AGBU Vatche & Tamar Manoukian High School was a private

Armenian-American Armenian Americans ( hy, ամերիկահայեր, ''amerikahayer'') are citizens or residents of the United States who have total or partial Armenian ancestry. They form the second largest community of the Armenian diaspora after Armenians in ...

school located in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

, United States, which opened its doors in September 2006 and closed in 2020. The campus is owned and operated by the

Armenian General Benevolent Union The Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU, Eastern Armenian: Հայկական Բարեգործական Ընդհանուր Միություն, ՀԲԸՄ, ''Haykakan Baregortsakan Endhanur Miutyun'', or hyw, Հայ Բարեգործական Ընդ ...

, the largest

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

n philanthropic organization in the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

that also sponsors 17 Armenian day schools around the world. The school was administratively and academically affiliated with

AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian School ( hy, ՀԲԸՄ Մանուկեան-Տէմիրճեան վարժարան) is an Armenian-American private school located in Winnetka, Los Angeles, California, United States. Located in the heart of the San Fernando ...

, a college preparatory high school in the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

region of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. The school met high school requirements, which included a science lab, library, indoor gym, computer lab, assembly hall, and cafeteria. During the semester of 2013, the school added more electives including International Issues, Globalization and Public Policy, secured each classroom with a smartboard, established diverse clubs that students can participate in during the day. It was one of the 570 member schools of the

California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have a s ...

, or CIF Southern Section which competes in varsity sports. Its athletic department included a boys' varsity team, a boys' junior varsity team, and a girls' varsity team. In October 2019, the Armenian General Benevolent Union announced the impending closure of the school, citing declining enrollment numbers. The announcement was met with widespread condemnation from Armenian students across Southern California. For days after the announcement students of the school were joined by those from other Armenian Schools including

Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School ( hy, Լոս Անջելեսի Ռոզ և Ալեքս Փիլիպոս ազգային վարժարան) is a K-12 Armenian school in the neighborhood of Little Armenia in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by ...

, St. Gregory A. & M. Hovsepian School, Sahag Mesrob Armenian Christian School in protests both at the campus and at the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church. The school hosted an event for students to get to know about other Armenian high school options in Southern California on November 5. The students organized a boycott of this event as a testament to their determination to keep their school open. The school transitioned to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, and closed in June 2020; the closure was announced in 2019. AGBU cited the increasing costs as the reason for the closure.

References

External links

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AGBU Vatche and Tamar Manoukian High School website
Schools in Pasadena, California Armenian-American culture in California Armenian-American private schools Armenian General Benevolent Union Private high schools in Los Angeles County, California Educational institutions established in 2006 2006 establishments in California Educational institutions disestablished in 2020 2020 disestablishments in California {{LosAngelesCountyCA-school-stub

See also

References

External links