Marshall Fundamental Secondary School is a secondary school located in Pasadena, California, United States, at 990 North Allen Avenue, and is part of the Pasadena Unified School District.

History

Named after United States Supreme Court Justice John Marshall, ground was broken for construction in 1924, with completion of the main building in 1925. Several expansions occurred in the following decades; in the 1930s (North Building), 1960s (Cafeteria), 1970s (Bungalows - demolished in 2015), 2000s (Science Building) and 2010s (Gymnasium/ M Building). Marshall was a junior high school for nearly fifty years, from its opening until the 1973-1974 school year, when it became a fundamental school (K-12). In 1976, grades K-6 were moved to other campuses (Longfellow, Washington), but the sixth grade level was reinstated during the 1985-1986 year.

Curriculum

Marshall has the following Advanced Placement courses.

Extracurricular activities

Marshall Fundamental offers many extracurricular activities such as clubs, sports, dances, and music programs. Clubs include: High School Athletics: Football, Baseball, Boys & Girls Basketball, Cheerleading, Cross Country, Diving, Girls Golf, Boys & Girls Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Boys & Girls Tennis, Track & Field, Volleyball, Wrestling Music courses include orchestra, band, and choir. Each type of music can be taken in a beginning, intermediate, or advanced class. The award-winning Marshall Fundamental Marching Band is regarded as the best music program in the Pasadena Unified School District. It won 3rd place in the 2014 SCSBOA Field Tournament Championships in the 1A division.

Sports

The teams are named the Marshall Eagles and their uniforms display white, blue, and red. Some teams have different colors for away games. The sports at Marshall include:

Academic performance

Jay Mathews, an educator and education reporter for the Washington Post, listed Marshall Fundamental as the 130th best high school as of 2007, chiefly due to its vast number of underprivileged students, high graduation rate, and 70% free and reduced lunch program. It was featured on the cover of Newsweek magazine, indicated as one of America's best schools. Marshall was first posted in 2003 as 119th, but fell in the following years to 255 in 2005, and 286 in 2006. It saw a jump in the 2012 school year, rising 156 places, back into the top 10%. Marshall in 2017 was ranked 897 overall in the nation and 152 in California. As of 2022, Marshall is ranked by U.S. News & World Report as being the 190th-ranked high school in California and the 1,303rd ranked high school in the nation.

Notable alumni