Artesia High School is a public high school in

Lakewood, California Lakewood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 82,496 at the 2020 census. It is bordered by Long Beach on the west, northwest and south, Bellflower on the north, Cerritos on the northeast, Cypress on t ...

, with a student population of around 1,500. It is one of the five high schools in the ABC Unified School District.

History

Construction of Artesia High was completed in 1954, making it the oldest active high school in the ABC Unified School District since the 1979 closure of Excelsior High School, then known as the Excelsior Union High School District. While originally in

Artesia, California Artesia ( Spanish for " artesian aquifer") is a city in southeast Los Angeles County, California. Artesia was incorporated on May 29, 1959, and is one of Los Angeles County's Gateway Cities. The city has a 2020 census population of 16,395. A ...

, since the realigning of city boundaries, it is now located about south of the southern border of Artesia, in Lakewood. The opening ceremony of the school was highlighted with a speech by then-Vice President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

. In his speech he expressed his hope that Artesia High School would serve as an example of educational integration, in light of the

Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the ...

ruling passed only a few months before. The school mascot is the Pioneer.

Academics

The school is part of the Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement program and is under the direct guidance of

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

. The school's 2009

Academic Performance Index The Academic Performance Index (API) was a measurement of academic performance and progress of individual schools in California, United States. The API was one of the main components of the Public Schools Accountability Act passed by the California ...

score was 745. In 2013, Artesia High was designated as a California Distinguished School.

Athletics

Artesia High School is a member of the

605 League The 605 League is a high school athletic conference in southeastern Los Angeles County, California affiliated with the CIF Southern Section. It was created in 2019, with 3 members of from the Suburban League (California), Suburban League; Artesia ...

of the

CIF Southern Section The California Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section (CIF-SS) is the governing body for high school athletics in most of Southern California and is the largest of the ten sections that comprise the California Interscholastic Federation (CI ...

and is renowned for its competitive sports teams. The boys' basketball team, which featured future

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Traditionally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

James Harden James Edward Harden Jr. (born August 26, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is regarded by some as one of the greatest shooting guards in NBA hist ...

, was ranked first in California during the 2005–2006 season. The school won the CIF Division III championship with a record of 33 wins and a single loss. The 2006 win was the second time in the school's history that the team won the California Basketball championship. The Pioneers have a total of 5 state championships, ranking fourth in the state in terms of state championships. On March 24, 2007, the boys' basketball team defeated Bishop O'Dowd High School from

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

for the CIF Division III State Championship title, and celebrated Artesia's second back-to-back D-III title and fifth overall state championship.

Notable alumni

* Joel Adamson –

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) pitcher * Memo Arzate – soccer player, graduated 1999 * Stephen Burton –

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) player, graduated 2007 * Tony Farmer – professional basketball player *

–

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA) player on the Los Angeles Clippers, 2017–18 season MVP * Ed Hodge – MLB pitcher * Jason Kapono – NBA player * Abner Mares – professional boxer * Jack Michael Martínez – professional and Dominican Republic national basketball team player * Armando Muniz – Olympic and professional boxer *

Ed O'Bannon Edward Charles O'Bannon Jr. (born August 14, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was a power forward (basketball), power forward for the UCLA Bruins men's basketball, UCLA Br ...

– NBA and 1995 UCLA national champion basketball player *

Charles O'Bannon Charles Edward O'Bannon Sr. (born February 22, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball with the UCLA Bruins men's basketball, UCLA Bruins. He was a two-time first-team List of All-Pac-12 Conferen ...

– NBA and 1995 UCLA national champion basketball player *

Ryan Reyes Ryan Jay Reyes (born August 10, 1983) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for TNT Tropang 5G of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Nicknamed D-Energizer for his energetic style of play, he was drafted third overall by ...

– professional basketball player * Orlando Scandrick – NFL player, transferred to Los Alamitos High School * Jón Arnór Stefánsson – NBA player *

Tom Tolbert Thomas Byron Tolbert Jr. (born October 16, 1965) is an American sports broadcaster and former professional basketball player. He played a total of seven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After retiring from basketball, Tolbert ...

– NBA player and analyst, sports talk show host * Dick Wantz – MLB pitcher

References

External links

School website
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1954 ABC Unified School District Public high schools in Los Angeles County, California 1954 establishments in California Lakewood, California