History
Charger Pride & Tradition...a Look Back into the Past
Alma Mater
Past Principals
Crest
The Crest of El Toro High School
“El Toro High School takes pride in its crest. This crest, designed by our own students, symbolizes our rich heritage, exciting present, and our hopes for the future.
The sycamore leaves bordering our crest, the Spanish sombrero, and the spurs, symbolize the influence of the Spanish in our area. The land on which our high school stands was once part of the Rancho Canada de los Alisos. This means, in English, Ranch of the Canyon of Alders. The Spaniards had no name for the sycamore trees growing in the area so they called them “Aliso”, or alder, a tree resembling the sycamore. Jose Serrano was granted the Rancho by the newly independent Mexican government. The name “El Toro” comes from the bulls and other cattle that were brought to the Serrano home. The original house still stands, not far from El Toro High School.
Our school takes its name from the town of El Toro. A single hoofprint, symbol of the bull, dominates the center of our crest. Our Mascot, the charging bull, is vividly portrayed just over the hoofprint. Academic Achievement is represented by the scroll.
At the very bottom of our crest, is Saddleback Mountain, a sight familiar to everyone in El Toro. From behind Saddleback are streaming rays of sunlight. The rays of light coming from a new dawn signify bright prospects for the future of our school.”
-Amanecer, 1978
In 2016, El Toro High School completed a rebranding of its logos and established a brand new crest for the 21st century. The new crest remains true to its original form by continuing the tradition of the run rising above Saddleback Mountain, signifying the dawn of a bright future; the feather and scroll, representing academic achievement; the oil lamp, symbolizing enlightenment, success, and prosperity; the pillar and flame, representing fortitude; our mascot, the bull; and the sycamore tree leaves surrounding the crest hearken back to the history and heritage of our community.
History
Our story is detailed in The Amanacer, El Toro High School's official yearbook. Amanacer is a Spanish word meaning the dawn, the time of day when light first appears in the night sky, before the sun rises.
The following text is taken from several early editions of The Amanacer
The dawning of a morning
And a new day has begun.
The sun arises
To light our way to new horizons
And so we follow.
El Toro High School is the result of the concerted effort of the administration, faculty, students and community. There is more to building a new high school than just hiring a contractor and builders. The school is a reflection of the spirit, attitudes and ideals of those who have worked so hard to make it a reality.
Beginning with nothing ore than a name, the people involved have given El Toro High School a purpose and definition. El Toro High School will be a focal point of activities a unifying body that will gather together the varied and diverse interest of a young, vital community.
El Toro High School’s official dedication ceremony was held on Wednesday, February 27, in the gym. Invited were members of the school board, parents, and the community leaders. The faculty, staff and many students were also there. After many tributes were paid to the school, Mr. Joseph Peterson made the official dedication.
Our story continues with the 1983 edition of the Amanacer, celebrating the first 10 years of El Toro High School.
ETHS Celebrates Tenth Anniversary:
Ten years have passed since El Toro High School first opened its doors to the community. In celebration of this tenths anniversary, the yearbook staff chose as this year’s theme to show how much the school has grown.
El Toro High School’s first year in 1973 was chaotic. Because major construction was still being done, El Toro students had to attend split day sessions with Mission students at Mission Viejo High School. Mission students were on campus from seven in the morning until twelve in the afternoon when El Toro students came on campus until five. Problems arose rapidly.
El Toro’s administrative staff worked out of the cafeteria, both El Toro’s and Missions library were under the same roof, classrooms and athletic facilities were fought over, and strong hostilities developed between the two student bodies.
Thousand Students Open ET in 1974:
The following year El Toro High School’s gates were finally opened to an eager faculty of forty members, administrators, and a student body of nearly one thousand. For almost four months split day sessions continued at El Toro while bulldozers and cement trucks roamed the campus. This creative and determined group of people set out to build the foundation of the school.
Everyone participated in the decisions made those first few years. They chose the ring design; the school emblem; the school mascot; good old blue and gold; the Alma Mater, which was written by English teacher Ms. Patty Donovan then a student at El Toro; and the newspaper, the Ole, and the yearbook, the Amanecer, which means the dawning.
Pride and comradeship flowed through every person over these and many other accomplishments. They all were aware of the impressions their choices would leave on future classes.
Several Traditions Fade from Sight:
Over the past decade, traditions have both come and gone. For some, being taken off the books was a necessity; for others, it was neglect or regulations. Locker distribution went from a system based on seniority to no longer being given to seniors at all. The old favorite pastime of being late to class was quickly put into check by a new tardy policy; arrive late and face the penalty of Saturday School or a firing squad. The senior priority of leaving first at assemblies has been lost in a stampede of underclassmen. Toilet paper on Baby Day was left on the rolls, not in the trees.
One tradition at El Toro has remained a strong force through the years. Academic performance by students and the high quality of teaching has become a milestone. School spirit has been on the upswing and more people are becoming involved in school activities.
Traditions, Jeans Withstand Time
Like a pair of old faded blue jeans, traditions have been handed down from one year to the next. A new pair always seems stiff, at first, and breaking them in takes time and persistence. When they are purchased there are true-blue hopes of them lasting through the years. Some are misused and wear out quickly. Others withstand the test of time. The ones that do survive are handled with care.
In 1998, El Toro High School Celebrated its 25th anniversary, and it was memorialized in that year's yearbook, entitled Reflecting our Colors. The excerpts below continue our rich history:
How has Technology Affected Teaching Today?
Technology has made our lives easier in more ways than one. Look what automatic washing machines have done for clothes or the telephone for communication. More recently, teachers save hours of time when grading by simply entering scores and letting the computer average the grades. Research assignments are enhanced by the students' abilities to access the Internet; spelling and grammar errors are reduced as well.
Technology has changed teaching methods as well. The computer benefits the student and the teacher. Business classes at El Toro teach computerized accounting, desktop publishing, word processing and Microsoft Office. The arts and communications department offers media technology for special effects. Students use computers for scenery design, lighting, sound and stage management. The foreign language department uses computers to help students master language skills. Computers in the classroom have moved teaching to a new level and teachers at El Toro are loving it.
Activities live on at El Toro
As each year comes and goes, memorable moments occur at El Toro. These high school memories will last a lifetime. School activities produce school spirit and make these special memories. Activities like Homecoming, Winter Formal, Prom, the 70s Dance, and assemblies add spice and relaxation to the sometimes stressful academic side of El Toro. In the past, El Toro had its own unique activities that created memories for the alumni to reflect upon. Such events included Field Day, Baby Day, the Sadie Hawkins Dance, and Powder Puff Football, where the cheerleaders would play football while the football players cheered them on. Donkey basketball was also a popular event where students and faculty rode trained donkeys in the gym while trying to score baskets. In the 1997-1998 school year, memories of all kinds have been made from school activities. The tradition of reflecting our history will remain a powerful way to bring these memories back to the future alumni of El Toro.
Girls Participation in Sports
Over the past 25 years, major changes have taken place in girls' athletics. The number of girls coming out to play sports has increased dramatically,, as has respect for girls' sports.
When El Toro High School opened, girls' sports did not have distinct levels; as a whole they were called the Girls Athletic Association, or G.A.A. They came second behind boys' sports. "[It was] the Good Ol' Boys era," said athletic director Sheri Ross.
Big steps have been taken since then, such as Title IX, and now girls athletics are becoming more popular. Girls are now competing in 13 CIF sports. Except for football and wrestling, the girls are playing all of the same sports the boys are. In college there are just as many scholarships available to women as there are to men.
It is evident that El Toro and El Toro sports have changed a lot since its inaugural year. The evolution of girls' athletics is one reflection of that.
How have we Changed?
The lives of the students who attended El Toro in its first years was quite similar to the life of El Toro students in 1998. Teenagers then couldn't wait for those Friday night football games and Saturday nights out on the town. Nightlife was very exciting for many students and was a big part of their memories and high school experiences, as it was this year. However, with the addition of the Irvine Spectrum, among other things, the things students do have changed.
A big difference from the first year the school opened is the fashion. The style of clothes and the latest trends have definitely changed as the world has. The greatest memories that the students had of their activities was their vacations. Since 1972, El Toro students may have changed the activities and trends in which they are involved in, but the idea of student life activities, to reflect the fun of youth, have remained the same.
Our story culminates in the present day, where El Toro High School celebrates its Golden Anniversary. The excerpt below comes from The Charger, the 2023 edition of the ETHS Yearbook that commemorates 50 years of service to the community of Lake Forest.
This is OUR HOUSE...
"Our lives are filled with milestones, those we know about and those we realize after they have passed. Chargers young and old approached the 2022-2023 ready to complete a new milestone, the Golden Anniversary - the 50th year of El Toro High School. So much has changed over the past 50 years In Our House. A campus covered with dirt and portable buildings has been transformed by the Bill Bailey Innovation and Learning Center, the 21st-Century learning labs of the 200 building, and the completion of Our House, our on-campus stadium. Traditions like Baby Day transformed into Male Cheer; classes like Woodshop changed into Art History. In Our House, a Powderpuff Football game can lead the way to a member of the varsity football; In Our House, a student body can collect countless cans of food to donate to help others. In Our House, a student can graduate, return, as a teacher and a coach, and become principal of the same school he attended. We may not realize these milestones when they are here, but we realize them when they have passed.
In Our House Chargers were able to celebrate 50 years of El Toro by continuing the ways, by updating the old ways, and by beginning the new ways of Student Life. Donkey basketball became the Dodgeball Tournament. Dances grew from traditional dances like Homecoming and Welcome Dances into Charger Mania and Winter Formal. A Drama Performance can move beyond just Charger Hall and become a series of three shows presented simultaneously on campus. A concert choir member can return after five, ten, or more years and still return to the stage to belt out "Carol of the Bells". Our House can have the same 20 Stair while adding a first-in-the-county innovation like the ET rETreat for mental wellness. Whether you have the big hair of the 80s, the flannel of the 90s, or the flared legs of the 20s, Chargers will always have the memories of Student Life here In Our House."
A Pictorial History of our School and Community
This 1936 WPA map shows the local area, including what would become the 5 and 405 freeways, as well as El Toro Road. The Serrano Adobe can be seen in the upper right hand corner, and the area is described as "The Place of the Bulls."
The 5 Freeway at El Toro Road, 1960s.
El Toro Road, 1965.
El Toro Road, 1977.
El Toro High School under construction, 1973. The outer shell of the main gym can be seen near the center of the photo.
El Toro High School under construction, 1973. You can see the vast eucalyptus forest in the yet to be developed tract across Ridge Route.
The construction of ETHS was documented in the 1974-1975 edition of The Amanacer, which can be seen in the series of photos below...
