classroom by a 15-year-old student who was armed with a machete and a tree saw. None of the students involved suffered major injuries, and all but one were treated and released from the hospital the same day. In 2006 and again in 2014, Valparaiso Community Schools signed memoranda of understanding with the Department of Justice to improve race relations in the school. Academics In 2004, Valparaiso High School was one of 30 schools chosen nationwide as a model school by an initiative of the Council of Chief State School Officers, the International Center for Leadership in Education and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The initiative recognizes schools that are successful at providing quality education to all students. The high school's history of continuous improvement on benchmarks, service learning initiative commitments, as well as having offered diverse extracurricular programs were all cited in its achievement. The school also promotes leadership, a model of civility, and a connection to the greater Valparaiso community. Valparaiso High School has offered the IB Diploma Program since August 1995. Students at VHS usually take IB exams in May. In the last session, students completed the following exams: Biology, Chemistry, Economics, English, French, German, History, Information Technology in Global Society, Mathematics, Music, Physics, Spanish, Theory of Knowledge and Visual Arts. Notable alumni Beulah Bondi – Oscar-nominated and Emmy Award-winning actress; appeared in It's a Wonderful Life and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Mark N. Brown – former NASA astronaut and retired Colonel in the United States Air Force Maria Astrologes Combs – professional golfer in the LPGA Jim Crowell – professional baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB) Fred Doelling – professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) Bryce Drew – professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), college basketball head coach Sam Ficken - professional football player in the NFL Robbie Hummel – professional basketball player in the NBA and Lega Basket Serie A, college basketball analyst for Big Ten Network and ESPN Patricia Ireland – former president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and prominent women's rights activist S.S. McClure – publisher and influential person in the creation of investigative journalism Mike Price – jazz trumpet player Everett Ruess – poet and traveler Jeff Samardzija – professional baseball player in MLB See also List of high schools in Indiana References External links Valparaiso High School Public high schools in