Damien High School

Click here to see the October 2010 Parent Newsletter.

Written by the La Verne Online

The naming on Oct. 23, 2010 of the Damien High School football stadium after its legendary coach Dick Larson, who roamed the sidelines and brought two CIF championships to the school during his 23-year tenure, was part roast and part eulogy for the beloved coach, now 77.

From the man who hired him, Father Martin O’ Laughlin, to today’s current crop of Damien football players, the memories and remembrances were powerful and poignant for the man who racked up 174 victories at Damien and saw 80 of his players compete at Division I schools and 15 graduate to play professional football.

 

COVINA - Damien High School had been battered, bruised and frustrated during nonleague play.
But today, that's ancient history.
The Spartans (4-2) are in first place in the Sierra League.
James Ramirez rushed for 97 yards and threw a touchdown pass, and Ryan Purrington returned the second-half kickoff 87 yards for a score as Damien opened league play with a 35-21 victory over South Hills on Friday night at Covina District Field.
The Spartans, also getting 102 yards and two touchdowns from Andrew Aguirre, improved to 4-2 overall.

Damien High School is proud to announce that it will be accepting admission applications from international students for the 2011-2012 school year. While providing a great opportunity for foreign students looking for a top-notch American high school experience, Damien students will also benefit from the cross-cultural experience of having them as part of our community. As well, this presents a further opportunity for Damien families who may want to invite one of these students to become part of their family during the international student’s stay at Damien.

Damien High School’s International Homestay Program is looking for good families to provide our incoming international students with warm American hospitality while studying here. Interested families will be screened through an application process and their living environment evaluated to determine that a proper fit is made with each prospective international student. Once selected, families will be given a monthly stipend in return for providing the necessities of room, board, and a comfortable home life. With this, it is our hope that both the homestay family and their international student will gain memories that will last a lifetime. If you are interested in hosting an incoming international student for the 2011-2012 school year, please plan to attend our Homestay Information Night, October 27, 2010 at 6 pm in the DHS Library. Feel free to contact Stephen Patten, our International Program Coordinator, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information and to RSVP for this exciting event.

The 2010-11 school year has gotten off to a great start! After our first ever two day Freshmen Orientation, the school year was off and running. Our freshmen parents attended New Parent Orientation nights at the beginning of September. They were a tremendous success, as we raised much needed funds for our two story classroom/science labs building which we are planning to build where the current 200 and 500 buildings are located.

This year we have instituted a House System for our students. All students have been assigned to one of eight houses. These houses each have a patron saint. Students from all grade levels are mixed in each house. We decided to implement the House System this year for a variety of reasons. It creates a sense of belonging, fosters school spirit, and it provides leadership opportunities for students. Each house is required to engage in four projects a year – a community service project, a school service project, a spiritual project, and a school spirit project. There will be house competitions throughout the year – we just finished an exciting Ultimate Frisbee Tournament, with the St. Francis House victorious! We are looking forward to the Quiz Bowl on Wednesday October 27^th. A special thanks is in order to our Assistant Principal-Guidance, Casey Yeazel, who is the organizer of this tremendous new program here at Damien.

The first 2010-11 episode of Damien TV has been released. Check it out at http://www.facebook.com/DamienSpartans?v=wall or on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cs4_gPy3i4A You'll need to add Damien Spartans as a friend if you have not already (for the facebook page).