Bishop O'Dowd High School is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, co-educational, college preparatory school in

Oakland, California 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, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, administered by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland and named after the late auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, James T. O'Dowd (1907–1950). The school requires all students to attend school liturgies (

Catholic Mass The Mass is the central liturgical service of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, in which bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass "the same Christ ...

and prayer services), to enroll in religious studies courses each semester, and to complete its 4-year service learning program. O’Dowd is a Catholic high school community of 1,250 students. The school has 129 faculty and staff members and more than 82 part-time coaches, teachers and moderators.

History

Bishop O’Dowd High School is named in memory of the former Superintendent of Schools of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, Bishop James T. O’Dowd, who died at the age of 42 from injuries sustained in a train accident. Having just helped to establish Marin Catholic and Riordan high schools, O'Dowd was in the process of drawing up plans for a new Catholic high school in the

East Bay The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Wi ...

at the time of his sudden death. Bishop O'Dowd's first senior class graduated in 1955, and since then O'Dowd has had over 12,000 graduates. In June 2010, O’Dowd successfully completed a three-year, $9 million comprehensive fundraising campaign and funds raised were split about evenly between capital development and program enhancement. Funds contributed to renovation of many elements of the classroom buildings — from floors to ceilings, interior and exterior, every classroom, lab and locker, from ventilation to technology infrastructure. In 2022, the school opened a new $40 million gymnasium featuring a basketball court, a new music room, and a weight room.

Athletics

In 2015, the men's basketball team won the CIF Open Division Championship and the women's team won the Division III CIF State Championship. The men's team was led by Ivan Rabb, the no. 8 player in the country. In 2015, O'Dowd's basketball team was ranked 13th nationally.

Programs and extracurricular activities

* 21 AP courses * 10 Honor Courses * Athletics: 61 teams, 16 sports * 4 musical groups * Student clubs: 40+ * Students spend a minimum of 100 hours in community service by graduation * Center for Environmental Studies (a building) * The Living Lab – a 4.857 1/2 acre student-built vegetable and botanical garden * 20% Acceptance Rate

Awards

Bishop O'Dowd High School was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School in 1990–1991.

In Popular Culture

Bishop O'Dowd High School is the setting of Gene Luen Yang's 2015

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

, '' Dragon Hoops''. The book chronicles the men's basketball team's 2015 season, which ended in them winning the CIF Open Division Championship. ''Dragon Hoops'' is a Michael Printz Award Honor book.

Alumni

* The Matches, pop-punk band * Alijah Vera-Tucker, football player * Tarik Glenn, football player * Jevon Holland, football player * Jasmine Guillory, novelist * Maya Harris, lawyer & writer * Meena Harris, lawyer, author and theater producer * Ivan Rabb, basketball player * Kevin King, football player * Brian Shaw, basketball player *

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Matt Bettinelli-Olpin (born February 19, 1978) is an American director, writer, actor, and musician. He is a founding member of the punk band Link 80 and co-creator of the filmmaking collectives Chad, Matt & Rob and Radio Silence Productions, Rad ...

, musician and filmmaker * Michael A. Goorjian, actor & filmmaker *

Kirk Morrison Kirk David Morrison (born February 19, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the San Diego State Aztecs. Morrison was selected by the ...

, football linebacker & radio analyst * Brandon Ashley, basketball player * Tyson Ross, baseball player * Langston Walker, football player * Grady Livingston, college basketball player * Jeff Kobernus, baseball player *

Dennis Montali Dennis Montali (born May 20, 1940) is an American attorney and jurist who served as a United States bankruptcy judge of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California. Early life and education Montali was born in 19 ...

, bankruptcy judge * Meghan Kalkstein, broadcast journalist * Sean Aaberg, comics artist * Burl Toler III, football player * Ryan Drese, baseball player *

, Attory & Judge * Eric Bjornson, football player * Venus James, soccer player * Alexi Pappas, runner, filmmaker, actor, & author * Luis Scott-Vargas, game designer and member of the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame * Johnnie Bryant, basketball coach * Austin Jones, football player

Footnotes

External links

Official Bishop O'Dowd High School website
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1951 Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland Catholic secondary schools in California High schools in Oakland, California 1951 establishments in California