was established by 1925 and administered several primary schools in downtown Santa Clara, east of the San Tomas Aquino Creek.

Santa Clara Union High School District

The Santa Clara Union High School District was a union school district established before the 1921–1922 academic year to administer several secondary schools in the areas covered by the Alviso, Jefferson, and Santa Clara Elementary districts. In 1959, it served roughly 2,800 students. By 1966, the district included Santa Clara High School, Emil R. Buchser High School, Adrian C. Wilcox High School, and Marian A. Peterson High School.

Unification and recent history

Due to rapid population increases and industrialization, the four school districts began making efforts to merge in the 1950s. Following new financial incentives offered by the state government in 1964, Santa Clara voters approved school district unification in September 1965. to serve neighborhoods in Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, San Jose, and Cupertino. SCUSD's first superintendent was Lawrence C. Curtis, who had previously served as the superintendent of Jefferson Union School District.

In the 1970s and 1980s, demographic shifts resulted in smaller, older families in the area, causing a 50% decrease in enrollment and the closure of 15 schools before the 1981–1982 academic year. Buchser High School closed, and its campus was repurposed as Santa Clara High School's new location. Buchser Middle School was established at the former Santa Clara High School campus. Additionally, Peterson High School was converted into Peterson Middle School, with the high school students joining the Wilcox High School student body. Agnew Elementary School and Huerta Middle School opened in 2021, and MacDonald High School opened in 2022.

In 2017, the district began paying for certain college entrance and Advanced Placement exams to eliminate barriers for low-income students.

On March 13, 2020,

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! scope="col" style="width: 12.5%;" | Opened

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| Agnew Elementary School