Blair International Baccalaureate School
| Blair High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
|
Pasadena, California United States |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Motto | The Few, The Proud, The Vikings. |
| Established | 1964 |
| Principal | David Ibarra |
| Grades | 6th-12th |
| Number of students | approx. 1,100 |
| Athletics conference | CIF-SS Rio Hondo League |
| Mascot | Viking |
| Website | blair.pasadenausd.org |
Blair International Baccalaureate School (formerly Blair High School) is located at 1201 S. Marengo Avenue, Pasadena, California 91106 and is in the Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD). It offers the IB Middle Years Programme and the IB Diploma Programme. The school underwent a major academic overhaul beginning in the fall of 2003 as a result of sub-standard academic performance, which prompted a state review. The school's two "co-principals" were replaced with a single principal, Rich Boccia (an administrative official with the Pasadena Unified School District, and district employee since 1980), who had been principal at South Pasadena Middle School. During Boccia's tenure, school wide academic performance rose sharply as a result of several academic reforms and in 2005 Boccia was named Secondary School Principal of the Year for the State of California for his leadership success at turning around Blair.
During the 2005-2006 school year, Blair International Baccalaureate School was one of many PUSD schools threatened to be shut down due to budget cuts. The prospect of having to send their children to John Muir High School and elsewhere brought out a strong showing of community support and was able to convince the Pasadena school board to keep Blair open. Students, parents (both with enrolled children, and those considering Blair), and various local figures attended school board meetings in large numbers to support Blair. The parents and community also advocated strongly for the smaller, more manageable size of the campus, the 7th-12th configuration which allows for longer buy-in time for families and the fact that Blair is fully authorized to offer the prestigious IB Diploma Programme in addition to the Middle Year's Programme. Blair is the only PUSD secondary school located in the Southwest part of Pasadena.
Since 2007, Blair's 7th - 9th grades have been housed on Blair East, formerly Allendale Elementary School. Blair's "C" Campus which formerly housed the 7th - 9th grade was torn down in spring of 2005 with the intent to rebuild (it was deemed less expensive to rebuild than to renovate the existing buildings). The Measure Y bond monies earmarked for that project were subsequently depleted in overages at other PUSD sites and Blair's "C" campus remains a project slated for rebuilding.
Blair's Middle School offers a variety of sports as part of the after-school LEARNS program with competitive teams in basketball, soccer and flag football. The LEARNS program offers many extracurricular options for students in middle and high school including a performance choir program that has become well known in the area for its annual musical revue production called "OVATIONS".
...
Wikipedia