# Sandia High School

Sandia High School (SHS) is a public high school located in the northeast heights of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It is a member of the Albuquerque Public Schools district. The current enrollment is 1,776.

## History

The school opened in 1958 and was originally constructed to hold between 1,800 and 2,000 students at a cost of $1.3 million. The smaller Yucca school, located east of the main building, was completed in 1959 to house elementary students. The Yucca school was phased out as an elementary school in 1974 due to low enrollment, and was used as an annex to Sandia.
The originally proposed mascot name was the Sandia Satans, which prompted negative reactions from the community. Thereafter, the mascot name was changed to Matadors, after a vote which included Thunderbirds and Road Runners. A Matador sculpture was placed in the student commons area in 1979.
In the late 1970s, the school reached a record student population for the state of New Mexico. This led to the approval and construction of a newer facility, La Cueva High School, in the early 1980s.
In 2012 Albuquerque Public Schools initiated a significant rebuilding project at Sandia High School. New construction included a new mathematics and science classroom building, a new library, and rebuilt athletic fields.
As of 2013, Sandia High School is home to the International Baccalaureate program.
Sandia's current principal is Camille Gonzales as of September 2021.

## Athletics

The first athletic win in school history was a 26-0 football victory over Española Valley High School on September 20, 1958. At this time, Sandia still had the Satan as the mascot. It was a week later that Sandia officially changed the mascot to the Matador.
Norm Charlton and Jim Ottman are perhaps the most famous coaches in Sandia High School history. Charlton was the school's first head football coach between 1958-1969, compiling a 58-43-3 record. He continued to coach wrestling and served as the school's athletic director and had a long run as Sandia's golf coach that lasted until 1988. Charlton led Sandia High School's wrestling team to one state title in 1960 and his golf teams won four state titles. Ottman took over the football team for the 1970 season. A member of the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame and the New Mexico High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor, Ottman also coached baseball and golf and was athletic director. His football teams won one state title and his baseball and wrestling teams each won several state championships, too.
Sandia High School competes in the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA). For 2022/2023-2023/2024, the NMAA realigned the state's districts and classifications. Sandia competes in 5A in every sport except football. Football is still a 6A classification.

### State titles
## Alumni

* Janet Napolitano, former US Secretary of Homeland Security and Arizona Governor
* Robert Mercer, hedge fund CO-CEO of Renaissance Technologies, who played a key role in Brexit and Trump campaigns
* Gary Johnson, former Governor of New Mexico and 2012 presidential candidate
* Brendan Donnelly, former MLB player (Anaheim Angels, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins, Pittsburgh Pirates)
* David Addington, former Vice President Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff
* Madolyn Smith, movie and television actress
* Heidi Swedberg, movie and television actress
* Richard Angulo, coach and former player in NFL
* Gary Suiter, professional basketball player and first person from Albuquerque to play in the NBA
* DeAndre Lansdowne, professional basketball player