Corona del Mar High School
Encyclopedia
Corona del Mar High School is a school located in the East Bluff neighborhood of Newport Beach, California
, and belongs to the Newport Mesa Unified School District. It is a combination of a middle school (7th & 8th grades) and a high school (9th, 10th, 11th, & 12th grades).
Championships since opening in 1962, and had 48 CIF Southern Section
Runners-up. They have also won 12 California Interscholastic Federation
State Championships and had 2 California Interscholastic Federation
State Runners-up. They have had the most titles in Boy's Water polo
winning the title 13 times and being runners-up 6 times. They have won most of their state titles in Girl's Cross Country
having won 6 State Championships, with 1 Runners-up. In 2006, the girl's tennis team completed an undefeated season (28-0) and won the CIF championship. In March 2007, the boy's basketball team won their sixth CIF Championship. In June 2007, Corona del Mar won the most CIF Southern Section titles with the acquisition of the boy's volleyball and girl's cross country and track and field titles. Corona del Mar added boy's and girl's lacrosse to their sports program in 2007. In addition, CdM has both a girls and boys soccer team and a boys roller hockey team. In 2010 the Boy's soccer team won CIF Southern Section for the first time in school history. They also won the SoCal State Championship and finished ranked 2nd in the nation. In 2011 the boy's volleyball team won the Powerade Fab 50 ESPN Rise National championship trophy. The high school also competes in non-CIF sanctioned sports of sailing, crew and surfing.
The school again came to national attention in 2009 after then Principal Fal Asrani canceled the student production of Rent
. The school drama teacher, Ronald Martin, stated that he had chosen the play because he had noticed "creeping homophobia on this Orange County campus” and because “some teachers reported that they had heard [gay] slurs at school.” The ACLU lawsuit and its signatories also cited this cancellation as further evidence that homophobic bullying and sexist harassment was tolerated at the school. The production was subsequently reinstated. The opening night was marked by a demonstration by the Westboro Baptist Church
. Approximately 200 Corona del Mar students and community members conducted their own counter-protest. The school's production of Rent went on to garner national acclaim with its award-winning run and sold-out audiences.
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, south of downtown Santa Ana. The population was 85,186 at the 2010 census.The city's median family income and property values consistently place high in national rankings...
, and belongs to the Newport Mesa Unified School District. It is a combination of a middle school (7th & 8th grades) and a high school (9th, 10th, 11th, & 12th grades).
Academics
The school was established in 1962, and received a "silver" rating in 2009 by US News and World Report. In 2011, Newsweek Magazine rated CdM in the top 1% of high schools in the nation.Athletics
Corona del Mar has 81 CIF Southern SectionCIF Southern Section
C.I.F. Southern Section is the largest of the ten sections that comprise the California Interscholastic Federation . Its membership includes most public and private high schools in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Mono and Inyo counties, as...
Championships since opening in 1962, and had 48 CIF Southern Section
CIF Southern Section
C.I.F. Southern Section is the largest of the ten sections that comprise the California Interscholastic Federation . Its membership includes most public and private high schools in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Mono and Inyo counties, as...
Runners-up. They have also won 12 California Interscholastic Federation
California Interscholastic Federation
The California Interscholastic Federation is the governing body for high school sports in the state of California. It mirrors similar governing bodies in other states; however, it differs from some of the others in that it covers most high schools in the state of California, both public and...
State Championships and had 2 California Interscholastic Federation
California Interscholastic Federation
The California Interscholastic Federation is the governing body for high school sports in the state of California. It mirrors similar governing bodies in other states; however, it differs from some of the others in that it covers most high schools in the state of California, both public and...
State Runners-up. They have had the most titles in Boy's Water polo
Water polo
Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
winning the title 13 times and being runners-up 6 times. They have won most of their state titles in Girl's Cross Country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
having won 6 State Championships, with 1 Runners-up. In 2006, the girl's tennis team completed an undefeated season (28-0) and won the CIF championship. In March 2007, the boy's basketball team won their sixth CIF Championship. In June 2007, Corona del Mar won the most CIF Southern Section titles with the acquisition of the boy's volleyball and girl's cross country and track and field titles. Corona del Mar added boy's and girl's lacrosse to their sports program in 2007. In addition, CdM has both a girls and boys soccer team and a boys roller hockey team. In 2010 the Boy's soccer team won CIF Southern Section for the first time in school history. They also won the SoCal State Championship and finished ranked 2nd in the nation. In 2011 the boy's volleyball team won the Powerade Fab 50 ESPN Rise National championship trophy. The high school also competes in non-CIF sanctioned sports of sailing, crew and surfing.
Controversies
Corona del Mar High School has been described as a school that "has seen troubles and controversy usually reserved for inner-city schools". In 2009, the school settled a lawsuit brought by the ACLU on behalf of women students and LGBT students at the school. The suit accused the school of "fostering a 'sexist' and 'homophobic' atmosphere" documented in a Facebook video where three Corona del Mar football players threatened to rape and kill a female classmate and used homophobic slurs.The school again came to national attention in 2009 after then Principal Fal Asrani canceled the student production of Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
. The school drama teacher, Ronald Martin, stated that he had chosen the play because he had noticed "creeping homophobia on this Orange County campus” and because “some teachers reported that they had heard [gay] slurs at school.” The ACLU lawsuit and its signatories also cited this cancellation as further evidence that homophobic bullying and sexist harassment was tolerated at the school. The production was subsequently reinstated. The opening night was marked by a demonstration by the Westboro Baptist Church
Westboro Baptist Church
The Westboro Baptist Church is an independent Baptist church known for its extreme stance against homosexuality and its protest activities, which include picketing funerals and desecrating the American flag. The church is widely described as a hate group and is monitored as such by the...
. Approximately 200 Corona del Mar students and community members conducted their own counter-protest. The school's production of Rent went on to garner national acclaim with its award-winning run and sold-out audiences.
Notable alumni
- Debbie CookDebbie CookDeborah "Debbie" Cook is the former mayor of Huntington Beach, California, and was the Democratic candidate for California's 46th congressional district in 2008...
, 2007-2008 mayorMayorIn many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Huntington Beach, CaliforniaHuntington Beach, CaliforniaHuntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County in Southern California. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 189,992; making it the largest beach city in Orange County in terms of population... - Taylor DentTaylor DentTaylor Phillip Dent is a retired professional tennis player from the United States.-Early career and back injury:He won 4 ATP singles titles during his career: Newport , Bangkok , Memphis , and Moscow , and reached the finals of three other events on tour...
, former professional tennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player - Kevin HansenKevin HansenKevin Christopher Hansen is an American volleyball player. He made his Olympic debut at the 2008 Summer Olympics with the U.S. national team.-Personal life:Hansen was born and raised in Newport Beach, California...
, indoor volleyball Olympian - Matt KeoughMatt KeoughMatthew Lon Keough Drafted by the Oakland A's out of Corona del Mar High School in 1973. Keough is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from through for the Oakland Athletics , New York Yankees , St. Louis Cardinals , Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros...
, former MLB pitcher for the Oakland A's - Bill LeachWilliam Leach (canoer)William "Bill" Leach is an American sprint canoer who competed in the late 1970s. At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, he was eliminated in the repechages of the K-2 500 m event....
, OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
canoerCanoe racingThis article discusses canoe sprint and canoe marathon, competitive forms of canoeing and kayaking on more or less flat water. Both sports are governed by the International Canoe Federation ....
. - Brad Alan LewisBrad Alan LewisBrad Alan Lewis is an Olympic Games gold medalist. He and his rowing partner Paul Enquist won the gold medal in the double sculls at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. They were the first American rowing crew to win a gold medal since 1964. Lewis wrote the book Assault on Lake Casitas about his...
, OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medalist in rowingRowing (sport)Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water... - Leslie MannLeslie MannLeslie Mann is an American actress best known for her roles in comedic films, many of which are collaborations with her husband, Judd Apatow.-Early life:...
, Actress - Eric MarienthalEric MarienthalEric Marienthal is a Los Angeles-based contemporary saxophonist best known for his work in the jazz, jazz fusion, smooth jazz, and pop genres....
, Jazz saxophonist - Mark McGrathMark McGrathMark Sayers McGrath is an American singer of the rock band Sugar Ray. McGrath is also known for his work as a co-host of Extra, and he was the host of Don't Forget the Lyrics! in 2010...
, Lead singer of the pop / rock band Sugar RaySugar RaySugar Ray is a band from Orange County, California. The band, starting off more as an alternative metal band, first gained fame in 1997 with their release of the song "Fly". This song's success, coupled with its pop rock sound that was quite different from the rest of their material at the time,... - Joseph "McG" McGinty NicholMcGJoseph McGinty Nichol , better known as McG, is an American director and producer of film and television, as well as a former record producer....
, Film, record, and television director & producer - Kelly RutherfordKelly RutherfordKelly Danne Melissa Rutherford is an American actress known for her roles of Stephanie "Sam" Whitmore on Generations, Megan Lewis on Melrose Place from 1996 to 1999 and currently as Lily van der Woodsen on Gossip Girl...
, Actress - Brad ShermanBrad ShermanBradley J. "Brad" Sherman is an American politician. He has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1997, representing ....
, Congressman for the 27th district of California. - Susan Thomas, aka Michael SteeleMichael Steele (musician)Michael Steele is an American bassist, guitarist, songwriter, and singer. She performed with The Bangles and numerous other bands.-Career:Steele began her professional career as Micki Steele in the teen-girl band The Runaways, among the first all-female rock groups.Steele's stay in the Runaways was...
, former bass guitarist for rock band The BanglesThe BanglesThe Bangles are an American all-female band that originated in the early 1980s, scoring several hit singles during the decade.-Formation and early years :... - Jeff ThomasonJeff ThomasonJeffrey David Thomason is a former American football tight end and is currently a construction worker. He played college football at Oregon, and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1992...
, former NFL tight endTight endThe tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
for the Philadelphia EaglesPhiladelphia EaglesThe Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, Green Bay PackersGreen Bay PackersThe Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
, and Cincinnati BengalsCincinnati BengalsThe Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL... - Brian TylerBrian TylerBrian Tyler is an American auto racing driver.He was a back-to-back USAC National Sprint car Champion for Larry Contos Racing in 1996 and 1997. He made 10 starts in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series in 1998 and 1999 for 3 different teams with a best finish of 6th at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway...
, film score writer/conductor/performer for numerous movies, TV, games.