Pioneer High School (San Jose, California)

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Public secondary school in San Jose, California , United States

Pioneer High School

Address

1290 Blossom Hill Road

San Jose

California 95118

United States

Coordinates| 37°14′51″N 121°52′58″W﻿ / ﻿37.2474°N 121.88289°W﻿ / 37.2474; -121.88289
Information
Type| Public secondary
Established| 1960
Locale| San Jose Unified School District
Principal| Bradley Craycroft
Mission Statement| Opening minds

Serving the community.

Enriching lives.
School Colors|  Blue
White
Black (secondary)
Staff| 65.77 (FTE)[1]
Grades| 9-12
Number of students| 1,521 (2021–22)[1]
Student to teacher ratio| 23.13[1]
Color(s)| Blue, White & Black
Mascot| Mustangs
Rival| Leland High School
Feeder schools| Castillero Middle School
John Muir Middle School
Website| pioneer.sjusd.org

Pioneer High School is a highly rated public high school located in the Almaden Valley neighborhood of San Jose, California. It is one of six high schools in the San Jose Unified School District, and is a science magnet school with an interdisciplinary focus on community service and service learning. It was nominated for California Distinguished School awards in 2008, 2006, 2000, and 1996.[2]

In 2021, U.S. News & World Report ranked Pioneer as the number 2 high school in San Jose Unified School District and number 228 in the state of California,[3] and the education ranking and review website Niche ranked the school as the number 2 high school in the district and number 343 in the state.[4]

## Academics[edit]

Pioneer High School has received 4 California Distinguished School awards (1996, 2000, 2006, and 2008), has been awarded the Santa Clara County Top Ten High School award, and has been listed in The Mercury News as a National Service Learning Leader School from 1998 to 2006. The school's Academic Performance index in 2007 was 801/1000, putting it in the top 20% of schools and classifying it under the "Very High Performing School" category. Pioneer has never failed to achieve the growth goals expected of them under the No Child Left Behind Act.

At Pioneer High, each student has a certain amount of unit requirements under different categories that they must complete in order to graduate. There are a number of accelerated and Advanced Placement classes students can choose from, as well as mock trial and radio broadcasting extra-curricular activities that they can choose to be involved in. The yearbook was a semi-finalist in the year 2006, and in the 2006–2007 school year the yearbook was chosen as the national sample.

## Service Learning Focus[edit]

Pioneer High School focuses on community service and service learning as part of its mission statement. To support this focus, the school requires all sophomore students to participate in a "Sophomore Project", a venture that demands a minimum of 30 hours of community service related to a world problem, in addition to many class assignments relating to it such as a poem and a poster board, in the span of a school year. 15 hours are required per semester of the sophomore year.[5] In most cases, students exceed this amount, sometimes even exceeding one hundred hours, in which case they are presented a Presidential Award for Service.[6] Many students claim that the Sophomore Project assignment is the most challenging part of attending Pioneer High School.

During their Senior year, students are again given the opportunity to participate in a service learning project when they are introduced to the "Senior Exhibition" assignment. Students may complete multiple hours of personal or community work in order to obtain extra credits. The Senior Exhibition project is not mandatory, but students that complete it are rewarded a graduation cord.[6]

## Athletics[edit]

A Pioneer football player running the ball.

Pioneer Mustangs Athletics are generally known for being a strong force within the BVAL league of the Central Coast Section. The Athletic Department, headed by Joe Berticevich, has experienced much success over the past decade. Perhaps the sports Pioneer is most known for are its football and basketball teams. Pioneer football has achieved multiple winning seasons in the Mount Hamilton division of BVAL over the past decade, and continually competes with private schools of a much higher caliber.[7] The Mustangs biggest rivals are the Leland Chargers.

FALL SPORTS | WINTER SPORTS | SPRING SPORTS

|
|

Varsity Football | Boys Varsity Basketball | Varsity Baseball
JV Football | Boys JV Basketball | Frosh/Soph Baseball
Frosh/Soph Football | Girls Varsity Basketball | Varsity Softball
Girls Volleyball | Girls JV Basketball | JV Softball
JV Volleyball | Boys Varsity Soccer | Boys/Girls Badminton
Girls Tennis | Frosh/Soph Boys Soccer | Track and Field
Cross Country | Girls Varsity Soccer | Boys Tennis
Boys Varsity Water Polo | Girls JV Soccer | Boys/Girls Golf
Boys JV Water Polo | Wrestling | Boys/Girls Swimming
Girls Varsity Water Polo |  | Diving
Girls JV Water Polo |  | Boys Volleyball
|  | Girls La Crosse

## Demographics[edit]

Pioneer's racial demographics are[2]

* White (38.36%)
* Hispanic (36.03%)
* Asian (14.27%)
* Multiracial (8.64%)
* Black (2.24%)
* Other (0.46%)

Pioneer's gender demographics are[2]

* Male (50.73%)
* Female (49.27%)

## Notable alumni[edit]

* Rob Becker '74 — Playwright, Defending the Caveman.[8][9]
* Steve Finn '69 — Philanthropist and former mayor of Los Altos Hills.[10][11]
* Count Five — 1960's rock band.[12][13]
* Dave Hoffmann '88 - Professional football player and All-American college football player for the Washington Huskies[14]
* Bill Hullett '68 — Nashville guitarist.[15][16][17][18]
* David E. Osborne '69 — Author, Reinventing Government and The Coming. Senior White House advisor, Clinton administration.[19][20] 2018 Spur Award Winner, Historical Novel.[21]
* Kevin Pollak '75 — Actor, impressionist, game show host, and comedian.[9][22]
* Dave Righetti '76 — Professional baseball player and coach.[23]
* Alan Chang '98 — Pianist and songwriter.[24]
* Naomi Girma '18 — Professional soccer player for the United States women's national soccer team and San Diego Wave FC.[25][26]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c "Pioneer High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
2. ^ a b c "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-09-05. Retrieved 2008-08-07.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
3. ^ "High Schools in San Jose Unified School District". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
4. ^ "Explore San Jose Unified School District". Niche. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
5. ^ https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/8e1e7d_9d5c00700319409f9c0783292ab1d307.pdf[bare URL PDF]
6. ^ a b "PHS Service-Learning: Home". Archived from the original on 2005-03-17. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
7. ^ http://phsathletics.olinesports.com/
8. ^ "Rob Becker". Archived from the original on 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2013-08-10.
9. ^ a b "Rob Becker: Once an all-star, always a caveman". 9 July 2007.
10. ^ "Finn takes helm as LAH mayor, offers to 'celebrate all we have in common'". 21 June 2000.
11. ^ "Mt. View music, arts school gets $1M challenge grant - Silicon Valley Business Journal". Archived from the original on 2013-11-11.
12. ^ http://countfive.com
13. ^ "Count V - San Jose Rocks". 23 February 2021.
14. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2020-05-29.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
15. ^ "My Interviews: Bill Hullett". 16 February 2009.
16. ^ "Bill Hullett: Music City Session Man".
17. ^ "Bill Hullett".
18. ^ "Credits: Bill Hullett". AllMusic.
19. ^ "Herhold: An old exposé continues to haunt Newt Gingrich". 26 November 2011.
20. ^ Goodgame, Dan (14 December 1992). "David Osborne: A Prophet of Innovation". Time.
21. ^ "2018 Spur Award Winners". 10 March 2018.
22. ^ "This Guy Must Be Serious | PEOPLE.com". People.
23. ^ "Former Bronco Coach and AD Selected to Hall of Fame". 9 August 2001.
24. ^ "Michael Bublé's conductor got his start in San Jose". 22 August 2007.
25. ^ "Stanford soccer captain Naomi Girma is a product of her Ethiopian roots". myScience. May 29, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
26. ^ Woitalla, Mike (May 29, 2020). "Rising U.S. star Naomi Girma on prepping for postponed U-20 World Cup, virtual team-building, and falling in love with soccer with a free-play start". Soccer America. Retrieved August 4, 2022.

## External links[edit]

* Official website
* School Profile

* v
* t
* e

San Jose, California

Landmarks|

* Alum Rock Park
* Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph
* City Hall
* Hotel De Anza
* Downtown Historic District
* Diridon Station
* Flea Market
* Hayes Mansion
* Hotel Sainte Claire
* Norman Y. Mineta Memorial International Airport
* Peralta Adobe
* Hellyer Park Velodrome

Economy|

* Adobe
* Altera
* Brocade Communications Systems
* Cadence Design Systems
* Cisco
* eBay
* Sanmina-SCI
* Xilinx

Government|

* Government of San Jose, California
* Mayors
* City Council
* Police
* Fire
* Wastewater

Education|

| Colleges and
universities|

* San Jose State University
* Evergreen Valley College
* San Jose City College

|

Primary and secondary
school districts|

* Alum Rock Union SD
* Berryessa Union SD
* Cambrian SD
* Evergreen ESD
* Morgan Hill USD
* Oak Grove SD
* San José USD
* Santa Clara USD
* Campbell Union HSD
* East Side Union HSD
* Union SD

Private primary and
secondary schools|

* Archbishop Mitty High School
* Bellarmine College Preparatory
* Cambrian Academy
* Cristo Rey San José Jesuit High School
* Harker School
* Liberty Baptist School
* Notre Dame High School
* Presentation High School
* Thomas More School
* Valley Christian Schools

Other schools|

* San Francisco Japanese School

Other|

* History
* Timeline
* People
* Public Library
* Bike Party
* Sharks
* The Mercury News

* Santa Clara County
* San Francisco Bay Area
* State of California
* United States

* v
* t
* e

High schools in Santa Clara County, California

Campbell Union HSD|

* Branham
* Del Mar
* Leigh
* Prospect
* Westmont
* Boynton Continuation
* Camden
* Campbell

East Side Union HSD|

* Apollo
* Evergreen Valley
* Andrew P. Hill
* Independence
* James Lick
* Mt. Pleasant
* Oak Grove
* William C. Overfelt
* Piedmont Hills
* Santa Teresa
* Silver Creek
* Yerba Buena
* East Side Cadet Academy
* San Jose Conservation Corps

Fremont Union HSD|

* Cupertino
* Fremont
* Homestead
* Lynbrook
* Monta Vista

Gilroy USD|

* Christopher
* Gilroy High
* Dr. TJ Owens Gilroy Early College Academy

Los Gatos-Saratoga Union HSD|

* Los Gatos
* Saratoga

Milpitas USD|

* Milpitas High
* Calaveras Hills Continuation

Morgan Hill USD|

* Central High
* Live Oak
* Sobrato

Mountain View–Los Altos Union HSD|

* Los Altos
* Mountain View
* Alta Vista Continuation

Palo Alto USD|

* Gunn
* Palo Alto High
* Ellwood P. Cubberley

Santa Clara USD|

* Santa Clara High
* Adrian C. Wilcox
* New Valley Continuation
* Buchser

San Jose USD|

* Broadway
* Gunderson
* Leland
* Abraham Lincoln
* Pioneer
* San José High
* Willow Glen

Charter schools|

* DCP El Primero High School
* KIPP San Jose Collegiate
* Latino College Preparatory Academy
* University Preparatory Academy
* Communitas Charter High School

Private schools

Secular|

* Cambrian Academy
* Castilleja School
* German International School of Silicon Valley
* Harker School
* International School of the Peninsula
* Oakwood School, Morgan Hill
* Pinewood School, Los Altos
* Yew Chung International School of Silicon Valley

Religious|

* Archbishop Mitty High School
* Bellarmine College Preparatory
* Cristo Rey San José Jesuit High School
* Granada Islamic School
* Kehillah Jewish High School
* The King's Academy (California)
* Liberty Baptist School
* Notre Dame High School
* Presentation High School
* Saint Francis High School
* Thomas More School
* Valley Christian Schools
* Saint Lawrence Academy

Schools that are closed or no longer operate are in italics.

Authority control databases: Geographic |

* NCES

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