About This School
El Molino High School
is located in western Sonoma County, in the small-unincorporated town of
Forestville. Our 41 acre campus sits in the heart of a world-renowned
wine-producing region. Our geographical location incorporates the best of
rural living with the urban amenities afforded by Santa Rosa, located
twelve miles from El Molino. El Molino High School serves a significant geographic
area, extending from Sebastopol to Fort Ross, from Santa Rosa to the
Pacific Ocean. Towns encompassed by our attendance area include Fort Ross,
Cazadero, Graton, Guerneville, Occidental, Monte Rio, and Bodega, as well
as parts of Sebastopol and a small section of Santa Rosa. Eighty-five
percent of our students commute long distances to school each day. Most
students use the school bus service. While long commutes and the
availability of transportation sometimes limit participation, a large
number of students participate in a variety of athletics and activities.
El Molino students
are economically, culturally and socially diverse. Our minority population
is approximately 14% of our student body. These students are mainly
Hispanic. The majority of our students are from middle-income families.
However, a number of our students come from affluent families, while 21% of
our students are enrolled in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program.
Politically and socially our students represent families that span the range
from conservative to those practicing alternative lifestyles. We consider
this diversity to be one of the strengths of El Molino High School because
students from many backgrounds are blended to create an accepting, diverse
school culture.
Nine schools from
nine small elementary school districts send students to El Molino High
School. This is both a challenge and a strength. Students begin their
freshman year with different educational experiences, both in terms of
curricular background and school culture. This diversity of elementary
school experience enriches our student body as students come from different
educational cultures. Since freshmen come from small schools, they are
immediately exposed to a variety of new people and quickly develop new friendships
associated with their curricular, social and athletic interests. Throughout
their four years at El Molino students are increasingly unified as members
of the El Molino freshman, sophomore, junior or senior classes no longer
identified by their former school or area. Pride in our school is a
community tradition. We have developed a school culture that focuses on
academic success, combined with athletic participation, multidimensional
student activities and service learning. Several graduates have returned to
El Molino as members of the faculty and administration.
El Molino maintains
two programs outside of the comprehensive high school: Nuevo Leon Necessary
Small School and Russian River Ramparts Independent Study Program.
The El Molino "3
R's":
Respectful and
Compassionate People
Responsible and
Ethical Citizens
Resourceful and
Articulate Students
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