Upper Darby High School


Upper Darby High School is a four-year public high school located in Upper Darby Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, as part of the Upper Darby School District. UDHS is also the oldest high school in Delaware County, having been established in 1895.
As of the 2010–11 school year, the school had an enrollment of 3,762 students and 256.85 classroom teachers, for a student-teacher ratio of 17.0.
The population is diverse, with over 55 nationalities of students. It has a long-established football rivalry with Monsignor Bonner High School, located less than a block away. Upper Darby High School was a part of the inspiration for Upper Darby alumna Tina Fey's movie comedy Mean Girls.
The mascot of Upper Darby High is the Royal, which is portrayed as a lion. In previous years, it was a court jester. The school emblem is the royal oak tree, the yearbook is named the Oak, and the newspaper is called the Acorn. An Acorn award is rewarded every year at the UDAEF Sweet Night Out Foundation Ball in February.
According to a report by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, 4 teachers were rated "Non‐Highly Qualified" under No Child Left Behind. Upper Darby Senior High School is one of the largest high schools in Pennsylvania by enrollment. The High School is also home to the Upper Darby Performing Arts Center, and the Summer Stage program.

Campus

The campus is adjacent to, but not within, the Drexel Hill census-designated place. It has a Drexel Hill postal address.

Adequate Yearly Progress history

In 2011, Upper Darby Senior High School declined to Corrective Action II 5th Year AYP status due to chronic, low student achievement in reading and mathematics. The school met just one metric in 2011. Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, the school administration was required to notify parents of the school's poor achievement outcomes and to offer the parents the opportunity to transfer their child to a successful school within the District. Additionally, the school administration was required by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, to develop a School Improvement Plan to address the school's low student achievement. Under the Pennsylvania Accountability System, the school must pay for additional tutoring for struggling students.
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According to a Pennsylvania Department of Education study released in January 2009, 59% of the Upper Darby Senior High School graduates required remediation in mathematics and or reading before they were prepared to take college level courses in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education or community colleges. Less than 66% of Pennsylvania high school graduates, who enroll in a four-year college in Pennsylvania, will earn a bachelor's degree within six years. Among Pennsylvania high school graduates pursuing an associate degree, only one in three graduate in three years. Per the Pennsylvania Department of Education, one in three recent high school graduates who attend Pennsylvania's public universities and community colleges takes at least one remedial course in math, reading or English.

Dual enrollment

Upper Darby Senior High School offers a dual enrollment program. This state program permits high school students to take courses, at local higher education institutions, to earn college credits. Students remain enrolled at their high school. The courses count towards high school graduation requirements and towards earning a college degree. The students continue to have full access to activities and programs at their high school. The college credits are offered at a deeply discounted rate. The state offered a small grant to assist students in costs for tuition, fees and books. Under the Pennsylvania Transfer and Articulation Agreement, many Pennsylvania colleges and universities accept these credits for students who transfer to their institutions.
For the 2009–10 funding year, the school district received a state grant of $5,023 for the program.

SAT scores

From January to June 2011, 581 Upper Darby School District students took the SAT exams. The district's Verbal Average Score was 440. The Math average score was 464. The Writing average score was 423. Pennsylvania ranked 40th among states with SAT scores: Verbal – 493, Math – 501, Writing – 479. In the United States, 1.65 million students took the exam in 2011. They averaged 497 verbal, 514 math and 489 in writing.

Graduation rate

In 2011, Upper Darby High School's graduation rate was 92%. In 2010, the Pennsylvania Department of Education issued a new, 4-year cohort graduation rate. Upper Darby Senior High School's rate was 80.99% for 2010.
;According to traditional graduation rate calculations:
Upper Darby School Board has determined that a pupil must earn 135 credits to graduate, including: a required class every year in Mathematics, English, Social Studies, Science, Physical Education 2 years, 3 years foreign language, and at least 7 electives. Core academic courses are worth 5 credits each and AP courses are worth 7.5 credits.
By law, all Pennsylvania secondary school students must complete a project as a part of their eligibility to graduate from high school. The type of project, its rigor and its expectations are set by the individual school district.
By Pennsylvania School Board regulations, for the graduating class of 2017, students must demonstrate successful completion of secondary level course work in Algebra I, Biology, English Composition, and Literature for which the Keystone Exams serve as the final course exams. Students’ Keystone Exam scores shall count for at least one-third of the final course grade. In 2011, Pennsylvania high school students field tested the Algebra 1, Biology and English Lit exams. The statewide results were: Algebra 1 38% on grade level, Biology 35% on grade level and English Lit – 49% on grade level. Individual student, school or district reports were not made public, although they were reported to district officials by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Classrooms for the future grant

The Classroom for the Future state program provided districts with hundreds of thousands of extra state funding to buy laptop computers for each core curriculum high school class and paid for teacher training to optimize the computers use. The program was funded from 2006 to 2009. The Upper Darby School District applied receiving $469,223 in 2006–07. In 2007–08, the District received $838,700. Upper Darby School District received $200,597 in 2008–09 for a total funding of $1,508,520. This was the highest total funding awarded to a school district in Delaware County The highest funding state wide was awarded to Philadelphia City School District in Philadelphia County – $9,409,073. In 2010, Classrooms for the Future funding was curtailed statewide due to a massive state financial crisis precipitated by a national economic recession.

Arts

Upper Darby High School is home to the Upper Darby Performing Arts Center, a nearly 1,800-seat theater that hosts not only school functions, but also between 200 and 400 events annually. During the summer, the arts center hosts the largest summer theater group in Delaware County: Summer Stage, with over 200 participants in multiple musicals. Harry Dietzler founded the Summer Stage program in 1976.

Extracurriculars

Upper Darby High School offers a wide variety of clubs, activities and an extensive and costly sports program. Eligibility for participation is determined by school board policy. The Board complies with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association policy that students may practice and participate in competitions when failing up to 2 core curriculum courses.
By Pennsylvania law, all K-12 students residing in the district, including those who attend a private nonpublic school, cyber charter school, charter school and those homeschooled, are eligible to participate in the extracurricular programs, including all athletics. They must meet the same eligibility rules as the students enrolled in the district's schools.

Sports

Upper Darby sports teams compete in the Central League.
The District funds:
According to PIAA directory July 2012

Notable alumni

Upper Darby High School's Wall of Fame committee recognizes individuals who have become leaders in their industries. Wall of Fame members are noted by WoF after their information.