Valencia High School (Santa Clarita, California)
Valencia High School is a public secondary school located in the neighborhood of Valencia in the city of Santa Clarita, California, United States. It is a part of the William S. Hart Union High School District.
Valencia High School
Learning For Life
1994
Pete Getz
9 - 12
2,484 (2021-22)[1]
Vick the Viking
Vikings
The Viking Vision
The Viking Voyager
Valencia High School is ranked in Newsweek's 2012 list of America's Best High Schools. The list is based on six components provided by school administrators: graduation rate (25 percent), college matriculation rate (25 percent), AP/IB/AICE tests taken per student (25 percent), average SAT/ACT scores (10 percent), average AP/IB/AICE scores (10 percent), and AP courses offered per student (5 percent).
Controversies[edit]
In 2008 four Valencia highschool students reached a settlement for $300,000 over racial discrimination.[2] In 2020 during quarantine Principal Stephen Ford resigned after a petition received 600 signatures in response to Ford comparing wearing masks to the Holocaust.[3] On March 15, 2023 a student was caught on video driving around the school parking lot and singing "I don't like n-". This video sparked outrage from the NAACP and representatives from the William S. Hart School District. [4]
In chronological order:
Student demographics[edit]
As of the 2021-22 academic year, Valencia was the most populous school in the Hart District, with 2,484 students. 44.2% of students were non-Hispanic white, 23.6% were Hispanic, 20.8% were Asian American, and 3.9% were African American.[1] As of 2020-21, 395 students (15.0%) were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.[7]
Filming location[edit]
Valencia High School was used as a set for the films Bio-Dome, Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion, and Pleasantville. It was also used for filming the TV series Sweet Valley High. In 2019, George Salcedo's two short films Witness to Murder and Winger were also filmed on campus.[9]