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The 75th graduating class of Menlo-Atherton High School will be the first in the school’s history not to have its students’ names published in the local newspaper, ending a more than century-old tradition.
It’s a shame that, thanks to an administrative decision by Sequoia Union High School District, so many members of the Class of 2026 won’t appear in the public record.
Menlo-Atherton’s first commencement ceremony took place on June 12, 1952. The names of its 142 graduates were published in the Menlo Park Recorder and Gazette, a predecessor to The Almanac, which was founded in 1965. As far back as 1925, the Recorder published lists of graduates for local elementary, middle and high schools. Public acknowledgement of local students’ achievements served to connect the community to its schools and celebrate the accomplishments of its youth.
Much about the world has changed, but much has not. In the pages of the Recorder’s 1952 issue, local debates over civic issues sound remarkably similar to the ones still being discussed today: housing, public spending and even the downtown Menlo Park parking lots were front of mind for residents back then. We know this thanks to local journalism, which serves a vital role in documenting a community’s shared history.
As you can see from the pages of our June 12 issue, The Almanac still provides robust coverage of local high school grads, but by necessity, our stories can only contain the names and images of a select few.
Superintendent Crystal Leach and district principals say they made the decision to withhold the lists due to “privacy concerns.”
“While many families may enjoy seeing the name of their graduate in the paper, others have specifically requested not to release their student’s name to the media, and we need to honor their wishes,” Sequoia Union board president Amy Koo said in an emailed statement.
Graduation lists are classified as directory information under federal law. Schools are required to notify families annually and provide an easy way to opt out directories. Any student or parent with privacy concerns can already remove a name. We see no need to eliminate the entire list.
Every other high school district that The Almanac’s sister publications cover — Palo Alto, Mountain View-Los Altos, Pleasanton and Livermore — continues to share graduate names so students can be publicly recognized for their achievement. As do local private schools, including Silicon Valley International, Menlo and Sacred Heart Preparatory.
It’s unfortunate that the Sequoia district won’t allow the students of Woodside, Sequoia, TIDE Academy and Menlo-Atherton high schools to enjoy that same recognition.
While district officials may not have been required to involve the board of trustees in this decision, it’s troubling that there was no public discussion and no input from elected officials, who only found out about it after our reporters contacted them.
The Sequoia Union board is already under fire over its handling of the closure of TIDE Academy. Complaints about insufficient public engagement and perfunctory email replies crafted by the district’s public relations firm point to a troubling disconnect between the board and the community it serves.
Graduation lists are public records. Graduate’s names, as directory information, are not protected. The district could be compelled to release them.
But compulsion should not be necessary. District oficials should be excited to celebrate graduates and their accomplishments with the wider community, adding a link to our shared local history that stretches back over a century.
