Fredrick “Rick” Arucan

Education

Rick Arucan attended Edison High School in Stockton from 1963-1965. At Edison, Rick was an outstanding scholar-athlete, earning the Most Valuable Player award and the All-League in baseball and football. Rick earned an academic/athletic scholarship to the University of Redlands and later transferred back to Stockton, attending the University of the Pacific where he graduated with Honors and earned his degree in History, along with a Standard Secondary Teaching Credential. Rick began his teaching and coaching career at East Union High School in 1969. At E.U., Rick taught for 17 years, serving as a Mentor Teacher and helping to guide and train numerous teachers, coaches, and administrators in the Manteca Unified School District. Rick moved into administration in 1986, serving seven years as an Assistant Principal at East Union before opening up Sierra High School in 1993. Rick became the Principal of the third comprehensive high school in Manteca Unified School District. From 1993 until his retirement in 2008, Rick drove Sierra to always strive to be the very best. Rick introduced a myriad of programs to Sierra, most which are still in existence today. Programs such as Academic Lobo Gold Rally, recognizing students who achieve in the classroom; S.P.I.R.I.T., which gave students a voice on campus; Department Honor Cords; Senior Projects; Strategic Team Planners, which gave all staff members a voice in decision making; and most importantly, the concept of Block Scheduling, which is now the standard scheduled used by all high schools in Manteca Unified School District. Ricks contributions to Sierra High School and the Manteca Unified School District are immeasurable.