Dana Hills High School

Dana Hills High School
Address
Map
33333 Golden Lantern

Dana Point
,
California
92629

United States
Information
TypePublic School
Established1972
School districtCapistrano Unified School District
PrincipalDr. Brad Baker
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,965 (2022-23)[1]
Color(s)    Blue & Silver
Athletics conferenceCIF Southern Section
Coast View Athletic Association
NicknameDolphins
NewspaperTHE PAPER
YearbookThe Mast
Websitehttps://danahills.capousd.org/

Dana Hills High School is a high school in Dana Point, California opened in 1973. The school's enrollment of roughly 2,000 students is drawn from the nearby communities of Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Capistrano Beach, and San Juan Capistrano.

When Dana Hills was built in 1972–73, the area was an unincorporated area of Orange County. The school was named for its hilltop location over the unincorporated village of Dana Point, as well as the tip of the hill projecting south into the Pacific Ocean as the Dana Point headland. The school later became a part of the City of Dana Point, when the city was incorporated in 1989.

Dana Hills now has over 155,839 square feet (14,477.9 m2) in permanent buildings. The principal is Dr. Brad Baker.

History

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By 2024, the school created a program to encourage students to avoid addiction to illegal usage of drugs. This was in response to students deaths via fentanyl.[2]

STAR Testing

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Dana Hills' Academic Performance Index (API) for the year of 2007 was 824.

Recent scores

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Year API Growth
2011[3] 855 58
2010[4] 848 8
2009[5] 839 0
2008[6] 899 9
2007[7] 824 8
2006[8] 816 5
2005[9] 811 43
2004[10] 768 18
2003[11] 749 0

Advanced Placement

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Dana Hills offers a wide array of Advanced Placement (AP) classes. These AP classes include Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Literature, Language and Composition, Music Theory, Art History, Psychology, Spanish IV, French IV, European History, United States History, World History, Government/Politics, and Computer Science A. All AP classes offer a “grade bump” making a 5.0 GPA possible in that class exclusively.[citation needed]

Newspaper

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The Dana Hills newspaper, originally called the Dolphin Dispatch from 1973 to 1992, now simply known as The Paper (stylized as "THE PAPER"), is produced by a staff of roughly 20 students. Roughly 2-3 newspapers are produced each school year. It features five sections: news, feature, opinion, entertainment, and sports.

In May 2019, the newspaper went digital with a new website (www.dhhsthepaper.com) created by a staff member.

HMO

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Dana Hills has a junior medical program, the Health and Medical Occupations Academy. The academy is for those who wish to study or pursue a career in medicine, as it prepares students for higher education in the medical field. Participants are involved in field trips, hospital duties, and view medical procedures as they are performed.

SOCSA

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The South Orange County School of the Arts (SOCSA), a part of Dana Hills High School, is a visual and performing arts academy for students within the Capistrano Unified School District. Conceived in 1989 by a group of parents, teachers and administrators, the academy was chartered by the District on November 20, 1995. The pilot program at Dana Hills High School was launched in the Spring semester of 1996.

In October 2000, the SOCSA Foundation was formed to raise funds to support the SOCSA Academy. In the fall of 2015, the Friends of SOCSA was formed as a replacement non-profit to support the SOCSA Academy.

SOCSA website

Marine Ecology Program

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One of Dana Hills' science courses is the Marine Ecology program, which offers a full year of marine science covering both the physical and biological sciences of the ocean and how they work together to form a working Ecosystem. Examples of some of the subjects taught during the class include plate tectonics, waves and tides, ocean currents, sand, algae, plankton, marine mammals, echinoderms, and fish. One of the most well-known traditions of the class is the annual Baja field study. In this field study, students, parents, teachers, and past alumni of the class travel down to Baja, California for a week, usually in May. The purpose of this field study is to apply what the students have learned that year in the class and see it in its natural environment, outside of a conventional laboratory setting. The Baja field study is unique only to that of Dana Hills, and essentially offered nowhere else in the United States.[citation needed]

Notable alumni

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documentaries, TV]] MS America, Miss United States, Miss California, Miss Orange County, Miss Huntington Beach, Miss United Nations, Miss San Diego, MS Senior California, MS Senior USA, MS Senior Universe 2025 (surfer) Women's World Champion Surfer 1985 (Motorized Surfjet Hawaii) US Jet Ski Team 1981 - 1986.

References

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  1. ^ "Dana Hills High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
  2. ^ McCormick, Erin (2024-09-14). "'They died because they tried it once': a US high school was ravaged by fentanyl - and came back from the brink". The Guardian. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
  3. ^ "2011 Growth API School Report – Dana Hills High". Api.cde.ca.gov. August 13, 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
  4. ^ "2010 Growth API School Report – Dana Hills High". Api.cde.ca.gov. 2011-10-05. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
  5. ^ "2009 Growth API School Report – Dana Hills High". Api.cde.ca.gov. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
  6. ^ "2008 Growth API School Report – Dana Hills High". Api.cde.ca.gov. March 26, 2010. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
  7. ^ "2007 Growth API School Report – Dana Hills High". Api.cde.ca.gov. August 20, 2008. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
  8. ^ "zip file".
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  11. ^ "zip file".
  12. ^ "Erik Apple MMA Bio". Retrieved 2014-01-01.
  13. ^ "Dana Hills' Hans Crouse is the Register's 2017 pitcher of the year". Orange County Register. 17 June 2017.
  14. ^ "Ian McCall UFC Bio". Retrieved 2014-01-01.
  15. ^ "Bao Quach MMA Bio". Retrieved 2014-01-01.
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33°28′40″N 117°42′02″W / 33.47778°N 117.70056°W / 33.47778; -117.70056

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