Sunnyside High School, opened in 1955, is home to two thousand students located on the south side of Tucson, Arizona. Sunnyside offers a variety of extracurricular programs, advanced placement courses, and specialized career and technical training programs. It is a part of the Sunnyside Unified School District.
History
Sunnyside High School opened in 1955 with 9th and 10th grade classes. The original mascot logo for Sunnyside used a variation of Arizona State University's Sparky mascot. The school was forced to change after the university learned of this use when Sunnyside played a championship game at ASU's Sun Devil Stadium.
Campus
Sunnyside High School is located on the south side of Tucson, Arizona.
Curriculum
There is a widespread of curriculum that is offered at Sunnyside High School.
Departments of Instruction
Sunnyside High School offers these courses either for class credits, or elective credit:
Automotive Collision Repair Technology
Automotive Technology
Business/Business Information Technology
English Language Development
FBLA - Business Management and Administrative Services
Sunnyside High School is a member of the Arizona Interscholastic Association and is classed in its 5A conference. A wrestling powerhouse in Arizona, Sunnyside has won 30 state championships. It lost a dual-meet December 12, 2015, where Green Valley snapped a 314 win streak stretching from 1999 to then, and only has lost ten since 1969. However, recently Sunnyside Wrestling has regain its championship title in 2018. The teams are known as the Sunnyside Blue Devils. Athletic teams are fielded in boys volleyball, baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, volleyball, wrestling, and swimming. The varsity football team was featured on the Great American Rivalries Series in 2009 against Salpointe Catholic High School.
There are various musical performing groups at Sunnyside. Performing groups as well as their director:
Sunnyside Jazz Ensemble, Erik Ellison.
The Pride of Sunnyside Marching Band, Erik Ellison.
Sunnyside Wind Ensemble, Erik Ellison.
Sunnyside Choir, Erik Ellison.
Los Diablitos Azules Mariachi.
Sunnyside Orchestra, Hayley Britt.
The Pride of Sunnyside Marching Band
History
2006: Scott Matlick, Drum Major for The Pride of Arizona, is hired as Director of Bands at Sunnyside High School. Reinvents the band, dawning the name The Pride of Sunnyside Marching Band. The band's show is Gladiator picked by previous Director Alli Coyle.
2007: Scott Matlick introduces the show "Adentro: The Music of Ricardo Arjona", based on Latin singer-songwriter Ricardo Arjona's album Adentro. The tradition of the marching on to the field in the opening set known as the "S" is brought back to commemorate the school's 50th anniversary. After two years as Director of Bands at Sunnyside, Scott Matlick returns to the University of Arizona to be part of the Graduate Teaching Assistant program for the UA Bands and The Pride of Arizona.
2008: During the summer the band was temporarily under the direction of Joseph Molinar. The band plays "The Return of Aerosmith" the show Director Alli Coyle created in 2005 for the band. In early August the band gets Director of Bands Matthew Hoolsema from Michigan. Under the new direction of Matthew Hoolsema, the school's choir program is brought back.
2009: Matthew Hoolsema introduces the show Music of the Big Band Era. The program includes tunes "La Suerte De Los Tontos", " House of the Rising Sun", "Blue Groove", and "Big Noise from Winnetka". The band reached the state marching competition.
2010: Although not as successful as the previous year, the Pride of Sunnyside continued to a new season with the music of Journey.
