Elk Grove Union High School was the first union high school in the state of California. Sixteen elementary districts voted to tax themselves for a high school, and they all remained as separate districts until the entire K–12 district unified in 1959. The high school opened its doors in 1893 at its first site on Main Street (now Derr Street and Elk Grove Boulevard in Old Town). In 1922, a new brick building was constructed on the corner of Elk Grove Boulevard and Elk Grove Florin, where the Joseph Kerr Middle School campus is today. In 1964 a new campus was built closer to Elk Grove Park to move overcrowded high schoolers from the small campus. When the school was moved to its present location, it was as a three-year senior high school with grades 7–9 at the junior high. Elk Grove is the second oldest high school in Sacramento County. Until 1977, Elk Grove High was the only comprehensive high school in the district. According to Newsweek Magazine's Elk Grove High School has ranked in the top 5% of the nations high schools from 2006–present. In April 2009, Elk Grove High School was awarded the California Distinguished School award.
Athletics
Elk Grove High School is a member of the Division 1 Delta League. The school offers 13 varsity sports.
The Thundering Herd football program has won 15 conference championships and five Division 1 championships and one Division 2 championship.[2]Lance Briggs, a linebacker for the Chicago Bears, is an alumnus.
In 1997, the Herd's baseball team was ranked #9 in the nation by Baseball America. To date, Elk Grove has had 16[3] alumni make it to the major leagues.
In 2022, the Thundering Herd’s men’s basketball team won the Division 2 California State Championship.[4]
John "Buck" Martinez – former MLB catcher for Kansas City Royals (1969–77), Milwaukee Brewers (1977–80) and Toronto Blue Jays (1980–86), manager of Blue Jays (2001–02) and Team USA (2006), TV commentator
