Fontana High School
Encyclopedia
Fontana High School is a secondary public school in Fontana
, California
in the Fontana Unified School District
. Fontana High serves grades 9 through 12.
Fontana High School is the "Home of Steeler Pride". Students are provided opportunities for personal and group achievement in a safe environment designed to nurture personal, social and academic development. Fontana High School is committed to preparing students for their individual futures in the 21st century.
plant - built just outside Fontana in the 1940s - and at the time the only steel production plant of its kind west of the Mississippi. By the 1970s, many came to know Fontana also by its very successful high school football team, the FoHi Steelers.
85.8% Hispanic
6.9% White
4.8% African American
1.0% Asian
1.5% Other
, the team peaked in 1987 when it was ranked the best in the nation. The Steeler football team was almost as well known for the traveling "rowdy" fanbase, which followed the team en masse throughout the season and into the playoffs. At home games, much of the town shut down as more than 8,000 maroon and white clad fans filled Steeler Stadium for epic battles with rival schools like Redlands, Pacific, Eisenhower and Colton.
By the 1990s, the glory days for the team had faded. The reality of an economic downturn ( the Kaiser Steel plant had shut down in 1983) and a continued population boom led to demographic shifts and classroom overcrowding. The addition of new high schools split the talent base and the team fell on hard times - enduring a prolonged string of losing seasons.
San Bernardino County, California°N date=December 2010°W
Fontana, California
Fontana is a city of 196,069 residents in San Bernardino County, California. Founded in 1913, it remained essentially rural until World War II, when entrepreneur Henry J. Kaiser built a large steel mill in the area...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in the Fontana Unified School District
Fontana Unified School District
Fontana Unified School District is located in and serves most of the city of Fontana, California, a community in San Bernardino County about 50 miles east of Los Angeles. The district contains 45 schools, which serve students from K-12 to adult education. It was established in the 1920s and unified...
. Fontana High serves grades 9 through 12.
Fontana High School is the "Home of Steeler Pride". Students are provided opportunities for personal and group achievement in a safe environment designed to nurture personal, social and academic development. Fontana High School is committed to preparing students for their individual futures in the 21st century.
History
A product of the Southern California post war boom, Fontana High (referred to locally as "FoHi") was completed in September of 1952. The school was needed to serve the children of thousands of blue collar families from across the country who came to work at the Kaiser SteelKaiser Steel
Kaiser Ventures is an American corporation, headquartered in Ontario, California. It was founded by Henry J. Kaiser to provide steel plate for the Pacific Coast shipbuilding industry, which expanded during World War II, then shrank, then expanded again during the Korean War...
plant - built just outside Fontana in the 1940s - and at the time the only steel production plant of its kind west of the Mississippi. By the 1970s, many came to know Fontana also by its very successful high school football team, the FoHi Steelers.
Demographics
Ethnic breakdown of the 4,073 students enrolled as of the 2007-2008 school year was:85.8% Hispanic
6.9% White
4.8% African American
1.0% Asian
1.5% Other
Football
After struggling for years, the Steelers began to dominate regional high school football for roughly a 15-year period. Beginning with coach John Tyree, and continuing under coach Dick BruichDick Bruich
Richard "Dick" Bruich is an American retired High School football coach. While active, he led two different Southern California High School football programs to championships. His overall prep head coaching record is 292-84-4.-Personal life:...
, the team peaked in 1987 when it was ranked the best in the nation. The Steeler football team was almost as well known for the traveling "rowdy" fanbase, which followed the team en masse throughout the season and into the playoffs. At home games, much of the town shut down as more than 8,000 maroon and white clad fans filled Steeler Stadium for epic battles with rival schools like Redlands, Pacific, Eisenhower and Colton.
By the 1990s, the glory days for the team had faded. The reality of an economic downturn ( the Kaiser Steel plant had shut down in 1983) and a continued population boom led to demographic shifts and classroom overcrowding. The addition of new high schools split the talent base and the team fell on hard times - enduring a prolonged string of losing seasons.
Advanced Placement courses
The following Advanced Placement courses are offered to the students:- English Language
- English Literature
- Spanish Language
- Spanish Literature
- French Language
- World History
- U.S. History
- American Government and Politics
- Microeconomics
- Calculus AB
- Calculus BC
- Statistics
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics C: Mechanics
- Psychology
- Art
- Environmental Science
Notable alumni
- Travis BarkerTravis BarkerTravis Landon Barker is an American musician, producer and entrepreneur, most noted as the drummer for the American pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the alternative rock band +44, the rap rock band The Transplants, and the alternative rock band Box Car Racer. He was a frequent collaborator with...
- drummer of the band blink-182Blink-182Blink-182 is an American rock band consisting of vocalist and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus, vocalist and guitarist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. They have sold over 27 million albums worldwide since forming in Poway, California in 1992...
, +44, Transplants, Box Car RacerBox Car RacerBox Car Racer was a short-lived American post-hardcore band from San Diego, California, formed in 2002. The band was a side-project of guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge and drummer Travis Barker of Blink-182, along with lead guitarist David Kennedy of Hazen Street, and touring bassist Anthony Celestino...
, and Expensive TasteExpensive TasteExpensive Taste is an American hip hop super-group formed by Paul Wall, Skinhead Rob , and Travis Barker . Expensive Taste recently released a 15-track mixtape for free from a newly registered website, but it is unknown when the band will have time to tour... - Corey BenjaminCorey BenjaminCorey Dwight Benjamin is an American professional basketball player who played in the NBA from 1998-2003. He graduated from Fontana High School in Fontana, California, then played college basketball for Oregon State University, and was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the 1998...
- Former NBA player. 1998 1st round draft pick of the Chicago BullsChicago BullsThe Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center... - Greg ColbrunnGreg ColbrunnGregory Joseph Colbrunn was a Major League Baseball player for 13 seasons.Colbrunn was part of the victorious Arizona Diamondbacks 2001 World Series winning team....
- 13 year Major League Baseball Player. Member of the 2001 World Series Champion Arizona DiamondbacksArizona DiamondbacksThe Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
. - Sammy HagarSammy HagarSam Roy "Sammy" Hagar , also known as The Red Rocker, is an American rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Also sings Country Music....
- singer and former member of Van HalenVan HalenVan Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart... - Pedro NavaPedro NavaPedro Nava may refer to:*Pedro Nava , Brazilian writer*Pedro Nava , California State Assemblyman...
- former California State Assemblyman from Santa Barbara, CA. 2010 candidate for Attorney General - R.J. Soward - Former University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern CaliforniaThe University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
Trojans football star and NFL first round draft pick. - Ante RazovAnte RazovAnte Razov is a retired American soccer player of Croatian descent who last played for Chivas USA in Major League Soccer.-Club:...
professional soccer player in MLS - Sean RooksSean RooksSean Lester Rooks is a retired American basketball player who played in the NBA from 1992 to 2004. A 6'10" center from Fontana High School in Fontana, California and the University of Arizona, Rooks was drafted in the second round of the 1992 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks...
- 12 year NBA veteran - Reuben HendersonReuben HendersonReuben Stanley Henderson is a former professional American football player who played cornerback for four seasons for the Chicago Bears and the San Diego Chargers.-Personal life:...
- 4 year NFL player. Chicago Bears & San Diego Chargers
External links
San Bernardino County, California°N date=December 2010°W