Local/Campus

Early this year, Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar proposed budget cuts for CA schools that totaled $4.8 billion. These cuts put counselors at the risk of faculty lay-offs and increased class sizes.  Many teachers and students protested these changes at rallies organized by the Fremont Education Coalition. Although later in the year Governor Schwarzeneggar changed CA's budget plan to feature fewer cuts to education programs, FUSD's budget was still reduced by $4,100,000.

2008 proved to be a very good year for numerous MSJ teams. The Tech and Robotics team qualified for a world level competition, the Ocean Science Bowl "A" team won the 2008 Otter Bowl, and Go team ranked first in the nation. In addition, former Seniors Wayne Chen, Jimmy Li, Lucy Lu, and Zelin Wang placed second in a national economics challenge, and Senior Dheeraj Erraballi DECA placed third at the CA DECA conference.

After 24 years, MSJ government teachers decided to end the senior year tradition of Mock Convention due to schedule issues, incompatible teaching styles, loss of participation, and a new curriculum, among other factors. The program, introduced to MSJ in 1984 by former government teacher Mark Mattingly, was developed to give students a fun and interactive way to experience the political process.

The global torch run for the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games made its only North America stop in San Francisco on April 9. Protests during earlier segments of the torch run against China's human rights violations in Tibet resulted in the official route through San Francisco never being announced, which left many reporters, protestors, and viewers in search of the torch's location.

MSJ was named a national Blue Ribbon School in September, the first time in 16 years. The school was recognized for its high achievement and yearly progress on standardized tests. The school also received its Western Accreditation of Schools and Colleges (WASC) certification over the summer. With the WASC accreditation, MSJ receives University of California approval for courses offered at this school.

MSJ's campus underwent many transformations in 2008, including seismic and traffic safety upgrades, renovation of various dining facilities, replacement of water pipes, and a remodeled gym floor. These transformations were paid with funding received from FUSD and money donated by Mission Boosters.