Mendota High School is a

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

Mendota, California Mendota is a U.S. city in Fresno County, California. The population was 11,014 at the 2010 U.S. Census. CA State Routes 180 and 33 run through the agricultural city. Mendota is located south-southeast of Firebaugh, at an elevation of 174 feet ...

, United States, attended largely by Hispanic-Americans. In the 2015–2016 school year, the school contained 755 students. 99% were Hispanic, with the remainder Asian. In 2011, the school's 12-person chess team, named the

Knuckleheads ''Knuckleheads'' (original French-language title: ''Au pays des Têtes à claques'') is a Canadian animated series based on Têtes à claques. The show first aired on Télétoon la nuit on January 12, 2012 as a preview, with regular airings start ...

, placed first in the Premier Division at the CalChess State Championships in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...

. Jesus Espinoza was the chess team's mascot. They were honored not only by the City Council but also by the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

, which caused the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

to remark that for many of the players, that the trip to

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

"was the farthest they had ever traveled from Mendota." The heart and soul of Mendota High School is the football team, which was recently featured in an ESPN Sportscenter special.

References

Public high schools in California High schools in Fresno County, California 1993 establishments in California {{California-school-stub