Tamalpais High School

History

Tamalpais Union High School District was founded in 1907, to serve students from the Mill Valley Elementary and Sausalito Elementary School Districts who had previously commuted to San Rafael to continue their education. Tamalpais Union High School held its first classes with 70 students in 1908, in tent-like structures. Ernest E. Wood took the lead in founding the District and was the first principal. In its second year, there were six teachers, 100 students, and 300 volumes in the school library. By the 1913–1914 school year, enrollment had increased to 175, with eight faculty; the library holdings had grown to 650 books plus subscriptions to eight magazines and two newspapers.

Known in its early years as Tamalpais Polytechnic High School, Tam was a comprehensive high school from its beginning, with a curriculum that included both academic subjects and technical training. In an interview with the local newspaper the year before he died, Principal Wood said, "I believe the students learned by doing things. I believe in the philosophy of students getting in and doing work and accomplishing things." Architecture students designed the first building on campus, and students built several structures there over the years.

For a while, the Northwestern Pacific Railroad ran what they called the "School Special, a special 5-car train running from Manor to Tamalpais High School via Almonte. 2 of the cars on the school special were separated by gender - 1 boys-only car and 1 girls-only car.

News

On February 27, 1967, after a year of increased racial tension and disturbances, regular classes were canceled for "Breakthrough Day," a student-initiated teach-in on race relations. All students and faculty met in Mead Theater and then broke out into discussion groups around campus. The event was widely covered by local and national media.

In 1981, Antenna Theater premiered Chris Hardman's High School at Tam during the fourth Bay Area Playwrights Festival. The work introduced Hardman's performance art concept, "Walkmanology," with Sony Walkmans providing the narration to audience members as they walked the Tam campus observing the story. In 1982, Antenna presented the Pink Prom at Tam. In this play, unrehearsed student actors wore the Walkmans, which provided their stage direction, while the audience interacted with the actors and each other. Antenna Theater later spun off its Walkmanology concept to Antenna Audio, which has become a leading international producer of audio tours for museums and other attractions.

In the 1989–1990 school year, members of the student body petitioned to formally remove the school's original mascot "Indians" at the interdiction of Sacheen Littlefeather, a pretendian Marin County resident and activist for Native American causes. The original mascot had been chosen to recognize the area's indigenous inhabitants, the Miwoks, and was represented by illustrations (both dignified and caricature), costumed performers, and, beginning in the 1960s, a wooden sculpture named Charlie. Sports teams were identified only as "Tam" for the fall and winter seasons of that school year. A schoolwide contest was held, and the Red Tailed Hawks was chosen as the winner, beating out other entries such as Mountaineers and Locomotives. The Red Tailed Hawk logo and mascot was adopted beginning in the 1990–1991 school year. Tam High was one of the first American institutions to remove a "politically incorrect" Native American moniker.

On May 9, 1990, following the death of history teacher Charles Smith due to complications from AIDS, Principal Barbara Galyen announced that students had persuaded the administration to allow the school nurse to distribute free condoms. Tam would have been the first high school in California to dispense prophylactics without parent approval, were it not for the immediate uproar. The controversial plan was objected to by several parents, as well as San Francisco Archbishop John R. Quinn, all calling for it to be rescinded. The following week, after the parents of one student threatened to sue, the district postponed the program indefinitely. In June, Sausalito pharmacist Fred Mayer, originator of "Condom Week" in 1979, announced that he would give free condoms to high school students that summer. Despite the program being deferred, a suit was filed in June. On August 1, the Marin County Superior Court denied the request for an injunction, since the district had not approved the program. About 1990, Tam initiated the Condom Availability Program, which provides free condoms to students who have received parental permission and completed a training session.

Tam High Foundation

In 1996, Principal Frank Gold and a group of parents formed the nonprofit Tam High Foundation to raise funds for support of the school. The Foundation raised $60,000 its first year, increasing annual funding to $360,000 by 2007–2008. The foundation awards academic grants of up to $10,000 to teachers and administrators.

Centennial

Tam's first 100 years, 1908 to 2008, were widely recognized in local media. The Tam Centennial Committee, which included the principal, alumni, parents, retired faculty, and others, began meeting in 2006. The centennial celebration began with kickoff events on Homecoming Weekend in September 2007. Several events were scheduled for the year, including a Tam Oral History Project, a centennial documentary, and a celebration over the 2008 Memorial Day weekend.

Campus

Initially consisting of only a couple of tents on a shore front campus that allowed students to take their boats to school, the Tamalpais campus was fully developed over the years, but has seen its share of wear and tear. Following a 2004 bond measure, the campus underwent renovations to some of its nearly century-old buildings. The oldest building, Wood Hall, reopened in late August 2005. Wood Hall houses the school's administrative offices.

The 2005–2006 academic year was delayed by five days when unhealthy levels of mold were discovered in the walls of Keyser Hall. The building was closed, and portable classrooms were used instead of Keyser's 17 classrooms. The mold grew due to runoff from the hillside the building was situated on. Keyser Hall was demolished during the summer of 2006; a state-of-the-art replacement structure, also named Keyser Hall, was opened in January 2009.

School administrators are consulting with architects about the construction of a handicapped elevator in front of the school's most recognizable building, Wood Hall. Architects unveiled a plan for a four-story elevator tower in front of the school's signature archway, complete with a bridge to take handicapped students into the building. Staff were shocked at the drastic proposal, which would be costly and would have an extensive impact on many of the campus' most well-known architectural features. An elevator of some sort may be necessary to comply with handicapped accessibility laws. Administrators have formed a committee to look into alternative ways to provide that accessibility.

Statistics

Demographics

2014–2015

1,321 students: 642 Male (48.6%), 679 Female (51.4%)

Extracurricular activities

Sports

Tam has competed in the Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) since the league was established in 1959. The MCAL is in the Marin-Sonoma-Mendocino Conference, North Coast Section (NCS), of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF). Prior to the 1959 realignment, Tam was a member of the old North Bay League. In the 1920s, the NBL included Analy High School, Napa High School, Petaluma High School, San Rafael High School, Santa Rosa High School, St. Helena High School, and Vallejo High School.

Through the 1940s and early 1950s, Tam played against NBL teams from Healdsburg, Napa, San Rafael, Santa Rosa, and Vallejo; non-league opponents included Analy and Petaluma. In the 1950s, Drake and Marin Catholic joined the League.

The MCAL offers competition in 21 sports as of 2010, including baseball, cross country, football, softball, swimming and diving, track and field, and wrestling. Separate teams for boys and girls compete in basketball, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, volleyball, and water polo. The only NCS sport that MCAL does not participate in is badminton.

Baseball – NCS Champions, 1929, 2014 (Division III); NCS second-place, 1920, 1928, and 2012

Basketball, Boys – NCS Division IV and State Champions, 2000

Cross Country, Boys – NCS Division IV Team Champions, 2008

Cross Country, Girls – NCS Meet of Champions, 1975; NCS Class A Champions, 1977

Golf, Boys – NCS Co-Champions, 1980

Soccer, Boys – NCS Champions, 2000, 2012

Soccer, Girls – NCS Champions, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2020

Softball, Girls – North Coast Section Champions, 2014

Mock Trial

Tamalpais High School's Mock Trial team won the 2005 National High School Mock Trial Championship, held in Charlotte, North Carolina. Tam had defeated Redlands East Valley High School of San Bernardino County to win the state championship. In Charlotte, competing against 44 other schools, Tam won all five rounds of the tournament, beating the previously undefeated team from Kauai High School in the finals. The members of the national championship team were Sandra Allen, Mackenzie Amara, Jason Finkelstein, Jessie Kavanagh, Courtney Khademi, Natalie Robinson, Kelly Stout, and Max Wertheimer. Outstanding Performance Awards went to Allen as attorney, and Finkelstein and Stout as witnesses. Marin County defense attorney David M. Vogelstein, coach of the team since 1997, won the Advocate of the Year Award in 2005 from the Constitutional Rights Foundation.

Tam won the State championship again in 2009, and took second place in 1998 and 2007 and third place in 2008. As of 2014, the mock trial team has won the Marin County championship 19 years in a row.

On February 7, 2009, Tam won its fourteenth consecutive Marin County Championship, with captains IndiAna Gowland and Frank Alarcon winning as outstanding prosecution attorney. Tam went on to win its second State Championship on March 22, in Riverside, beating the 2007 champions, Elk Grove High School. At State, Junior Ben Harris won the best constitutional advocate award for his role as pre-trial defense lawyer. At the May 2009 National Mock Trial Competition in Atlanta, Georgia, Tam ranked 6th in the nation. Tam extended its streak to 15 Marin County Championships on February 6, 2010, advancing to the California Mock Trial Tournament, held March 19–21 in San Jose. Tam finished in sixth place, with Junior Amanda Weinberg receiving a Special Commendation as Outstanding Prosecution Witness. On February 5, 2011, Tam won its 16th consecutive Marin County mock trail championship. They competed in the California state finals in Riverside on March 25–27, securing a fourth-place finish. Sophomore Anna Lipman received a Special Commendation as Outstanding Defense Witness. On February 4, 2012, Tam won its 17th consecutive county title, besting Terra Linda High School—its championship round rival for five years running—by one point. The team will go on to the State Competition in Sacramento on March 23–25. The winning ways continued on February 2, 2013, when Tam High claimed its 18th consecutive Marin County Championship, this time with a victory over a team from Novato High School.

Vogelstein retired from his role as lead coach in 2018. He was honored by the Marin County Board of Education for 20 years of coaching the Mock Trial team. During his tenure, the team extended its winning steak for the county title to 23 consecutive years, and won three state championships and one national championship.

Performing arts

Tam High is the original home of the Conservatory Theatre Ensemble (CTE, formerly Ensemble Theater Company), formed by former student (Tam/Drake Class of 1952) and teacher Daniel Caldwell, notable alumni of which include Kathleen Quinlan, Tupac Shakur, Beth Behrs, Bridgit Mendler, and Courtney Thorne-Smith. ETC expanded its presence to include Redwood High School and Drake High School in the mid-1980s. The Daniel Caldwell Performing Arts Center a new facility features a new 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) multi-use theatre building as well as significant upgrades and renovations to Ruby Scott Auditorium. The center was completed in 2006. The theatre is regionally known for its Fall & Spring One Act festival where students both act in and direct short plays. The program receives grants to host guest artists to direct and produce shows.

Global Studies

Tam High's Global Studies program has sent students to Orthez, France; Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France; Málaga, Spain; London; Pamplona, Spain; Cuba; Ireland, Italy, Vietnam, and Hungary. In 2000 the Tam News received a license from the Treasury Department to travel to Havana, Cuba and produced their first color magazine issue. The following year, 2001, musicians, artists, and dancers from the school visited Havana's art high schools and spent time creating art together with the Cuban students. In 2013, the baseball and softball teams received permission to travel to Havana, Cuba to each play a three-game series against Cuban teams. Throughout the trip, the teams traveled the country and experienced many unique cultural opportunities including Festival Internacional del Cine Pobre. The boys finished with a 2–1 record and the girls swept with a 3–0 record.

Student publications

The school's newspaper, the Tamalpais News has won awards from the National Scholastic Press Association and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. News staff won individual awards for Story of the Year from the NSPA in 1998 (2nd for features); 2009 (3rd Diversity); 2011 (5th News Story); 2013 (2nd Feature, 4th Diversity); and 2014 (1st Editorial/Opinion, 2nd Feature). The 2014 First place was awarded to the Staff for "All Quiet on the District Front"; the Second place was won by Isaac Cohen for "Undocumented: Navigating Life Without Citizenship." The paper introduced a website in 2006, tamnews.org, which was a finalist for the NSPA Online Pacemaker in 2007 and 2014.

In 2006, for the first time since the award was established in 1983, CSPA presented the News one of 37 Silver Crown Awards.

Tam News staff won ten individual and staff Gold Circle Awards and Certificates of Merit from the CSPA in 2001, with 17 total since 1984. In 2014, CPSA recognized four members of the News, with Cassie Jeong winning two awards for Hand-drawn Art/Illustration: 1st place for "Startup Weekend Adventures" and 3rd for "Zine Fest." The Staff received the 3rd-place award in Editorial writing for "All Quiet on the District Front"; Isaac Cohen received a Certificate of Merit in the In-depth news/feature story category for "Undocumented." Previous Gold Circle Award winners follow:

1997 Single Spot News Photograph (Tabloid), 2nd, Shannon McGuire, "Mill Valley fire fighters..."

2000 Entertainment Review, 2nd, Noah Flower, "Powerful novel reveals African experience"

2001 Feature Photo (Single), 2nd, Sarah Wagner, "Bring Elian Home-Salremos A Alian"

Overall Design, 2nd, Sarah Wagner, Noah Flower, And the staff, "Tam News From Havana"

Title & Content Page, 2nd, Noah Flower, Sarah Wagner, "Inside"

Personality Profile, 3rd, Melissa Simon, "Into The Unknown"

Sexual abuse scandal

In 2019, former tennis coach Normandie Burgos was convicted on 60 counts of child molestation, including forcible sodomy and lewd conduct upon minors, after a victim recorded him admitting to sexual acts with minors.The specific accusations against him included inappropriate touching of students during body fat tests, giving unsolicited and inappropriate massages, and sexually assaulting students in his office and the school's locker room. He is currently serving a 255-year prison sentence. His conviction followed a mistrial in 2010 due to a deadlocked jury.

In 2024, a Marin County jury found the Tamalpais Union High School District liable for failing to protect students from Burgos, leading to a settlement of $17.5 million to four former students who alleged abuse during their time at the school.

The settlement included $11.5 million awarded to Alexander Harrison, who reported the abuse in 2006. His experience, along with those of other victims, highlighted systemic failures within the school district, where administrators allegedly ignored clear signs of misconduct. One victim testified that an administrator witnessed an assault but chose to make a joke instead of intervening.

Awards and recognition

Tamalpais High School was a recipient of the California Distinguished School Award in 1999, 2005, and 2009. The school has been ranked in the top five percent of American high schools since 2005, based on a system devised by Dave Matthews of the Washington Post and reported by Newsweek. Tam ranked the highest of all Marin County high schools each year, at 428 in 2005, 425 in 2006, 410 in 2007, and 979 in 2008.

Notable alumni and students

As part of its celebration of its 144th year, the San Francisco Chronicle ran a series in June 2009 listing 144 famous Bay Area high school alumni in a "roll call of fame". Tam alumni listed included Tupac Shakur, George Duke, Pat Paulsen, William L. Patterson, John Cipollina, and Courtney Thorne-Smith.

The people listed here graduated from or attended Tam. The year shown is the year of graduation for the class that they entered with, unless they are known to have graduated with or identify with a different class.

William L. Patterson 1911 – attorney; civil rights pioneer

Roger Kent c. 1923‡ – attorney; general counsel, U.S. Department of Defense, 1952–53; Democratic Party campaign manager and State chair

Eve Arden (Eunice Quedens) 1926* – Oscar-nominated actress, Mildred Pierce, Anatomy of a Murder, Grease, star of TV series Our Miss Brooks

Freddy Nagel 1926* – saxophonist, big band leader

Antonio "Tony" Freitas c. 1926 – pitcher MLB, Philadelphia Athletics and Cincinnati Reds, member of Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame

Larry Lansburgh, 1929 - director and documentarian

Sam Chapman 1934‡ – athlete (high school and college star, California Golden Bears; MLB's Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians)

Art Schallock 1943 – MLB pitcher: Yankees (1953 World Series), Orioles

Pat Paulsen 1945† – statesman, actor, comedian (Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour)

Notable faculty, coaches, and advisors

Roy "Wrongway" Riegels coached the Tamalpais High School football team in 1934 and recruited Sam Chapman to play for UC Berkeley

Dan Caldwell, founder, Ensemble Theatre Company

Willie Hector, American football player

Dave Meggyesy, former NFL linebacker and author of Out of Their League, was the head football coach in 1981 while teaching part-time at Stanford

Tam High in popular culture

The Tamalpais Marching Band appeared in the 1969 Woody Allen film Take the Money and Run, while Tam teachers Dan Caldwell and Don Michaelian had small roles as a prison guard and a prisoner

David Crosby's song, "Tamalpais High (At About 3)", refers to when Tam classes end for the day, and was conceived while the musician passed the school on the way to recording sessions in neighboring Sausalito, reportedly at The Plant Studios. It was recorded in February 1971 (though The Plant Studios is said to have opened in 1972). David Crosby – guitar, vocals; Jerry Garcia – guitar; Jorma Kaukonen – guitar; Phil Lesh – bass; Bill Kreutzmann – drums

The cover photograph for the 1986 album Fore! by Huey Lewis and the News was taken at Tam High. Three members of the band - Bill Gibson, Sean Hopper, and Mario Cipollina - had previously attended the school

A Time for Dancing, (Davida Wills Hurwin, 1995, Little Brown & Co, ISBN 0-316-38351-1) is set partly in Mill Valley and at Tam, which Julianna and Samantha, the main characters, attend; the movie based on the book was shot in 2000, with limited distribution in Europe, and was released in the United States in 2004