Canyon del Oro High School is a comprehensive public high school in Oro Valley, Arizona, located 6mi north of Tucson at the base of Pusch Ridge. Established as a high school in 1964, CDO is one of three high schools of Amphitheater Public Schools and serves about 1,600 students in grades 9–12. The school name originates from the remote Canyon del Oro in the nearby Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. The school mascot is the Dorado, a mythical Latin American warrior, and the school colors are forest green and gold. The Dorado mascot was originally designed by former art teacher Diane Redhair in the mid-1960s.CDO is primarily known for its academic program and the notable number of Major League Baseball players the school has produced in recent decades. CDO is statistically one of the highest achieving schools in Arizona, both academically and athletically. In 2007, 2010, and again in 2011, Newsweek Magazine rated CDO in the top 5% of public schools in the U.S., one of a handful of schools in Arizona included on the list. In 2011, Newsweek ranked CDO No. 408 in its list of top public schools in the U.S. . From 2005 to the present, CDO has consistently been academically classified as Excelling by the Arizona Department of Education . Between 2000 and 2010, CDO has graduated 42 National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists. CDO is also home to the 2011 Arizona Academic Decathlon State Champions, with the team finishing 5th in the National Academic Decathlon competition. The team placed as State Champion in 2009, finishing 4th in the National Academic Decathlon, State Runner-Up in 2007, 2008, and 2010, and was State Champion in 2006, finishing 5th in the National Academic Decathlon. CDO is also ranked 6th in Arizona for the most all-time state championships in 4A & 5A team sports as of 2006 .
