club
  • Science Bowl
  • SCORE Club
  • Yu-Gi-Oh Club

Along with Clubs is an array of sports. Hillsdale participates in the Peninsula Athletics League (PAL) in the following sports:[17]

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Hillsdale also has a competitive Spirit Squad (tryouts in May of the previous year.)

Notable alumni

  • Nick Vanos (d. 1987) - Former NBA player with the Phoenix Suns.
  • Billy Hardwick - Bowling Hall of Fame.
  • Valerie Fleming - Olympic Silver Medalist and World Cup Champion Bobsledder.
  • John Holdren -Scientist who is Director of the White House Office Science and Technology Policy, and a co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.[18]
  • Thomas Schumacher - Theatrical producer.
  • Karen Kraft - 2-Time Olympic Medalist in Women's Rowing.

See also

References

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  5. 2007 Distinguished Middle and High Schools - California Distinguished Schools Program (CA Dept of Education)
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  7. America's Best High Schools 2011 - Newsweek and The Daily Beast
  8. Measure D: San Mateo Union High School District Bonds For Repair and Renovation - San Mateo County, CA
  9. http://smuhsd.ca.schoolloop.com/file/1220710917877/1219362004947/4309626863391656666.pdf
  10. Hillsdale High School: About SLCs
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External links