Athletics
UHS ATHLETICS MISSION
The interscholastic athletic program seeks to help student-athletes grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially through the challenges of athletic discipline, team participation, and interscholastic competition. The mission is educational and designed to enrich and complement the UHS academic experience.
MEET ATHLETIC DIRECTOR ANTHONY THOMAS
After a comprehensive national search process, we are excited to announce that Anthony Thomas has been appointed Athletic Director, beginning July 2023.
Anthony brings a wealth of experience, serving most recently as Director of Athletics at Francis Parker School in San Diego. He has also been the Director of Athletics at the Branson School, Convent and Stuart Hall, International School, and Sacred Heart Preparatory School. He knows the Bay Area well. Anthony is also the Co-Founder and President of the National Minority Athletic Directors Association (NOMAD). He comes to UHS with a clear vision of equity and excellence in athletics and will help us continue to grow and elevate our already outstanding athletic program to the next level, especially as we prepare to open 3150 California Street in the Fall of 2025. In reflecting on joining UHS, Anthony shared:
Athletics continues to be an area that fosters greater appreciation for diversity and inclusion. I believe in broadening this capacity and I see University as a place that is aligned with my beliefs. I will be an Athletic Director that will represent University to the greater San Francisco community and beyond, while being a staunch advocate for the growth and development of our students and my staff.
Anthony’s leadership skills, passion, and lifelong dedication to athletics, coupled with his belief in our mission, vision, and values makes him the right person to lead our athletic program into the future. His advocacy of student-athletes, commitment to excellence, expertise and knowledge about athletics and independent school best practices, vision, and dedication to community building and belonging. In the words of one of his references, “he makes people better.”
The UHS Athletics program will undoubtedly thrive under Anthony's visionary leadership. Welcome, Anthony and Go Big Red!
ATHLETICS PHILOSOPHY
The University High School Athletic program has a tradition of excellence and achievement. Our teams strive to be the best that they can be and, with numerous league and section championships over the years, it is clear that they are successful. We challenge all of our teams to have a seriousness of purpose and a great capacity to have fun—an approach we believe in for the positive experience it most often produces and because this approach has broader application across most areas of life.
Most of our student-athletes do develop a true love for their team experience and their sport—and 15% to 20% of each graduating class do go on to continue their student-athlete experience in college. Just as impressively, about 75% of our students each year participate on one or more of our interscholastic teams. Athletics is a very strong part of the UHS experience for most of the students that come here.
Although we are proud of the championship banners that fill our gym, we value the development of our student-athletes even more. Red Devils leave here with strong skills and values in areas like effective teamwork, listening and communication, disciplined work habits, respect for authority, and emotional control. Students at all levels of sports—from the brand-new freshman trying out cross country to the highly skilled soccer player—are valued and respected by their coaches and expected to develop into a contributing member of the program of their choice. We don't measure the success of our athletic program by our win-loss record; we measure success by the way Red Devil Athletics helps enhance the high school experience and prepares our graduates for success in college and beyond.
Sports today—even at the high school level—can be overshadowed by the excesses of media hype, the college admissions process, and commercialism. Our goal is to keep the UHS Athletic Program rooted in the school mission, challenging "each individual to live a life of integrity, inquiry, and purpose larger than the self." We believe that our program highlights the best that physical activity, competition, and team play can offer a young student-athlete.