South Pasadena High School (SPHS or "South Pas") is the one public

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

serving grades 9-12 in the city of South Pasadena, California. With the South Pasadena Middle School and three elementary schools (Arroyo Vista, Marengo, and Monterey Hills) it makes up the South Pasadena Unified School District. Established in 1906, it is the only public high school in South Pasadena. The campus is on the west side of the city on Fremont Avenue. The school contains several main academic buildings, a performing arts auditorium, a swimming pool, two sets of tennis courts, two indoor gymnasiums, a 400-m outdoor track, and three athletic fields. The school's motto is "Scholarship, Leadership, Strength, and Fair Play." The school colors are orange and black, and the mascot is a tiger.

History

SPHS opened in 1906 after South Pasadena residents approved a measure to construct a public high school. Until 1955, South Pasadena High School was known as South Pasadena-San Marino High School and served both cities. San Marino opened their own high school in 1955.

Athletics

The school offers a variety of sports such as baseball, volleyball, football, water polo, basketball, cross country, soccer, track and field, tennis and others. A new athletic director, Anthony Chan, was hired in 2019. The football field at South Pasadena High School is known today as Ray Solari Stadium in honor of the former football head coach, where South Pasadena High's football team plays their home games. It is also used for boys and girls' soccer teams and for track and field meets and it is used for the graduation ceremonies as well.

Partnership

The school was one of the first to work with the

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and the mobile Sports Analysis Lab, to help demonstrate how data is collected, evaluated and assessed to study athletes

biomechanics Biomechanics is the study of the structure, function and motion of the mechanical aspects of biological systems, at any level from whole organisms to organs, cells and cell organelles, using the methods of mechanics. Biomechanics is a branch o ...

Recognition and awards

In 2019 the school was recognized due to its U.S. News & World Report ranking. It was ranked #1 in California's 41st State Assembly District, #87 in the state and #622 out of 17,000 public high schools within the United States, placing in the top 5% of schools nationwide. It was also ranked #675 out of 5,000 by

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for the top STEM high schools of 2019.

Notable alumni

* Steven Alvarez – actor/business entrepreneur * William Bradford Bishop – Former United States Foreign Service officer, accused murderer and wanted fugitive * Alison Brie – actress * John Bush – Professional Musician, Singer for the band

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- California Assemblyman and Senator * John Gabbert – Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeals * Bobby Garrett – former NFL player * John Hart – actor * George Hodel – physician accused of 1947 murder of Elizabeth Short, a.k.a. the

Black Dahlia Elizabeth Short (July 29, 1924 – January 14–15, 1947), known posthumously as the Black Dahlia, was an American woman found murdered in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles on January 15, 1947. Her case became highly publicized o ...

, and of committing several additional murders * William Holden - (William Beedle) – actor *

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- former Major League Baseball player *

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- novelist, writer and reviewer for national and international publications * Bob Long – former NFL player * Mary Bono Mack – politician * Adrian Picardi – director *

Bronson Pinchot Bronson Alcott Pinchot (; born May 20, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Balki Bartokomous on the ABC sitcom '' Perfect Strangers'' (1986–93). He also performed in films, such as '' Risky Business'' (1983), ''Beverly Hil ...

– actor * Ward Ritchie – master printer, book designer * Noelle Scaggs – singer (Fitz and the Tantrums) * Shanice – singer * Leslie Smith - fighter *

Hilary Swank Hilary Ann Swank (born July 30, 1974) is an American actress and film producer. She first became known in 1992 for her role on the television series '' Camp Wilder'' and made her film debut with a minor role in ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1992 ...

– actress *

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– actor *

Kristinia DeBarge Kristinia Jamie DeBarge (; born March 8, 1990) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. DeBarge first appeared on national television in 2003 as a contestant on the ''American Idol'' spin-off, '' American Juniors''. In 2009, DeBarg ...

– singer * Chris Spencer – actor/director/comedian

References

External links

South Pasadena High School
{{authority control South Pasadena, California Art Deco architecture in California High schools in Los Angeles County, California Public high schools in California 1906 establishments in California