Bonita Unified Football Teams to Face Off in 50th Smudge Pot Rivalry
San Dimas and Bonita high schools are warming up for the 50th annual Smudge Pot football game, set for 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10 at Citrus College Stadium, 1000 W. Foothill Blvd., Glendora. The friendly rivalry – a beloved District tradition that aims to foster school spirit and unite the community – started in 1972, with both high schools competing for an iconic silver Smudge Pot, an oil-burning tool used to shield fruit trees from frost and a symbol of the two cities’ roots in the region’s citrus industry.
For generations of Bonita Unified students, staff and alumni, the annual Smudge Pot football game is the most anticipated athletic event of the school year. The cherished football rivalry that pits the Bonita High School Bearcats against the San Dimas High School Saints will celebrate its golden anniversary this year, as the schools prepare to play their 50th game in the series. To honor the memories, sportsmanship and heroics of the game, which is one of the oldest continuous rivalries in southern California, the Smudge Pot’s rich and colorful history has now come alive in a new website, smudgepotgame.com. Created by Bonita High students, the website features photos, news clippings and decade-by-decade accounts of the competition.
Bonita Unified School District students descended upon cheerfully decorated campuses – bedecked with vibrant welcome signs and filled with cheers of encouragement – on Aug. 22, marking the start of a new school year that is focused on empowering students to live their purpose and ensuring new levels of achievement. Roynon Elementary School welcomed new and returning students with cardboard cutouts of superheroes representing every grade level, including transitional kindergarten (TK), which is being offered to more students than ever, thanks to the rollout of a universal TK program that has welcomed nearly 430 young learners to classrooms this year.
San Dimas High School achieved its highest Advanced Placement (AP) test pass rate in school history during the 2021-22 school year, reflecting the school’s commitment to fostering academic achievement and preparing students for the rigor of higher education. San Dimas High School students collectively earned a pass rate of 68.2% during the first full year of in-person instruction following the COVID-19 pandemic. The average national pass rate is 60.5%. San Dimas High offers AP courses in 20 subjects.
Bonita Unified School District has been recognized as the Best School District in the San Gabriel Valley, receiving a 2022 Readers Choice Award that reflects the District’s commitment to fostering a nurturing environment full of learning opportunities that empower students to achieve their full potential. The Readers Choice Awards is an annual readers poll conducted by the Southern California News Group, which publishes the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star News and the Whittier Daily News. Votes were tallied from ballots that ran in the group’s newspapers and corresponding websites during March and April.
Bonita Unified School District has been recognized as the Best School District in the San Gabriel Valley, receiving a 2022 Readers Choice Award, which reflects the District’s commitment to fostering a nurturing environment full of learning opportunities that empower students to achieve their full potential. Such opportunities include an array of Advanced Placement courses, 21 career technical education pathways, and award-winning athletic and arts programs. The Readers Choice Awards – released on June 26 – is an annual readers poll conducted by the Southern California News Group.
With the majestic presence of the San Gabriel Mountains as a backdrop, Bonita Unified School District celebrated its Class of 2022 graduates with commencement ceremonies that honored the academic achievements, camaraderie and resilience of more than 800 students from Chaparral, San Dimas and Bonita high schools. The ceremonies, held June 7 and 9, highlighted the myriad accomplishments of the Class of 2022 and put the spotlight on the graduates who will continue their education at institutions such as UCLA, USC, Duke University, Purdue University and Otis College of Art and Design, as well as those who have enlisted in U.S. Armed Forces or will enter the professional world.
A select group of Ramona Middle School eighth-grade students have demonstrated their leadership capabilities while helping their sixth-grade classmates acclimate to a new school through the Where Everybody Belongs (WEB) program, an elective that eases the transition from elementary school to middle school. Whether leading a Friday lunchtime dance party, organizing a game of Knockout, or posting inspirational messages around campus such as “Be Kind” and “Be the Light,” Ramona WEB mentors dedicate themselves to ensuring that incoming students receive the support and resources they need to navigate their way through a new school system with more teachers, classes, students, and academic and social responsibilities.
Bonita Unified School District Honors Accomplished Class of 2022
Bonita Unified School District will conclude a successful academic year by celebrating the achievements of the Class of 2022 during commencement ceremonies for its two comprehensive high schools and continuation school. Chaparral High School will kick off the festivities with a 5 p.m. ceremony on Tuesday, June 7 at the Bonita Center for the Arts, 822 W. Covina Blvd., San Dimas; San Dimas High School will follow with a spirited ceremony at 7 p.m. at the school’s stadium, 800 W. Covina Blvd., San Dimas. Bonita High School will close out the District’s commencement celebrations with a 6 p.m. ceremony on Thursday, June 9 at Glenn Davis Stadium, 3102 D St., La Verne.
Bonita Unified School District’s culture of excellence – which includes strong academic performance, high graduation rates and robust college readiness efforts – have earned its two comprehensive high schools a place among the top-performing public high schools in the state and country, according to the 2022 Best High Schools rankings by U.S. News & World Report. Among approximately 1,600 high schools in California, Bonita High School ranked in the top nine percent of schools and boasts a 98 percent graduation rate; San Dimas High was listed among the top 15 percent of schools, and has achieved a graduation rate of 97 percent.
