Bishop O'Dowd High School

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Location
Bishop O'Dowd High School
motto = Cor unum in Christo trans. One heart in Christ.
Oakland, CA, USA
Information
Religion	Roman Catholic
Administration	Stephen Phelps, Ed.D., President Joseph G. Salamack III, M.A., M.S., Principal Michael Petrini, M.A., Vice President for Advancement Lisa Tortorich, M.A., Assistant Principal for Academics
Enrollment	1170
Faculty	77
Average class size	24
Student:teacher ratio	14:1
Average SAT scores (2006)	603 verbal 643 math
Campus	Urban
Athletics	16 CIF Varsity teams
Mascot	Dragon
Color(s)	Black and Gold
Established	1951
Homepage	www.bishopodowd.org

Bishop O'Dowd High School is a Catholic, co-educational, college preparatory school in Oakland, California, administered by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland. Bishop O'Dowd requires all students to enroll in Religious Studies classes. About 44% of students are of other religious and faith backgrounds or do not practice an organized religion. Bishop O'Dowd requires all students to attend school liturgies (Catholic Mass and prayer services), and to complete its unique and reflective 4-year community service program.

1 Academics
2 Demographics
3 Student Life
- 3.1 Clubs
- 3.2 Athletics
4 Technology
5 Accreditation and membership
6 Notable alumni
7 External links
8 References
9 Footnotes

[edit] Academics

Bishop O'Dowd's college preparatory curriculum includes Advanced Placement courses in 19 subjects, and an enhanced range of services to accommodate college preparatory students. The curriculum includes honors courses in mathematics, language, English, social studies and science, and computer programming, art, and multimedia design. A fully integrated arts, drama, and music program, an environmental science program, and five languages are also offered. The Campus Ministry and 4-year retreat program and 100-hour service-learning program provide many opportunities for students to develop spiritually, emotionally, socially, and in service and leadership roles.

Bishop O'Dowd High School is committed to enhancing student learning with advanced technology tools including tablet laptops for all students beginning with the freshman class in 2008. All students and teachers use the Blackboard course content system, PowerSchool, an online grading and student information system, and varying software systems to enhance learning. The school has a highly successful program that serves a range of learning different and learning disabled students from the gifted to those who test at grade level on the High School Placement Test.

The average SAT score for the O'Dowd class of 2005 was 1246. The national and state averages were 1028 and 1020. All students are expected to graduate from Bishop O'Dowd having met the requirements to be eligible to attend the University of California.

Approximately 98 percent of graduating seniors enroll in colleges and universities in California and across the nation. About 1/3 of each graduating class attends a University of California campus, about 1/3 attend private universities in California and across the nation, and about 25% attend California state universities and state universities outside of California. Between 5% and 8% enroll in community colleges and one or two percent choose to work or volunteer for social service.

[edit] Demographics

African American 15%, Asian 10%, Euro-American 48%, Latino 10%, other(mixed race) 17%. Bishop O"Dowd is among the most diverse private schools in the nation in terms of ethnicity, social class, religious background, and academic and artistic interests.

[edit] Student Life

[edit] Clubs

An extensive student activities program includes student government, an award-winning Junior State of America program, Mock Trial, Speech and Debate, Dragon Ambassadors, a Ski Club, Book Club, Anime Club, Computer Gamer Club and more than 30 other student clubs. The school offers numerous opportunities on and off campus for students to display their visual and performing arts skills.

[edit] Athletics

Over 800 athletes participate in 16 interscholastic sports on 55 teams. The most popular sports including Volleyball, American football, Men's Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball have freshman, junior varsity, and varsity level teams for both boys and girls, Men's and Women's Water Polo and Men's and Women's Lacrosse have become increasingly popular.

[edit] Technology

Bishop O'Dowd's technology program is among the most advanced in California. Teachers integrate technology into the classroom and students are encouraged to bring laptops to class. Laptops will be required for all freshman in the fall of 2008. All students and faculty at Bishop O'Dowd have access to computer labs on campus and in-house technology support. A wireless technology environment allows students and faculty easy access to the Internet, and encourages student-centered learning.^[1]