Central Union High School El Centro, CA
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Central Union High School, also known as Central or CUHS, is a four-year public high school in El Centro, California with a diverse student body of more than 1,910 students. It is one of three schools in the
Central Union High School District The Central Union High School District (CUHSD) is the district of the 3 high schools in El Centro, California — Central Union High School (CUHS), Southwest High School (SHS), and Desert Oasis High School (DOHS). The CUHSD main office and bo ...
.


History

The school was established in 1908, and celebrated its centennial in 2008. Among the most well-known alumni are actor Donal Logue from the class of 1984, who starred in the Fox TV sitcom " Grounded for Life" and was Central's ASB president his senior year; professional saxophonist
Walter Beasley Walter Beasley is an American saxophonist, a professor of music at the Berklee College of Music, and founder of Affable Publishing and Affable Records. Biography Beasley grew up in El Centro, California. By the age of 13 he was singing in Span ...
, a member of the school's Great Spartan Band in the 1970s under the late band director and local jazz legend Jimmie Cannon; Doug Harvey, an umpire in the
National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...
; former Denver Broncos linebacker
Glenn Cadrez Glenn E. Cadrez (born January 2, 1970) is a former American football linebacker who played 11 seasons in the National Football League, mainly for the Denver Broncos. He played for the Broncos from 1995 to 2000 and was a starter in Super Bowl XXX ...
and actress Kyle Richards of the class of 1987; and actor/artist H. Michael Wieben, class of 1962, who appeared on and off Broadway. Central's annual football game with the Brawley Union High School Wildcats of Brawley, CA which is called the bell game is one of the oldest high school rivalries in the country.


Clubs


Academic Decathlon

Central's Academic Decathlon team has won the
Imperial County Imperial Count (german: Reichsgraf) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. In the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from ...
Competition every year since 1981, until 2014, but have competed in the state competition in Sacramento, CA annually during their time.


Mock Trial

Central's Mock Trial team participates in the Constitutional Rights Foundation's California Mock Trial Program, and has competed and won in the state championship in 1986 and 1998. In 2015, the team placed second in the state championship, the first time in the team's history.


Athletics

Central competes in the Imperial Valley League in the California Interscholastic Federation San Diego Section. The school's teams are called the Spartans and its colors are blue and white. The Spartans' longtime archrivals are the Brawley Wildcats. The annual football game, known as the Bell Game, began in 1943 when the schools' associated student bodies bought the bell from a ship in San Diego for $50. But the Central-Brawley rivalry predates the Bell Game and began in 1921.


Fall Sports

* Volleyball * Cross Country * Girls' Volleyball * Girls' Golf * Girls' Tennis * Boys' Football * JV Cheer * Varsity Cheer


Winter Sports

* Boys' Basketball * Girls' Basketball * Boys' Soccer * Girls' Soccer * Wrestling


Spring Sports

* Boys' Tennis * Swimming * Softball * Baseball * Boys' Golf * Track and Field


Music Programs

* Marching Band (The Great Spartan Band) * Beginning Band * Wind Ensemble * Concert Band * Jazz Band * Stage Band * Chorus * Guitar


The Great Spartan Band

The Great Spartan Band performs at all home football games and is known for its "Spartan Shuffle" as it enters the field during pre-game and as it exits the field after halftime. The band also performs in local events and parades in
Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...
and San Diego counties. In addition, Central has an award-winning jazz band and a wind ensemble. The band has performed across the country and received awards and honors from the Orange Coast College Jazz Festivals, El Centro Navy Base Jazz Festival, Southwestern College Jazz Festival, Imperial Valley College Jazz Festival,
USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...
Concert of the Bands, UCLA Band Festival, Holiday Bowl Music Festivals, Columbus Day Parade, Mother Goose Parade, and the Disneyland Parades and concerts in 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1987. Under the direction of Jimmie Cannon from 1966 to 1996, the Great Spartan Band began to travel extensively and in 1972 performed in Mexico City, where it was honored by the
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
President Luis Echeverría. The band has a standing invitation to perform in the
Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ) refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday. is French for "Fat ...
parades in New Orleans, most recently in 2016. The band also traveled to Disney World in Florida in 1995, where it participated in the Magic Kingdom Easter Parade. The Great Spartan Band was invited by Congressman Bob Filner ( California's 51st District) to participate in the 2010 Memorial Day Parade in Washington, DC.


References

{{authority control High schools in Imperial County, California Public high schools in California 1908 establishments in California