Centennial High School is a public high school located in

Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of th ...

, United States. The school's opening in 1993 marked the 100-year anniversary of the

Kern High School District The Kern High School District (KHSD) is a public high school system headquartered in Bakersfield, California that serves portions of the County of Kern located at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Span ...

. Centennial is the home of many nationally recognized extra-curricular academic programs, including Virtual Business and We The People, both of which have finished ranked in the top five nationally in the school's history. In 2011, Centennial was recognized as a California Distinguished School for achieving an

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 of 850, the highest in the Kern High School District. Centennial's boys and girls athletic teams are known as the Golden Hawks. As part of the

South Yosemite River League The California Interscholastic Federation—Central Section (CIF-CS) is the governing body of high school athletics in the central and southern portions of the San Joaquin Valley, the Eastern Sierra region, and as of the 2018/9 season, San Luis ...

, the Golden Hawks compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, and wrestling. Centennial's athletic teams have won numerous league and

CIF Central Section The California Interscholastic Federation—Central Section (CIF-CS) is the governing body of high school athletics in the central and southern portions of the San Joaquin Valley, the Eastern Sierra region, and as of the 2018/9 season, San Luis ...

championships. The girls varsity volleyball team won the California state championship in 1996.

Notable alumni and faculty

Cody Kessler Cody David Kessler (born May 11, 1993) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans, and was selected by the Cleveland Browns in t ...

, NFL quarterback * Megan Langenfeld, softball player * Jarret Martin, minor league baseball player * Brent Morel, former MLB third baseman *

Jared Norris Jared Scott Norris (born July 19, 1993) is an American former professional football linebacker who played for the Carolina Panthers and Washington Football Team of the National Football League (NFL). He played high school football at Centenn ...

, NFL linebacker *

Matt Barnes (soccer) Matt Barnes is an American soccer coach. Barnes was inducted into the Judson Eagles' Hall of Fame. Barnes has a B.A. in Physical Education and General Science from Judson University, and an M.S. in Special Education from National University. He ...

, former head coach of the Turks and Caicos Islands Men's National Soccer Team *

Corbin Burnes Corbin Brian Burnes (born October 22, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Milwaukee Brewers and Baltimore Orioles. Burnes was se ...

, MLB pitcher

References

High schools in Bakersfield, California Public high schools in California Educational institutions established in 1993 1993 establishments in California {{California-school-stub