The community of El Rancho High School is committed to creating an environment in which students acquire the skills and tools to be life-long learners and responsible citizens. This will be achieved through a student- centered, teacher-guided curriculum that recognizes diversity in a climate of positive parental involvement.
El Rancho High School is committed to providing students with an education that is rigorous, engaging, and standards-based. Our highly qualified staff, along with parents and the community, will support student achievement by
El Rancho first opened in the fall of 1952. Before that time students who lived in Pico and Rivera attended Whittier High School. Seniors elected to remain at Whittier, so El Rancho opened with 9th, 10th, and 11th graders on its 45-acre campus. As the high school was built on land that had previously been used for growing oranges and avocados, the students chose the name Dons as the mascot. This Spanish word can be roughly translated as “gentleman farmer.” The first graduating class was the Class of 1954. The high school was judged one of the most beautiful schools in California during that time. In 1958 Pico and Rivera merged to become a city. In 1962 the two elementary school districts merged to become El Rancho Unified School District. At that time, El Rancho High School broke away from the Whittier Union High School District and became the only high school in our city. The Blue Pride that runs through this school is evident by the number of graduates that have returned to teach. Twenty-eight of our teachers/administrators graduated from El Rancho.