Thomas Downey High School

Last updated
Thomas Downey High School
Address
Thomas Downey High School
1000 Coffee Rd.

Modesto

California

United States
Coordinates 37°39′26″N120°58′30″W / 37.657138°N 120.974922°W / 37.657138; -120.974922
Information
School typePublic
OpenedSeptember, 1951
School district Modesto City Schools
PrincipalDavid Sanchez
Teaching staff87.81 (FTE) [1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment2,115 (2018–19) [1]
Student to teacher ratio24.09 [1]
Hours in school day6-8
Campus typesuburban
Colour(s)   
SongDowney Hymn, Downey Fight Song
AthleticsFootball, Volleyball, Golf, Cross Country, Soccer, Waterpolo, Tennis, Basketball, Wrestling, Baseball, Softball, Track, Swimming
MascotKnight
NewspaperKnight's Realm
YearbookShield
Feeder schoolsLa Loma Jr. High, Roosevelt Jr. High, Hanshaw Middle School
Website http://downey.monet.k12.ca.us/

Thomas Downey High School (TDHS) is a High School in Modesto, California. It is one of the seven high schools in Modesto. Thomas Downey High is the second oldest high school in the city of Modesto and its doors opened to students in the Fall of 1951. Its mascot is the Knight, but they are sometimes humorously referred to as the "Downey Ducks."[ citation needed ] The school's current student population is approximately 2,000 in Grades 9 through 12.

Contents

The movie American Graffiti , written and directed by Downey graduate George Lucas, is based in Modesto but filmed in Petaluma, California. The school that students in the film attend is called "Dewey High", but is actually Petaluma High School, the architectural twin to Downey High. "Dewey High" is a reference to Downey. The Block "D" Athletic Jackets and school colors in the movie are Royal Blue and White, identical to Downey's school colors.

Downey's yearbook and newspaper have received awards.

The Agriculture Department at Thomas Downey was first created to work the school's early orchards. The orchards have been since cut down, with the department serving as the main welding area for the students of TDHS. Proficient students in welding go on to competitions for the National FFA Organization. If students win competitions, they have a chance to be recognized by superiors in the welding industry. Companies include West-Mark, Caterpillar, and others. Students also raise animals for the Stanislaus County Fair, hoping to gain a profit. The projects range from 3 to 7 months and focus on gardening, animals, and home improvement. Students also have the opportunity to take a floral design class in which students design and sell arrangements.

The school has designated dress-up days during fall and winter homecoming weeks, Unity Week, and Red Ribbon week. A large rally is usually thrown at the beginning of each year for fall homecoming, where dance performances are given and homecoming court nominees play games meant to be somewhat embarrassing, but all in good fun for the spirit of Homecoming Week.

Sport

In 2006, the Thomas Downey High boys' varsity had a run n' gun type Offense led by their seniors Zeph Tyson, Andre Poree, Travis Jacobson and Roderick Stevens. The team finished 1 game out of playoff contention.

In 2008 the Thomas Downey High boys' varsity basketball team was crowned 2008 MMC (Modesto Metro Conference) Champions by beating Modesto High and had an inner league record of 13–2.

On Saturday, February 23, 2008, the Downey Science Bowl Blue Team won the Central Valley Regional Science Bowl Competition. They defeated the other 23 teams from the area.

The Downey High Boys Soccer team has won the MMC (Modesto Metro Conference) in 2008, 2010, and 2011, and had a section final appearance in 2007.

The Downey High Baseball team won the MMC in 2011 for the first time with a league record of 13-2, and overall record of 20-7-1. Blake Smith (class of 2006) currently plays in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization as an outfielder for the Double A Chattanooga Lookouts. Smith was drafted in the second round by the Dodgers in the 2009 MLB draft out of UC Berkeley.

In 2012, The Thomas Downey High Football team won the Modesto Metro Conference for the first time in school history with a record of 6-0-0. Overall, the team finished 10-2-0, with a victory over State Champions Central Catholic 45-42, and the school's first playoff victory in 25 years—a 41-6 victory over Jesse Bethel High of Vallejo, CA.

In 2013, The Thomas Downey High Football team tied for the Modesto Metro Conference title along with Modesto(high school). Overall, the Team finished 7-4-0. Downey's Second consecutive MMC Titile was led by 15 All league Players, Offense: QB PJ Wilson, RB Mario Sanchez, Wide receivers Tristan Best, Josh Lowe, and Mike Falepouno, Offensive linemen Kyler Bourque, Michael Dean Barron, and OL Josh Roy. Defense: DB Jaedon Webb, ILB Josh Baldonado, OLB Sanjay Parmer, OLB Jozeph Camp, DL Ty Nelson, Danny Cota, and Punter Thomas Reynolds.

In 2014, The Thomas Downey High Football team won the Modesto Metro Conference for the third straight year. Overall, the team finished 10-2-0, with a first-round playoff victory over Antelope High School, 20-19. In addition, Downey High Cornerback, Jakob Magana was named Sac Joaquin Section defensive player of the year by MaxPreps. He finished with 14 interceptions for the season which also placed him second in the nation in this category. And, Downey High Quarterback, P.J. Wilson, was named Sac Joaquin Section 1st Team Quarterback and finished the season with over 2,900 yards passing and nearly 600 yards rushing. The Downey High JV and Downey High Freshmen teams both completed undefeated seasons at 10-0-0. As a whole, the Downey football program (Varsity, JV, and Frosh) finished a combined 30-2-0.

Singing

Downey has five choirs: Concert Choir (mixed ensemble), Madrigals (advanced mixed ensemble), Knightengales (advanced women's ensemble), Knights(men's ensemble), and Gloriana (beginning women's ensemble). The choirs perform three concerts a year: Knight Magic in fall, the holiday concert in the winter, and the spring concert in spring. They also perform at various locations throughout the year, especially during the holiday season. The choirs also go on an annual tour to Southern California in the spring.

Band

For many years, Downey High had one of the most outstanding band programs in the far western United States. Things got started under the direction of the band director and composer, Roger Nixon, who later moved on to Modesto Junior College and then San Francisco State University. He wrote the music for the bicentennial of Modesto in 1970 which was performed by the MJC Concert Band under Dr. Jensen. Ken Farrell built on that foundation a truly excellent band program. By 1974 the Downey band had achieved twenty straight command performances (higher than first place) at various concert band festivals around California. The concert band recorded a record every spring for many years. Mr. Farrell wrote the school hymn and fight song and arranged and wrote music for the concert and marching bands. The marching band and pep band were also very good, and Mr. Farrell created a unique tradition of appointing student pep band directors to rehears the group and purchase music to perform, starting with Dave (Fowler) Johnson in 1969.

The full marching band performed at every home football game and each game performed a different halftime show consisting of several songs with a different formation for each song. Perfection was expected and achieved by Mr. Ferrell's bands. Daily band practices for several hours would begin 6 weeks before school even began in the fall. So many Downey band students qualified for the California State Honor Band every year that a quota was set at eleven participants. The instrumentalists were critical to the success of the musical plays that were performed every year and to the school orchestra. Several professional and semi-professional musicians graduated from this program including Gary Coates, Ken Nelson, Tony Clemens, Doug Ruby, Joyce Maley, Scott Ferrel and Dave (Fowler) Johnson who attended in the mid 1960s through the early 1970s. Dave (Fowler) Johnson and Wade Muncy are also piano technicians. In 2008 the Downey Concert and Marching Band performed at the Olympics in Beijing, China.

Controversies

On May 9, 2022, a male student was arrested for bringing a handgun to the school campus. [2]

Alumni

Related Research Articles

Apponequet Regional High School, located at 100 Howland Road in Lakeville, Massachusetts opened September 21, 1959. Apponequet serves secondary academic education students from the towns of Freetown, and Lakeville. It is the only high school within the Freetown-Lakeville Regional School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Monica High School</span> Public school in California, United States

Santa Monica High School, officially abbreviated to Samohi, is a public high school in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1891, it changed location several times in its early years before settling into its present campus at 601 Pico Boulevard. It is a part of the Santa Monica–Malibu Unified School District.

Midland Park Jr./Sr. High School is a six-year comprehensive public high school for students in seventh through twelfth grades in Midland Park, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Opened in 1957, it is a junior-senior high school operating as the lone secondary school of the Midland Park School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Braddock Secondary School</span> Secondary school in Burke, Virginia

Lake Braddock Secondary School (LBSS) in Burke, Virginia, United States, administered by Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), is one of three 7-12 secondary schools in Fairfax County; the other two are Hayfield SS and Robinson SS. Lake Braddock opened in 1973. Its mascot is a bruin, and the school colors are purple and gold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point at Wausau</span> College in Wisconsin

The University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point at Wausau, is a two-year campus of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. It is located near downtown Wausau, Wisconsin, United States, and adjacent to 78-acre (32 ha) Marathon Park.

Buffalo High School is located in Buffalo, Minnesota, United States off the intersection of County Road 35 and Dague Avenue. There are three communities that contribute students: Buffalo, Minnesota, Hanover, Minnesota, and Montrose, Minnesota, which has helped BHS grow into a large school of 2,145 students starting in the 2022-23 school year, with a staff of approximately 400.

Thomas Jefferson High School, or simply Jefferson High School, is one of the two high schools in Bloomington, Minnesota, United States Independent School District No. 271. It is located at 102nd Street and France Avenue on the suburb's southwest side, and is part of the Bloomington Public Schools district. About 1,600 students attend in grades 9 through 12. The mascot is a Jaguar.

Fred C. Beyer High School is a high school in Modesto, California, located in the Stanislaus County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mansfield High School (Massachusetts)</span> Public school in Mansfield, Massachusetts, United States

Mansfield High School (MHS) is a four-year, comprehensive public high school located in Mansfield, Massachusetts, United States. It is the only high school in the Mansfield Public Schools system. MHS has approximately 1,300 students in grades nine though twelve. The school teams are named the Hornets, the mascot is Sting the Hornet, and the school colors are green, white, and black.

Northwest High School is a public high school located in Colerain Township, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, near Cincinnati. It is part of the Northwest Local School District.

Clay High School is a public high school in Oregon, Ohio, United States, east of Toledo. It is the only high school in the Oregon City School District. The school is named for Jeremiah Clay, who donated his farmland for the school to be built on.

Concord High School is a 9-12 public high school in Concord, California, United States,. It is one of the six high schools in the Mount Diablo Unified School District. Concord High School was constructed in 1966 and currently provides 144,373 square feet (13,412.7 m2) in permanent structure, including about 70 classrooms, a library, and other structures. As of 2023, the current principal is Julene MacKinnon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teays Valley High School</span> Public high school in the United States

Teays Valley High School is a public high school located at 3887 State Route 752 in Ashville, Ohio. It is the only high school in the Teays Valley Local School District. The school mascot is the Viking.

The mission of Teays Valley High School is for all students to graduate and be prepared for college and career.

Liberty High School is a high school in Henderson in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is part of the Clark County School District. Liberty considers itself to be a "classical school." This is because through Liberty's curriculum, one can study Latin, as well as focus on the history and society of ancient Rome and Greece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leigh High School</span> School in San Jose, California, United States

Leigh High School is a secondary school located in the West San Jose region of San Jose, California, United States. Opening in September 1962, it was the fifth school established in the Campbell Union High School District. The school has twice been given the California Distinguished School award, in 1999 and 2003. As of 2020, the school's enrollment was 1809 students. The school colors are gold (yellow) and pine green, and its mascot is the Longhorn.

Union High School is an American public high school in Vancouver, Washington. It is part of the Evergreen Public Schools school district. While the campus is located within the proper city limits of Vancouver, it has a Camas area zip code. The campus was completed in July 2007. Union High School's principal is Griffin Peyton. The school colors are black, silver, and red. The school's mascot is the Titan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpharetta High School</span> High school in Georgia, United States

Alpharetta High School is a public high school located in Alpharetta, Georgia, United States within the Fulton County School System. Atlanta Magazine named Alpharetta High School one of the metro Atlanta area's best all-around high schools. In 2020, the U.S. News & World Report ranked the school #7 in Georgia and #281 nationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chanhassen High School</span> Public school in Chanhassen, Minnesota , United States

Chanhassen High School (CNHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Chanhassen, Minnesota, United States, a southwestern suburb of Minneapolis. Construction of the school was approved by voters in 2006 in response to rapidly growing enrollment in Carver County and overcrowding at Chaska High School, the district's other high school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natick High School</span> Public high school in the United States

Natick High School is an urban/suburban public high school serving students in grades 9 to 12 in Natick, Massachusetts, United States. The school is located on the banks of Dug Pond. Its enrollment was 1,603 students during the 2015–2016 school year. The original building was built in 1953 at approximately 189,000 sq ft (17,600 m2). and opened in 1954. The building was expanded in 1965. Additional renovations took place in 1985. In 2010, the town voted to replace the Natick High School building. The new facility was constructed on the fields immediately to the south of the former building. Demolition on the former building began on June 25, 2012. The new building design is based on a model approved by the state of Massachusetts. This was necessary in order to maximize state reimbursement for design and construction; it cost $78 million. The new high school opened to students on August 29, 2012.

James C. Enochs High School is a high school in Modesto, California. It is a member of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section#Central California Athletic League CCAL and has multiple MMC championship titles from the prior athletic league. The school is locally known for having the highest academic performance index of any high school in Stanislaus County, with an API of 820 in 2011. The school has four "career pathway programs": Cinema and Graphic Arts, Software & Systems Development, Forensic/Biotech Science, and Pre-Vet Science.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Thomas Downey High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Handgun Confiscated From Student On Thomas Downey High School Campus In Modesto, Authorities Say". 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.