Anaheim Union High School District
The Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) is a public school system in Orange County, California. It serves parts of Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, La Palma, and Stanton. The district runs seven junior high schools (grades 7–8), seven high schools (grades 9–12), one selective magnet school (Oxford Academy), one special education school, and two alternative education sites.
AUHSD was established in 1898 and uses the motto “Unlimited You.” The current superintendent is Michael Matsuda, with assistant superintendents Dr. Jaron Fried, Dr. Nancy Nien, and Brad Jackson. In the past, superintendent Elizabeth Novack was fired in December 2013.
The district has drawn national attention for two historic moments: in 1968, parents protested a sex-education course, and in 1978 the district briefly banned the novels Silas Marner and Gone with the Wind (both bans were later lifted).
In 2024, AUHSD faced backlash after proposing to lay off about 10% of teachers due to funding changes and declining enrollment. After discussions with the Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association, the district announced in May 2024 that all layoff notices had been rescinded.
Other notes: Los Alamitos High School left AUHSD in 1980 to join the Los Alamitos Unified School District. Western High School, opened in 1957, closed in 2025 to merge with Orangeview Junior High to form Orangeview Western 7–12 School. From 1898 to 1954, AUHSD operated as a four-year high school; beginning in 1954–55, it used a 7th–12th grade model with junior high (7–9) and high school (10–12). In 1980–81, junior high became 7–8 and high school became 9–12.
Enrollment and budget: AUHSD serves about 29,000 students, with roughly 1,204 teachers and 1,294 staff, for a student–teacher ratio of about 24:1. The budget for 2022–23 is about $566 million. For more information, visit the AUHSD website.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 20:22 (CET).