Redwood High School

Coordinates: 37°56′17″N 122°31′27″W / 37.93806°N 122.52417°W / 37.93806; -122.52417^[1]

Redwood High School
Established	1958
Type	Public school
Principal	David Sondheim
Faculty	85 teachers; 9.3 FTE counselors & support staff (2010–2011)[2]
Students	1458 (2010–2011)[2]
Grades	9 - 12
Location	395 Doherty Drive, Larkspur, California, USA
Colors	Red & Grey
Mascot	Giant
Yearbook	The Log
Newspaper	Redwood Bark
Website	www.redwood.org

For other "Redwood High Schools" , see Redwood High School (disambiguation).

Redwood High School is a public secondary school located in the city of Larkspur, Marin County, California, approximately 11 miles north of San Francisco. Redwood High is part of the Tamalpais Union High School District. The school serves the cities of Belvedere, Corte Madera, Greenbrae, Kentfield, Larkspur, Ross, and Tiburon.

History

By 1957, the school age population of the Tamalpais Union High School District had grown too large for Tamalpais High School and Sir Francis Drake High School to accommodate. With the pressure of students coming in from elementary schools from Sausalito to Belvedere to Ross it was therefore put to the voters of the district to decide on a solution. The vote was to create a new school, and chosen for its site was the marshy area that extended east from the centrally located town of Larkspur to U.S. Route 101, an area that townspeople had called "the slough" since Larkspur was settled. It seemed the perfect solution. Of course, back in 1957, such things as the vital importance of wetlands were under-appreciated, therefore the land was seen as "waste." Beginning in early 1957, a large section of the marsh was flattened and filled, two roads were cut through from Magnolia Avenue out to the new school, and a playing field and parking lot were included. The first students who were to attend the new High School were allowed to choose the name of the newspaper and sports teams, choosing the Giants as their mascot in reference to the nearby redwood trees. School publications followed the tree theme: the Bark became the school's newspaper, and the Log the school's year book. The colors red and gray were a source of much contention, but were finally accepted. The school opened its doors in 1958 and in came three classes relocated from other area high schools, and one class that would graduate in 1962 thereby becoming the first class to attend all four years at Redwood.

Redwood in the news

On September 11, 2008, it was announced that Redwood had been recognized by the federal Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Redwood was recognized as a California Distinguished School in 1990. An article the local newspaper provides more information.^[3]

On May 24, 2006, Redwood gained notoriety for a prank gone wrong. Seven chickens were found dead in a school hallway. Apparently, certain seniors, intending to release 32 chickens purchased at a live market in San Francisco's Chinatown, had left them in the trunk of a hot car. A student tip led the administration and Marin's Humane Society to the "pranksters." The four students most directly involved were not allowed to participate in graduation ceremonies. The incident made it into the local newspaper, as well as several major newspapers around the country.^[4]

Campus

Redwood High School is set at the foot of Mount Tamalpais on a 63.88 acre campus which has 81 classrooms, a library, performing arts center, swimming pool, and athletics fields. The original campus was opened in 1958, with additions to the main building made over the next few years. Redwood's main school building (an original; see above) contains approximately 69 classrooms, the Bessie Chin Library, four laboratories, and the theater. Other buildings on the campus contain industrial technology areas; photography, ceramics, and graphic arts studios; band room; and a cafeteria. Other sports and perormance facilities include a large gymnasium and smaller gyms, a 40-meter swimming pool, tennis courts, a track, athletic fields, and an outdoor amphitheater.

Between 2002 and 2006, Redwood High School has been undergoing major modernization as part of a $121 million dollar facilities bond measure approved by the Tam District voters. Approximately forty million dollars have been spent to remodel classrooms, refurbish the gymnasium, swimming pool, tennis courts, and performing arts center, and install new athletics fields. In 2007-2008 Redwood rebuilt the often flooded parking lot. During the 2008-2009 school year, a new gymnasium was constructed, the 40-meter pool built, and new tennis courts laid. During the summer of 2011, an experimental classroom space was created to allow teachers the opportunity to explore new technologies, classroom management, and instructional strategies. A new Fine Arts building is planned for construction in the 2011-12 school year.^[2]

In the spring of 2006, Redwood art students created a 40-foot mural of the Marin County countryside. The mural was created on an exterior wall of the CEA (Covered Eating Area). The 100th anniversary of Larkspur, 2009, is also the 50th anniversary of Redwood High School.

Students

The following breakdown of students based on ethnicity is from 2010–2011. ^[2]

Faculty and staff

• Staff E-mail Listings & Room Information

Extracurricular activities

Sports

Fall Sports

Football (2000 MCAL Champs), Cheer and Dance, Water Polo, Cross Country, Boys Soccer (1969 MCAL co-Champs, 1970, 1999, 2001, 2008 MCAL Champs), Girls Tennis, Girls Golf, Girls Volleyball (2006 NCS Champs)

Winter Sports

Wrestling, Basketball

Spring Sports

Baseball (2002, 2003, 2010 MCAL Champs, 1977 National Champs), Softball (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 MCAL Champs; 2008 NCS Champs), Swimming & Diving (Girls 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 MCAL Champs), Track & Field (Girls 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 MCAL Champs), Boys Golf, Girls Soccer (2010 MCAL Champs, 1990, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2010 NCS Champs), Boys Lacrosse, Boys Volleyball, Boys Tennis (2005 2006 MCAL Champions. 2005 2006 NCS Champions), Girls Lacrosse (2007 2008 2009 MCAL Champions)

Club Sports

Rugby (Spring), Crew (Year-round), Mountain Biking (Spring), Ultimate Frisbee, Badminton, Sailing (Year-round), General E-sports (Year-round)

Newspaper

The student-run newspaper, the Bark, has a long history of excellence, with student writers, photographers, and graphic designers earning honors at the national level each year. Active since the school's inception in 1958, the newspaper acts as a limited public forum for its student, teacher, parent, and community audience. Circulation of the free publication reaches 2,000 each month. The newspaper's website, containing current issues as well as historical archives, can be found at http://redwoodbark.org. The paper also maintains social media links on Facebook and through mobile devices.

Music

The Music Department has two Jazz Bands, "Jazz A" (big band) and "Jazz B", two concert bands, the Wind Ensemble (adv.) and the Symphonic Band (int.), as well as two Performance Workshop classes, and a Beginning Guitar and Bass class. The Music Department usually goes on tour every year, in 2009, 2010, and 2011 it went to Yosemite NP. In 2009 and 2010 it hosted the Night of Swing as a fundraiser. In 2011 this was changed to a Night of Blues due to orchestration availability. The Department is Run by John Mattern, winner of the KDFC 102.1 Music Educator of the Year in 2006.

Theatre

Redwood's theatre company, EPiC, is student-run. It provides students with endless opportunities to create, explore, and learn in the theatre. Every year, the senior theatre students create an original one-act and enter it in the Mother Lode Festival. The piece usually wins the highest award offered at the festival, "Superior." EPiC alum have gone on to do incredible theatrical feats.

Notable alumni

• Peter Bishop Allen (Class of 1961), sculptor of marine mammals; Assistant Chief, Stinson Beach Fire Department; founder of The Kids Camp nature education program^[5][6][7]
• Michael Altman (1993), oarsman, 2004 (alternate) and 2008 US Olympic Rowing (lightweight four) teams^[8][9]
• Greg Behrendt, stand-up comedian, author, TV performer
• Buddy Biancalana, former shortstop for the Kansas City Royals^[10][11]
• Pete Carroll, current Seattle Seahawks head football coach and former USC head football coach.;^[12] a 3-sport (football, basketball and baseball) standout at Redwood High, earning the school's Athlete of the Year award as a senior^[10]
• Gabrielle Carteris, actress
• Gunnar Carlsson Professor, Department of Mathematics, Stanford University^[13][14]
• Matt Doyle, actor ^[15]
• David Dukes, Film, TV, and Broadway actor
• Alaura Eden, adult film star
• Mark Fainaru-Wada (1983), co-author of Game of Shadows ^[16][17]
• Steve Fainaru, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist of the Washington Post^[14][17][18]
• Gary Fisher, mountain bike innovator, promoter
• Ken Flax (1981), two-time olympic athlete in track and field, current holder of the NCAA American Collegiate Record in the hammer throw^[10]
• Don Francis M.D., noted US epidemiologist, pioneer in AIDS and HIV research^[14]
• Erin Gray, actress
• JR Hildebrand, Indycar Series driver and 2011 Indianapolis 500 runner-up
• Peter Horton, actor and director
• Maz Jobrani, Iranian-American comedian
• China Kantner, former MTV VJ and actress
• Chad Kreuter, former University of Southern California head baseball coach^[10][11]
• Anne Lamott, author
• Richard Laymon, author
• Matthew Leutwyler, producer, director, owner Ambush Entertainment
• John Walker Lindh, the "American Taliban^[19]
• Ki Longfellow, aka Pamela Longfellow, novelist and screenwriter, amongst other books, author of The Secret Magdalene^[20] and Flow Down Like Silver, Hypatia of Alexandria[1]
• Joan Lubamersky, former Mayor of Larkspur, CA. Member, Marin County Planning Commission
• Andy Luckey, television producer of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", "Adventures from the Book of Virtues," author and illustrator of children's books
• Lon McEachern, television host, World Seies of Poker (ESPN)
• Gavin Newsom, former mayor of San Francisco ^[14][21]
• Ned Overend, cyclist
• Eric Schmitt, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist of the New York Times ^[14][22]
• Tiffany Shlain, founder of the Webby Awards
• David Strathairn, actor, most notably for his roles in Sneakers and Good Night, and Good Luck^[14]
• Nicholas Suntzeff, US astronomer and cosmologist, Gruber Prize Laureate of 2007 for the discovery of Dark Energy and the Accelerating Universe^[14]
• Twinka Thiebaud, writer and model
• Russell Weiner, creator of Rockstar energy drink and son of talk show host Michael Savage
• Robin Williams, comedian and actor, voted "Least Likely to Succeed" in the school yearbook

References

External links

• Redwood High School Official Web Site
• Staff E-mail Listings & Room Information
• Redwood High School Instructional Guide
• School Accountability Report Card (Data from the 2010-11 School Year)
• Redwood Bark (School Newspaper)
• Redwood Mural
• Redwood Alumni Home Page