Encinal High School
Encyclopedia
Encinal High School is a public coeducational high school serving grades 9-12. It is located in Alameda, California
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...

 and is part of the Alameda Unified School District
Alameda Unified School District
The Alameda Unified School District serves the city of Alameda, California USA.The school district is a "unified" district , meaning that it includes K-8 schools and high schools in the same jurisdiction. As with all California school districts, it is not a part of the city government of Alameda...

.

Threatened closure

The school was one of several in the Alameda district that was said to face closure depending on the success or failure of Measure E, a $150-per-parcel property tax increase voted on by mail-in ballot. Measure E was defeated when it failed to garner the required two-thirds majority; however, the school did reopen in fall 2010.

Demographics

Encinal High is very ethnically diverse, with a student body which is 23% African-American, 20% White non-Hispanic, 39% Asian, 15% Hispanic or Latino, 1% American Indian or Alaskan Native, 1% Pacific Islander, and 1% Multiple Ethnicity or No Response, according to the California Department of Education
California Department of Education
The California Department of Education is a California agency that oversees public education. The department oversees funding and testing, and holds local educational agencies accountable for student achievement...

 for the 2005-2006 school year.

Continuing education

  • 86% of graduates will attend two or four year colleges.
  • 21% of graduates will attend UC's
    University of California
    The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...

    .
  • 25% of graduates will attend CSU's
    California State University
    The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...

    .

Courses offered

  • Encinal offers 14 Advanced Placement courses: Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, Economics, English Language, English Literature, Environmental Science, European History, French Language, US Government, US History, Spanish Language, Statistics, and Studio Art.
  • The school also offers five special school-to-career programs in automotive technology, child development, computer programming and technology, cosmetology, and finance and marketing

Other

  • Encinal High School has an Academic Performance Index
    Academic Performance Index
    The Academic Performance Index is a measurement of academic performance and progress of individual schools in California, United States. It is one of the main components of the Public Schools Accountability Act passed by the California legislature in 1999...

     of 6/10. However, when compared to socioeconomically similar schools, its API is a 9/10.
  • Encinal is the only high school in the city of Alameda to have open-enrollment AP classes.
  • Encinal High School shares its campus with the Alameda Community Learning Center
    Alameda Community Learning Center
    The Alameda Community Learning Center , formerly Arthur Andersen Community Learning Center, is a 6th-12th grade charter school located in Alameda, CA, sharing a campus with Encinal High School...

    ; a charter school that offers an alternative way of learning.
  • Encinal High School has an armory below its Gym, which teaches JROTC. The current instructor is retired U.S. Army, 1SG William R. Allen. Students can take JROTC, in place of Physical Education. This program teaches citizenship skills, along with leadership skills and communication skills. It teaches a cadet how to become a better citizen, teaches a cadet how to work in a team and become a leader, as well as teaches cadets public speaking skills.

April 1st, 2010 budget teach-in

On April 1, 2010, about 200 students attending Encinal High School staged a "teach in" protest in light of possible further budget cuts from the AUSD and closure of the school. Teachers and students planned a series of classes that were divided into two sessions with a break in between that included free food (from the Barbeque Club) and live music from certain Encinal staff members. Most of the classes were led by teachers, but two were taught by seniors (including a "no boundaries" music class led by Matt Ortega). The students that attended showcased their Jet Pride by participating in a variety of unique classes including how to make salt water taffy through chemistry, protest poetry and art, a music class with no musical boundaries, cow eyeball dissection, and many more. A small point that the coordinators of this event wanted to get across was the date that was chosen for it: April 1, 2010 was the Thursday before Encinal's Spring Break began.

March 2008 student walkouts

On March 5, 2008, about 1,000 students from Encinal High School walked out of class to protest the budget cuts for the 2008-2009 school year. The budget cuts were a result of the $4 billion budget cut approved by California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....

. The budget cuts would eliminate many school sports, Advanced Placement classes, and lay off about 46 teachers. The walkout began at Encinal High where students marched to the Alameda Unified School District
Alameda Unified School District
The Alameda Unified School District serves the city of Alameda, California USA.The school district is a "unified" district , meaning that it includes K-8 schools and high schools in the same jurisdiction. As with all California school districts, it is not a part of the city government of Alameda...

 (AUSD) offices located on the Alameda High campus, where the 1,000 Encinal students were joined by many more students from Alameda High. After about a half hour of chanting protests outside the District offices, AUSD superintendent Ardella Dailey invited the walking out students into the Kofman Auditorium to try to explain why the cuts were required.

Text messaging
Text messaging
Text messaging, or texting, refers to the exchange of brief written text messages between fixed-line phone or mobile phone and fixed or portable devices over a network...

 technology, as well as social networking sites, such as MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....

, Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...

, and Youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 helped the students coordinate and announce the walkout. Before they reached the district office, many Encinal students text messaged students at Alameda High. Aware of the walkout only when the Encinal students reached the district office, Alameda High officials were unable to prevent their students from leaving class.They were all marked with cleared absences.

Athletics

Encinal High has several Varsity sports, including:
  • Badminton
  • Basketball
  • Baseball
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross Country
  • Football
  • Soccer
  • Softball
  • Swimming
  • Tennis
  • Track & Field
  • Volleyball
  • Water Polo


The football team: Joe Tenorio is head coach. In his first year, Tenorio had a rocky start going 2-8 on the year, but since then has rebounded with a 9-3 season and was 10-0 in Encinal's debut in its new athletic league the BSAL. In 2008 the Jets were rewarded a number 1 seed for the playoffs, the highest in school history. The Jets wrapped up their 2008 season by defeating Novato High School 35-28 in the NCS championship game, their first championship since 1980. QB Jonathan Brown was named MVP.

The Jets are a member of the Bay Shore Athletic League (BSAL).
  • Encinal High, Alameda High School
    Alameda High School
    Alameda High School is a public coeducational high school serving grades 9-12. It is located in Alameda, California and is part of the Alameda Unified School District.- History :...

    , and St. Joseph Notre Dame High School
    St. Joseph Notre Dame High School
    St. Joseph Notre Dame High School in Alameda, California is a coeducational Roman Catholic high school. It is one of the few Catholic high schools in the world to possess an on-campus minor basilica, the Basilica of St. Joseph, Alameda. It is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and...

     collectively field men's and women's rugby union
    Rugby union
    Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

     teams.

Partnership with Jetsetters

Jetsetters has partnered up with Encinal to provide ROP Classes for students such Drivers' Education, Dancing, and Arts & Crafts. They also have an after school program where it's designed to help out students in need.

Clubs

Sanctioned clubs at the school include:
  • Afghan Club
  • Anime Club
  • Art Club
  • Barbeque Club
  • Black Student Union
  • Buddy Club
  • Chess Club
  • Chinese Club
  • Creative Writing Club
  • DECA
    DECA (organization)
    DECA, also known as Collegiate DECA on the college level) is an international association of students and teachers of marketing, management and entrepreneurship in business, finance, hospitality, and marketing sales and service . DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing,...

  • East African Club
  • French Culture Club
  • Filipino Club
  • Gay Straight Alliance
  • Gaming Club
  • Glee Club
  • Hispanic Club
  • Interact Club
  • Jets for Jesus
  • Junior State of America
    Junior State of America
    The Junior State of America is an American non-partisan student-run youth organization. It is also the largest high school student-run organization in the country...

  • Key Club
  • National Honor Society
  • Pirate Club
  • Philosophy Club
  • Spanish Club
  • Red Cross Youth Club
  • Undead Club
  • Vietnamese Club

Other activities

The Encinal High Jets band, the Marching Jets, is the island's only high school marching band, which is led by Band Director, Armen Phelps. Throughout the year, the musicians compete in band reviews all over Northern California and hold the Island Winterguard show every March of the school year. Perhaps one of the most anticipated events is the Encinal Extravaganza of Bands where more than 3000 musicians, guard units and spectators come to watch the marching band competitions. During the 2005-2006 school year, the band placed in the top three in every review they entered.

Encinal High School also possesses an extremely rich dramatic arts program. The Encinal drama department has in past years performed critically renowned productions of such classics as Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....

, Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...

, and The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...

. In the spring of 2006 Encinal High performed Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...

. In the winter of 2007, Encinal High School performed Twelve Angry Men.

In 2008 they performed Angels in America
Angels in America
Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes is the 1993 Pulitzer Prize winning play in two parts by American playwright Tony Kushner. It has been made into both a television miniseries and an opera by Peter Eötvös.-Characters:...

. They were the first high school to do so, and were extremely well received. They also performed Carousel
Carousel (musical)
Carousel is the second stage musical by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II . The work premiered in 1945 and was adapted from Ferenc Molnár's 1909 play Liliom, transplanting its Budapest setting to the Maine coastline...

and Twelve Angry Men.

In 2009 they became one of the first schools in the country to perform the school edition of Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...

.

In 2010 they performed the classic musical West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...

.

In addition, the school has a nationally recognized JROTC
Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a Federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools across the United States...

 program.

Miscellaneous

  • The school mascot is a Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk attack jet; a tribute to the military heritage of the town and to the now-closed Naval Air Station on the west end of the island. In 2004 there was a dispute as to whether the mascot symbolized war, and there were some people who wanted to have it removed. The jet was not removed after a show of support from the students and the community.
  • Most students come from The Academy of Alameda (formerly Chipman Middle School) or Wood Middle School.
  • The TV show MythBusters
    MythBusters
    MythBusters is a science entertainment TV program created and produced by Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series is screened by numerous international broadcasters, including Discovery Channel Australia, Discovery Channel Latin America, Discovery Channel Canada, Quest...

     sometimes uses the school's facilities in its experiments, including the pool and football field. Additionally, in 2006 the Mythbusters held a Q&A event in Alameda to raise funds for the school.
  • Eileen Walsh, spouse of Jamie Hyneman
    Jamie Hyneman
    James Franklin "Jamie" Hyneman is an American special effects expert, best known for being the co-host of the television series MythBusters. He is also the owner of M5 Industries, the special effects workshop where MythBusters is filmed...

     from the MythBusters
    MythBusters
    MythBusters is a science entertainment TV program created and produced by Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series is screened by numerous international broadcasters, including Discovery Channel Australia, Discovery Channel Latin America, Discovery Channel Canada, Quest...

     is a teacher at Encinal High School.
  • President Obama posed for a photo with Jamie Hyneman
    Jamie Hyneman
    James Franklin "Jamie" Hyneman is an American special effects expert, best known for being the co-host of the television series MythBusters. He is also the owner of M5 Industries, the special effects workshop where MythBusters is filmed...

     and Adam Savage
    Adam Savage
    Adam Whitney Savage is an American industrial design and special effects designer/fabricator, actor, educator, and co-host of the Discovery Channel television series MythBusters. His model work has appeared in major films, including Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and The Matrix...

     from MythBusters
    MythBusters
    MythBusters is a science entertainment TV program created and produced by Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series is screened by numerous international broadcasters, including Discovery Channel Australia, Discovery Channel Latin America, Discovery Channel Canada, Quest...

     while holding an Encinal Jets hooded sweatshirt in December 2009.
  • Because of the continuing budget crisis in California, Encinal High School has been rumored to be closing within the next two years. If it remains open, sports, music, arts, drama, and ROTC programs will most likely be eliminated.

Notable alumni

  • Willie Stargell
    Willie Stargell
    Wilver Dornell "Willie" Stargell , nicknamed "Pops" in the later years of his career, was a Major League Baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates...

     - Pirates
    Pittsburgh Pirates
    The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...

     Hall of Fame baseball player
  • Jimmy Rollins
    Jimmy Rollins
    James Calvin "Jimmy" Rollins , nicknamed "J-Roll", is an All-Star and former MVP shortstop, who most recently played for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball's National League....

     - MLB shortstop
    Shortstop
    Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

     for the Philadelphia Phillies
    Philadelphia Phillies
    The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

    ; 2008 World Series
    2008 World Series
    The 2008 World Series was the 104th World Series between the American and National Leagues for the championship of Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies as champions of the National League and the Tampa Bay Rays, as American League champions, competed to win four games out of a possible...

     Champion
  • Isaiah Rider- NBA Player & 1994 Slam Dunk Champion
  • Dontrelle Willis
    Dontrelle Willis
    Dontrelle Wayne Willis , nicknamed "The D-Train", is an American professional baseball pitcher. Willis is notable for his success during his first few years in the league and for his unconventional pitching style, which includes a high leg kick and exaggerated twisting away from the batter...

     - MLB pitcher
    Pitcher
    In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

     for the Detroit Tigers
    Detroit Tigers
    The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...

    ; 2003 NL Rookie of the Year; 2003 World Series
    2003 World Series
    The 2003 World Series marked the 99th baseball World Series event. The Florida Marlins defeated the New York Yankees in six games, 4–2.-Background:...

    Champion

External links

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