Bullard High School (Fresno, California)
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Bullard High School is a
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secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
located in
Fresno, California Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...
, United States. Founded in 1955 and recognized as one of Fresno's top public schools, it is part of the
Fresno Unified School District The Fresno Unified School District is a school district in Fresno, California, United States. Facts and figures *California's third largest school district *74,000 students *$1.6 Billion Budget *76 different languages represented over the last ...
, and had around 2,650 students on roll in grades 9–12, approximately 650 students per grade.


History

The school is named after Edwin J. Bullard, a Fresno area farmer and former member of the Fresno Country Board of Supervisors. The Bullard geographical area originally had its own school district, named Bullard Unified, but it merged with Fresno Unified in 1958. Some parents discussed taking the Bullard area schools back out of Fresno Unified in 1991, primarily over funding concerns but it never moved beyond preliminary stages. Other attempts to disconnect the school from Fresno Unified occurred in 2011, when some parents proposed merging with Fresno and Edison High Schools, creating a new "Van Ness" school district and also in 2016, when teachers created a plan to convert Bullard to a charter school. The campus has grown significantly since its founding in 1955. An all-weather track and field facility as well and an aquatic complex were added in the early 2010s. A three year construction project was completed in 2017 which included two new classrooms, a new administration building, and a new library media center. Solar panels were added over the parking lots in 2018. The school was selected to host an early anti-plagiarism pilot program in 1999 by alumni John Barrie, who later created
Turnitin Turnitin (stylized as turnitin) is an Internet-based similarity detection service run by the American company Turnitin, LLC, a subsidiary of Advance Publications. Founded in 1998, it sells its licenses to universities and high schools who the ...
. A 2014 bomb threat against the school led to two teenagers being arrested. In 2015, a student attacked a teacher and another student, which led to calls for stricter discipline. A cheating controversy marred the 2016 graduation, where the valedictorian leveled accusations against the teachers and administration; a school spokesman denied the claims. A Bullard cheerleader's 2019 video spawned widespread racial criticism. In May 2022, a picture taken in the school's weightroom sparked additional race-based outrage. Only a few months later at the start of the 2022-23 school year, the school gained further controversy over a new cell phone ban with implementation of Yondr pouches.


Ethnic composition

As of the 20142015 school year, the student population was 41% Caucasian, 38% Hispanic, 13% African American, 5% Asian and 3% Other. Approximately 3% of the students have been identified as English Language Learners.


Athletics

For much of its history, Bullard High has competed in the North Yosemite League, playing against the other public high schools in Fresno and Madera for over 40 years. In 2002, the school shifted over to the Tri-City League but after two years there, it moved to the County Metro League. Due to their close proximity on opposing sides of Fresno's 41 Freeway, a rivalry developed between Bullard and Hoover High School. The rivalry was dubbed the "Battle of Barstow" after a street both campuses share. However, as the competitive balance of the area high schools has shifted over the years, more rivalries have developed within league play. Bullard High School offers a comprehensive Division I interscholastic athletics program with 24 different varsity-level sports. The athletics program has produced
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 ...
players including Steve Ellsworth, Dave Meier, Stan Papi, Randy Asadoor and
Rex Hudler Rex Allen Hudler (born September 2, 1960) is an American former Major League Baseball utility player and color commentator for the Kansas City Royals. He played a total of 14 seasons after being a first round draft pick of the New York Yankees in ...
. Former Fresno State and NFL quarterback Kevin Sweeney is another notable Bullard alumnus. The school has had consistent success in baseball, softball, volleyball (boys and girls), tennis, water polo, and soccer. The school earned varsity football league championships in the Northern Yosemite League in 1962, 1966, 1967, 1977, 1981 and 1999, as well as in the County Metro League in 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2012. The 2009 varsity football team had success in the Division I Central Section playoffs and won the section title that year, being named Valley Champions. The girls tennis team had a string of section championships from 1987 to 1994. The 1999 girls volleyball team made a deep run in the CIF playoffs, beating Mira Costa and sweeping San Marcos before getting knocked out by top ranked Newport Harbor. The 2009 boys soccer team won a section title and were state championship runners-up. The girls soccer team won a section title in 2011 (also state championship runners-up) along with the boys basketball team that same year. While not an alumnus, former
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 ...
head and assistant coach
Mike Martz Michael Martz (born May 13, 1951) is an American American football, football coach. Best known for his coaching tenure with the History of the St. Louis Rams, St. Louis Rams of the National Football League (NFL), he served as the offensive coor ...
started his coaching career as an assistant coach for the Knights football team in 1973. Bullard's success under coach Tony Amundsen put them on the radar of Southern California basketball programs. Tony's older brother, Tim, took the reins of the basketball program in 2016.


Notable alumni

* Lynn Williams — professional soccer player, Western New York Flash * Joe Cooper — NFL kicker, Super Bowl champion * Steve Ellsworth
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
pitcher * Dave Meier
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 ...
outfielder * Stan Papi — Major League Baseball player * Kevin Sweeney — NFL quarterback * Randy Asadoor
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
infielder *
Rex Hudler Rex Allen Hudler (born September 2, 1960) is an American former Major League Baseball utility player and color commentator for the Kansas City Royals. He played a total of 14 seasons after being a first round draft pick of the New York Yankees in ...
— Major League Baseball
utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, basketball, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water ...
*
Robert Kendrick Robert Bradley Kendrick (born November 15, 1979) is an American retired professional tennis player. He turned professional in 2000. His career-high singles ranking is World No. 69, achieved in July 2009. Early life Robert Kendrick was born to ...
— professional tennis player, well known for collegiate Div. I success *
Andy Finch Andrew Joseph Finch (born March 20, 1981) is an American snowboarding, snowboarder. His accomplishments include winning the overall U.S. Grand Prix Halfpipe Title in 2003 and 2004, taking first place in the Arctic Challenge in Norway in April 200 ...
— professional snowboarder; halfpipe finals at the
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in
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Vern Poythress Vern Sheridan Poythress (born 1946) is an American philosopher, theologian, New Testament scholar and mathematician, who is currently the New Testament chair of the ESV Oversight Committee. He is also the Distinguished Professor of New Testament ...
Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
philosopher and theologian * Anthony McCoy
Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...
tight end *
Robert Westenberg Robert Westenberg (born October 26, 1953) is an American stage actor and singer, acting teacher, and professor. He received a Tony Award nomination for his performance in the original Broadway cast of ''Into the Woods''. He appeared on Broadw ...
— Tony-nominated Broadway Actor *
Kevin Federline Kevin Earl Federline, (born March 21, 1978), also known as K-Fed, is an American dancer, actor, and DJ. He is known for his two-year marriage to American singer Britney Spears and the public child custody battle that followed their divorce.Phares ...
— entertainer and former husband of
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...


References


External links

*
BullardCharger.com
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1955 High schools in Fresno, California Public high schools in California 1955 establishments in California