Bakersfield High School
Encyclopedia
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located in Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
, USA.
Institutional names and dates of operation:
- Kern County High School 1893-1915
- Kern County Union High School 1915-1945
- Bakersfield High School 1945–present
- Bakersfield Junior College 1913-1956
- Bakersfield Adult (Night) School 1917-1985
It was the only high school in Bakersfield until 1937, when East Bakersfield High School
East Bakersfield High School
East Bakersfield High School is a public high school located in Bakersfield, California.-History:East Bakersfield High School was built in 1938 and is the second oldest high school in Bakersfield....
was opened. The first name, adding Union, change came when the high school separated from the Bakersfield City School District. Then it was known informally as K.C. or Kay Cee High School. It was formally renamed by the school board in 1945.
Campus
The school has been in the same location since its inception, though most of the buildings have been reconstructed. A 1952 earthquake precipitated a lot of reconstruction.It hosts several buildings, each with multiple floors. One of its most prominent buildings is Harvey Auditorium, which houses a main theater and two little theaters, in addition to a number of classrooms. It serves as a venue for the local arts community. There are two Industrial Arts buildings, which houses both a functioning automotive garage along with a wood shop and weight room and fitness center. With a student population just over 2,800, it has the largest student bodies on one of the smallest campuses (25 acres) in the Kern High School District.
Notable alumni
- Kevin McCarthy - Congressman
- Spain MusgroveSpain MusgroveSpain Musgrove is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the Houston Oilers from 1967-1970.-Early career:...
- former NFL defensive lineman - Jeff BuckeyJeff BuckeyJeff Buckey was a professional American football player who played offensive lineman for four seasons for the Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers.-References:...
- former NFL football player - Michael Stewart - former NFL football player
- Ric DrasinRic DrasinRic Drasin is an American artist, actor, stuntman, writer, personal trainer, former bodybuilder, and retired professional wrestler...
- actor, author, designer of the Gold's GymGold's GymGold's Gym International, Inc. is an international chain of co-ed fitness centers originally started in California by Joe Gold. Each gym features a wide array of exercise equipment, group exercise classes and personal trainers to assist clients...
and World GymWorld GymWorld Gym was founded in 1976 by Joe Gold during the glory days of “Muscle Beach” in Venice, California. Since that time, World Gym has evolved into an internationally recognized brand....
logoLogoA logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
s, and retired professional wrestler - Frank GiffordFrank GiffordFrancis Newton "Frank" Gifford is a Hall of Fame former American football player and American sportscaster.-Early life:Gifford was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Lola Mae and Weldon Gifford, an oil driller....
- Pro Football Hall of FamePro Football Hall of FameThe Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
and former Monday Night FootballMonday Night FootballMonday Night Football is a live broadcast of the National Football League on ESPN. From to it aired on ABC. Monday Night Football was, along with Hallmark Hall of Fame, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, one of the longest running prime time commercial network television series...
commentator - Jeff SiemonJeff SiemonJeffrey Glenn Siemon is a former professional American football player and an inductee in the College Football Hall of Fame....
- former NFL football player - Jeremy StaatJeremy StaatJeremy Ray Staat is a former American Football defensive end who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1998 and the St. Louis Rams for two games in 2003. He also played for the Los Angeles Avengers arena football team...
- former NFL player - Robert SwiftRobert SwiftRobert Swift is an American professional basketball player, currently playing for Tokyo Apache...
- former NBANational Basketball AssociationThe National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
player - Earl WarrenEarl WarrenEarl Warren was the 14th Chief Justice of the United States.He is known for the sweeping decisions of the Warren Court, which ended school segregation and transformed many areas of American law, especially regarding the rights of the accused, ending public-school-sponsored prayer, and requiring...
- California Attorney GeneralCalifornia Attorney GeneralThe California Attorney General is the State Attorney General of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice.The...
, three-term Governor of CaliforniaGovernor of CaliforniaThe Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
, Chief Justice of the United StatesChief Justice of the United StatesThe Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
, and chairman of the Warren CommissionWarren CommissionThe President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established on November 27, 1963, by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963... - Robert DuncanRobert Duncan (poet)Robert Duncan was an American poet and a student of H.D. and the Western esoteric tradition who spent most of his career in and around San Francisco. Though associated with any number of literary traditions and schools, Duncan is often identified with the poets of the New American Poetry and Black...
- Robert Symmes Duncan, American Poet, was a key figure in the San Francisco Renaissance. - Merle HaggardMerle HaggardMerle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
- while not an alumni - he was a student from time to time - Theo BellTheo BellTheopolis Bell, Jr. was an American football wide receiver who played nine seasons in the National Football League for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers....
- former NFL football player - Pete CrossPete CrossPeter Michael Cross was an American basketball player.A 6'9" center from the University of San Francisco, Cross was selected by the Kentucky Colonels in the 1970 American Basketball Association draft and by the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round of the 1970 NBA Draft.Cross played three...
- former NBANational Basketball AssociationThe National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
player - Larry WelzLarry WelzLarry Welz is an American cartoonist and commercial artist, and the creator of Cherry Poptart . He is a noteworthy early contributor to the underground comics movement based in the San Francisco area in the late 1960s and early 1970s.In 1969 his work was published in Yellow Dog, a tabloid comic...
- noteworthy early contributor to underground comics movement - Dennis RalstonDennis RalstonRichard Dennis Ralston is an American former professional tennis player. He attended the University of Southern California and won NCAA championships under their legendary coach, George Toley. He was coached in his earlier years by the legendary tennis player, Pancho Gonzales...
- Davis Cup Winner
Tradition
At BHS another long-standing tradition has been community service. Over its 115-year history BHS students have contributed countless amounts of money, food and clothing to the poor, have given up tens of thousands of hours to cleaning up their community, and even started a new environmentally friendly electronics waste recycling committee run by the BHS Virtual Business Team. This "E-waste" recycling club is the first of its kind in the Kern High School District.Sports
The Drillers have been competing in football since 1896. The Drillers hold the California State records for most state football titles (7), and the most section championships (34), commonly called Valley Titles for being within the San Joaquin Valley. Bakersfield high has the most wins in California high school football History running neck and neck with Long Beach Poly at a close number two. Bakersfield has 703 wins to date with four games remaining on the regular season schedule mid way through the 2009 season. Bakersfield hopes to clench the 700th win, the first team in California to do so, Friday night October 23 for the 2009 Home Coming game. The most recognized Driller Alum is Frank Gifford who played college ball both at Bakersfield College and the University of Southern California, and pro football with the New York Giants. Gifford is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and was a part of the legendary Monday Night Football broadcasting team with "Dandy Don" Meredith and Howard Cosell during the 1970s and 80's on ABC television. The Drillers, have called Griffith Field their home field since 1923. The field features a monolithic concrete structure for home seating on the western home side with the Driller locker rooms inside it. The field is unusual in that the visiting eastern bleachers are located on the grass inside the track. The bleachers run from end zone to end zone with the front row only about 12-feet away from the sideline with nothing separating the fans from the field. Griffith Field can seat approximately 8,000 spectators.The Bakersfield High football tradition was the basis of the movie The Best of Times
The Best of Times (film)
The Best of Times is a 1986 American film starring Robin Williams and Kurt Russell.-Plot:Robin Williams plays Jack Dundee, a banker obsessed with what he considers the most shameful moment in his life: The moment that he dropped a perfectly thrown pass in the final seconds of the 1972 high school...
starring Kurt Russell
Kurt Russell
Kurt Vogel Russell is an American television and film actor. His first acting roles were as a child in television series, including a lead role in the Western series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters...
and Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
. The story is based on an actual football game in the mid-1970s between mighty Bakersfield High and the small ill-respected Taft High
Taft Union High School
Taft Union High School is located in Taft in Kern County, California, in the United States. Taft High was founded in 1912. Taft is a small city and the school also serves the surrounding rural area, with a total population of about 20,000.The school was featured in the movie "The Best of Times"...
Wildcats.
Awards and achievements
Bakersfield High School has a long standing tradition of excellence which can be viewed on the KHSD website: "First place in Kern County Academic Decathlon for the last 6 out of 7 years and a top 15 placing at the state level the past three years, Visual Arts Department first program in California to receive Exemplary Program Award in all nine areas possible, Scholarships and grants awarded to last year’s graduates totaled over $1.2 million and included 43 Gold Seal recipients, Oldest continually produced school newspaper in the district, which won 1st place, “Best of Show,” at state and national Journalism competitions. Elected to National Hall of Fame 2001 and has consistently earned NSPA All-American honors since 1991, 76% passage rate on all Advanced Placement tests which is the highest passage rate in the KHSD and well above state and national averages, and Valley Championship Forensics Team 6 out of the last 7 years in a row. Three national qualifiers and 13 state qualifiers." This year, the Bakersfield high school forensics squad won the district tournament.Another notable achievement came from the BHS Virtual Business Team, the Source, who took first in the National's Competition for their business plan, and second in the World Competition for their website in 2009. On October 23, 2009 the Driller Football Team experienced their 700th win in their long history.
External links
- Wallace, J. S. Recollections of a high school district, 1893-1968 : an informal history of the Kern County Union High School and junior college district. Published circa 1980. ISBN 0-9619924-0-9
- Bakersfield High School
- Driller Marching Band
- Bakersfield Haunted History