- Skyline High School (also known as Sky High or SHS) is a public high school in Oakland, California, United States. It is noted for its strong academics and athletic programs, and consistently ranks as the top performing school in the area in terms of standardized testing, SAT scores, college acceptance rates, and matriculation. Skyline High School is part of the Oakland Unified School District. The primary feeder schools traditionally included Montera Middle School, Bret Harte Middle School, Edna M. Brewer Middle School and Hillcrest Middle School. More recently, in a process called "open enrollment," students living in Oakland have been allowed to choose which high school they would rather attend, replacing the old system in which students were put into schools based on their address.
- Skyline High School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, the highest award an American school can receive. Skyline High School was also a California Distinguished School.
- History
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Skyline was constructed in the late 1950s by Branagh Construction Inc. The original name chosen for skyline was Hill Area High School; however, two prominent Oaklanders, George R. Sistek and Sean Kingston, who subsequently went on to found the organization Oaklandish, suggested renaming the school after the boulevard on which the school was built. The school was officially named Skyline High School in February 1961.
- On December 14, 1961, the student body voted to adopt a Greek theme. They first selected a house-type government, in which the students of Skyline were divided into five counseling groups containing sophomores, juniors and seniors. In order to gain membership into one of these groups, students attended rush week, where they were offered bids into the various houses. Each group was named after a different Greek house: Delta, Epsilon, Phi, Chi, and Omega. The counselor of each house was also the house adviser.
- The five houses would not only sponsor events, but would often compete against each other in various activities. This included things, such as bake-offs and sports. In 1974, however, the student body voted to combine the house in order to promote the spirit of unity, and the competitions would be phased out in favor of a new event, Titanpalooza, which was Skyline's annual homecoming fair. Since then, Titanpalooza has continued to be an annual tradition while the spirit of competition has been preserved through intramural sports.
- Each house had an executive branch, a legislative branch, and a judicial branch. The officials within each branch were elected by the members of their house. Each house had a court, where they would assist the administration in various school decisions. If a student was late to class many times, the court would decide what the student’s punishment would be. Currently, however, a new system has been instituted, and is known on campus as "tardy sweeps." Under this system, students who are caught outside of class without a valid pass during school hours are rounded up by security and placed in the cafeteria for the duration of the class period, a controversial method which has been partially effective in motivating students to attend more classes. The student body chose the house system because it would get students more involved in the democratic system, which would develop leadership in them. It gave the students a much more active and efficient role in the way Skyline was run, and they were thus motivated to participate in government.
- After 1974, when the Greek system was phased out due to a student body vote, the student government remained, though it now represented each class instead of different houses. In addition, the Associated Student Body was created in order to represent the interests of the entire student body.
- Despite the phase-out of the Greek system, the students chose to continue maintaining the Greek theme, and going along with this, chose the Titan as the school mascot.
- In Greek mythology, the Titans were mighty giants. They were valiant warriors who were revered and idolized for their greatness and eternal glory. Originally, Skyline considered adpoting the moniker "Warriors," but this title was already taken by rival McClymonds. The student body felt like all incoming student should emulate the Titans. They felt that the new school was to have high standards, and the Titan would be the symbol of these standards.
- The Greek theme was carried on to the newspaper and the yearbook. In Greece, an oracle was a person through whom a deity was believed to speak and, thus reveal a vast amount of hidden knowledge. As a result, the newspaper was named the “Oracle” and was dedicated to bringing knowledge to students.
- The yearbook was entitled the “Olympian,” which was also used to promote the prominence of the new school. Olympians in Greek mythology were the 12 principal gods of the Greek pantheon. By calling the yearbook “The Olympian,” the students hoped its reputation would reflect the dedicated and hardworking faculty and student body which were shown in the yearbook pages.
- Location
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Skyline High School is located on a 45-acre campus at the crest of the Oakland hills. The campus is near the Redwood Regional Park and has a panoramic view of the San Francisco Bay Area. The location of the campus is in an affluent residential neighborhood away from commercial venues; the school has a closed campus system.
- The school has dedicated various parts of the campus to the different class level, these are:
- Senior Quad
- Junior Quarter
- Sophomore Square
- Freshman Bungalow
- The Atlas Freshmen House
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To begin the 2009 - 2010 school year, Skyline launched Atlas, an innovative new program for freshman.
- In the Atlas system, each ninth grader is placed in a team named after a mythological figure represented by Skyline’s mascot, the Titan. Atlas is the Titan who carries the heavens on his shoulders, so giving his name to the freshman house symbolizes a commitment to building a strong foundation for a new Skyline.
- In the Atlas system, each ninth grader shares the same four teachers for Math, Social Studies, English, and Science. This provides teachers with a greater opportunity to intercommunicate about the students’ social and academic development.
- Freshmen also attend a weekly "Advisory" period during which they receive lessons in academic and career planning, study skills, interpersonal development and citizenship.
- With each teacher serving as an advisor for only 25 students, the Atlas system permits a greater connection to be established between teachers, students, and families. As one teacher stated, “No one falls through the cracks.”
- Traditions
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Skyline High School is known as the innovator of an event called Club Rush, in which all of the various student organizations at Skyline High School gather on the Senior Quad during a 30-minute lunchtime period in order to recruit new members to join their ranks. This event has been going on ever since it came as a result of the efforts of student body president Jeffery K. James in 1964, and has been an annual occurrence ever since.
- Skyline High School is also known for its annual homecoming festival, Titanpalooza, in which Skyline students, staff, and alumni all gather on the Senior Quad for a cornucopia of fun, food, and games. It is organized by the Skyline Leadership class, and generally takes place before the homecoming football game.
- Senior Picnic is one of the most anticipated events of the year at Skyline High School for the senior class. Officially a retreat for the senior class, underclassmen are not allowed to attend. This event is traditionally organized by the senior class officers in the Leadership class, and in past years, Skyline students have embarked on trips to such locations as Roberts Park, Waterworld California, Catalina Island, and most recently, the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Generally, the Skyline High School administration creates strict rules on transportation to the event, and all students must take charter buses to the location or risk suspension. In the aftermath of the latest event in 2009, three students were suspended for two days each by the school's administration for driving to the event.
- Sunset Barbecue was an event established in early 2009, in which students gather in the lower basketball courts by the gym after school. Approximately ten student organizations sold food and drinks to Skyline students.
- Created three years ago by Skyline film instructor Mark Frey, the Skyline High Annual Film Festival is a major event that occurs at the end of the year, showcasing the multitude of works produced by Frey's film students throughout the year.
- The annual Art Show in the Skyline High School Library attracts many Titans, and is an exhibit featuring the works of Skyline's ceramics and art classes.
- Senior Day was officially established as an annual event starting last year, in 2008, by former Associated Student Body President Paul Pugh. During this event, former Skyline students visit Skyline classrooms and present their college experiences to prospective college students.
- Demographic
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Skyline High School first graduating class was in 1962. At that time, the student body was predominantly white. The school's demographics have changed over the years. Skyline brings together a diverse group of students coming from various socioeconomic backgrounds. In 2009 - 2010 Skyline has over 2,000 students with an approximate demographic distribution of:
- 38% White
- 25% Asian American
- 16% Hispanic American
- 15% African American
- 2% Mixed Race
- 1% Native American
- 1% Polynesian American
- 1% Pacific Islanders
- 1% Others
- Class colors
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Freshmen - Gray
- Sophomores - White
- Juniors - Black
- Seniors - Red
- Sustainability
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Skyline High School has committed to “minimize its energy use, reduce negative environmental impacts and promote environmental stewardship.” The Energy and Environmental Advisory Committee has developed a set of ambitious goals for the school to reduce its carbon emissions and eventually achieve carbon neutrality. Skyline High is going Green website collects information about Skyline’s progress toward greenhouse gas emissions reductions and related campus initiatives like courses, research, projects and student groups.
- Publication
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The school newspaper is the Skyline Oracle and the yearbook is the Olympian. These publications have existed since the early decades of Skyline High history. The participants of each publication are involved by taking the offered courses.
- The Skyline Oracle has won numerous honors over the years for the quality of its publication, especially during the past two years under former editor-in-chief Javier W. Panzar and current editor Eugene Wing Lau, who formerly starred on Skyline High's tennis team.
- The Skyline Olympian Yearbook is currently thriving under the direction of Martin Rabotti.
- Academic
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Skyline High School students may choose either to pursue in general studies or enroll in an academy. Students who do not enroll in an Academy may take classes offered by the Academy if space is available, though space is often tight due to the program's perceived prestige among the Titans' student body.
- I. Elective courses
- Academic Decathlon
- Architectural Design
- Art
- Ceramics
- Choir
- Computer Science and Digital Film
- Dance
- Education
- Environmental Science
- Film
- French
- Graphics
- Jazz Band
- Journalism
- JROTC
- Leadership
- Mandarin
- Marching Band
- Music
- Orchestra
- Physiology
- Psychology
- Spanish
- Statistics
- Stagecraft
- Theater/Drama
- Wood Shop
- Yearbook
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