Gunn High School is one of two public high schools in Palo Alto, California. The school is named after Henry M. Gunn (1898-1988), who served as the Palo Alto superintendent from 1950-1961. During his tenure he would see the school district expand from 5,500 students to 14,000. He also oversaw the expansion of 17 new schools, and is credited with the establishment of De Anza College and Foothill College, two local community colleges. In 1964, the Palo Alto Unified School District announced it would name its third high school after him. The first graduating class was the Class of 1964. The school is also home to the Spangenberg Theatre .

The mascot of the school is the Titan.

Academic reputation

Gunn High School, like the rest of the Palo Alto school system, is well known for achieving outstanding academic results. It is listed as the 6th best [1] public school in California based on the Academic Performance Index (API), and the 50th best [2] in the United States based on Newsweek's rankings.

In 2004, 31 Gunn students reached the National Merit Semifinalist level. Most schools get 1-3 students at this level.

Education in mathematics and computer science is particularly strong. In 2004, 5 students qualified for the USAMO out of around 250 nationally, and during the 2004-2005 school year 5 out of the approximately 35 American students in the Gold Division of the USACO were from Gunn.

Notable graduates

• Zoe Lofgren, Class of 1966 - Elected 5 times to the United States House of Representatives.
• Stanley Jordan, Class of 1977 - Jazz guitarist
• Stephan Jenkins, Class of 1983 - Lead singer of Third Eye Blind.
• Shemar Moore, Class of 1988 - Actor, formerly of the NBC soap opera The Young and the Restless.

External links

• Gunn High School
• Gunn High School Alumni Site