[4] Balboa serves grades nine through twelve as part of the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD).

Mirroring conditions in the areas it serves, the school has a history marked by periods of violence, controversy, and low academic performance.

Following the dismissal of the entire faculty in 1999, it became the first school in northern California to embrace and convert its curriculum to the concept of small learning communities.

In the spring of 1952, students at Balboa invented a variation on a conga line dance which inspired bandleader and songwriter Ray Anthony to compose an accompanying hit song with the same name, "The Bunny Hop".

[9] In an effort to prevent the spread of AIDS, Balboa became the first school in California to distribute free condoms to students in May 1992.

[10] This program and the clinic's other family planning and sexually transmitted disease efforts have featured somewhat controversially in a number of research papers and debates.

[14] The resulting litigation from this incident exposed a culture and history of JROTC hazing at Balboa and several other SFUSD schools extending back to the 1980s.

[16] In 1996, frustrated by high turnover and low performance on the part of the educational staff, the SFUSD dismissed the entire faculty.

[6] Frustrated by poor conditions such as insufficient textbooks and dilapidated facilities during the late 1990s, students at Balboa became members of the class-action lawsuit Williams v.

The social stratification caused by the separate lunch lines has attracted some criticism and efforts by the district to improve participation by eligible students.

[25] For the spring 2006 administration, 47% of the school's ninth-graders scored "proficient" or above on the statewide standardized English exam, up from 39% from the previous year.

The Balboa campus is part of a larger SFUSD academic complex that includes neighboring James Denman Middle School and the San Miguel Child Development Center.

Balboa's auditorium, theater, and music rehearsal rooms also are found on the western side of the campus quad.

[22][6] Coinciding with the academic turmoil of the late 1990s, the dropout rate at Balboa experienced a spike of over 230 students (16.8%) leaving in 1998.

[22] The demographic composition of certified faculty over the last decade has consisted primarily of White teachers (32–54%) with approximately similar distributions of staff reporting Asian (6–15%), Filipino (9–19%), or Hispanic (11–19%) ethnicity.

[22] Balboa participates in the SFUSD's admissions lottery in which students from the entire city can indicate a preference to attend any of the district schools regardless of geographical location.

[citation needed] Academic instruction at Balboa High School is centered on the concept of SLCs called Pathways.

[38] All 11th and 12th grade academies have a common goal of combining coursework with external experiences through field trips, internships, or a mentorship with local business entities or the community at large.

Female sports teams are fielded in badminton, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, fencing, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track, swimming, and volleyball.

Twelve male sports teams are fielded in baseball, basketball, cross country, fencing, football, golf, soccer, tennis, track, volleyball, swimming and wrestling.

The football team achieved a 111–39–5 record between 1962 and 1977, including six wins of the annual city Turkey Day title game in 1967 (11–0),1968 (9–2),1971 (11–0),1973 (10–0–1),1975 (12–0) and 1976 (10–2), led by coach Archie Chagonjian.

[44] Beginning in the Fall of 1993 the football program at Balboa went into decline, failing to make it to the Turkey Day playoff until 2004.

[45] They lost to Lowell in 2004 but made it back again in 2005, with that year's Samoan team members notably performing a haka dance before going on to lose to Lincoln High.

In the 2010 season, the Balboa Cross Country team had its first major victory under the coaching of David Binkowski and Elizabeth Cossick.

As the winning team for San Francisco, Balboa went on to represent the county at the state competitions in Riverside, California.

United Playaz is an anti-violence and gang prevention program that seeks to stop the seeds of school violence through collaborative meetings and activities.

[51] The "Playaz" have hosted sports programs, talent shows, and field trips to dissuade at-risk youth from gangs.

They provide ways for students to openly discuss and express opinions on issues and tensions which unchecked lead to violence.