Hanford Joint Union High School District
| Hanford High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
120 E. Grangeville Blvd. Hanford, Ca. 93230 | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1892 |
| Principal | Cheryl Hunt |
| Enrollment | 1,875 |
| Information | (559) 583-5902 |
| Mascot Colors | Bullpup Red & White |
| Website | [1] |
| Hanford West High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| |
1150 W Lacey Blvd., Hanford, CA, 93230 | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1998 |
| Principal | Bobby Peters |
| Enrollment | 1,875 |
| Information | (559) 583-5903 |
| Mascot Colors | Husky Blue & Silver |
| Website | [2] |
The Hanford Joint Union High School District consists of two comprehensive high schools - Hanford High School and Hanford West High School - Earl F. Johnson Continuation School, and Hanford Adult School. A third comprehensive high school - Sierra Pacific High School - is scheduled to open in 2009.
HJUHSD serves the northwestern portion of Kings County, California. The schools are located in Hanford, the county seat.
Hanford High School and Hanford West High School each serve approximately 1,875 students. Earl F. Johnson High School serves about 250 students. Hanford Adult School serves a wide variety of students through it's many and varied programs.
History
Hanford High School held its first classes in 1892 with one teacher, W. S. Cranmer, and an average enrollment of fourteen.[1] In May, 1895, Hanford High School celebrated its first graduation.
Originally, the high school was located in the back of a local bank in Downtown Hanford. When more room was needed, classes were moved to a house on Elm Street before the school found it's final home on Grangeville and Douty streets.
Funded by a 1919 bond measure for $350,000 and a $30,000 sale of school property, Hanford High’s “Main Building” on Grangeville Boulevard was opened in 1921 and would be the school’s home for more than 50 years. In 1952, a new cafeteria, auto shop and metal shop were added to the school, followed by new classrooms and other facilities in 1959.
Around 1940, the student body broke the 1,000 mark. Just over 20 years later, the school population had grown to the point that a separate facility was needed.
In November 1962, voters approved a $2.5 million bond issue to build a second campus. Land was purchased on West Lacey Boulevard and construction of “West Campus” began in 1963. It opened in 1964 to freshmen, and by 1968, 1,250 9th and 10th graders were enrolled. By the late 1980s, both campuses were serving all four grades.
In 1970, Earl F. Johnson Continuation High School - named for a long-time educator who died in 1967 - was built at the north end of the Hanford High School East Campus.
In 1975, the community bid a sad farewell to historic Main Hall at the East Campus when it was demolished because it did not meet earthquake and education codes. In 1978, the district celebrated the opening of the replacement administration and library building. It was joined by a new auditorium in 1981 (later named the Stratton L. Tarvin Presentation Center for the Performing Arts in honor of a long-time administrator).
In 1980, Hanford Adult School was built on Campus Drive. In 1994, Earl F. Johnson High School was moved a few blocks south on Douty Street to a former elementary school. A $1 million modernization in 2002 expanded classroom space there.
In 1997, the district began its biggest construction project in many years: A $18 million local bond and matching state grants funded the construction of classrooms, labs, a library, a performing arts building, an event center and more to transform West Campus into Hanford West High, an independent school.
The 2001-2002 school year marked an important milestone for the 100+ year old district: Four independent high school graduations. Hanford West High’s first graduating class numbered 291. Hanford High graduated 342; Earl F. Johnson had 21 graduates and Hanford Adult school gave out 41 high school diplomas.
Notable staff
Notable staff in the history of HJUHSD have included:
- Lt. Col. Harold V. Mackey, U.S. Army; taught chemistry after retiring from an active duty military career. A Hanford High alumnus, Mr. Mackey was an ROTC student at the University of California at Berkeley. The Mackey family mansion is a significant feature of Hanford's architectural history, and was contemporary of, and proximate to, the original Hanford High School building.
- Rainier Dorna; taught German and French. He was also active in local theater.
- William Swassing; taught physical science, and physics. He was a polio survivor, an early practitioner of outdoor education, and was the founding advisor to the Science Club.
- Carl Eberly; taught math and science.
- Vernan Penn; taught English after active duty in World War II.
- Leon Jawarski; taught science fiction as English literature.
- Al Moore; taught anatomy and physiology after serving in the Peace Corps.
Notable alumni
HJUHSD Alumni Hall of Fame[3]
Class of 1935
- James Rainwater; co-winner of the 1975 Nobel Prize for Physics.[2]
Class of 1936
- Harold Mackey; Military Officer, Educator.
Class of 1966
- Bruce Mackey; Military Officer, Bicycle Advocate.
Class of 1972
- Scott Marcellus; Broadway Sound Designer The King and I.[3]
Class of 1975
- Rick Avila; realtor in Clovis, California.
Class of 1979
- Cydney Gillis; a journalist in Seattle. Washington.[4]
- Robert Grunwald; a Certified Arborist in Kings County.[5]
Class of 1980
- Steve Banister; a civic leader in Hanford.
- Paul Knutsen; a physician in Hanford.
- Cliff Morgan; a founding partner of a graphic arts firm in Calistoga, Ca; (deceased).
- Michael Swassing; a Certified Arborist in Washington.[5]
- John Dyer; a Defense Attorney for Fresno County
Class of 1987
- Brad Morgan; an organic farmer in Napa, Ca..
Notes
- ^ Gibson, Harold, History of Kings County Public Schools, Hanford, CA, 2004
- ^ James Rainwater - Autobiography
- ^ Scott Marcellus - Internet Broadway Database
- ^ Real Change News Contacts
- ^ a b Verify A Certified Arborist