The Colossal-Campus Challenge

"Some people absolutely thrive in large schools," said Ashley, the Long Beach Poly principal. "It is like New York City. Some students like being a part of something that is bigger than themselves."

Doyle Dean, principal of Plano Senior High School near Dallas, said his students don't appear to be getting lost in the crowd, even though he has 2,563 in two grades, 11th and 12th. "Our participation rate of over 80 percent in competitive and noncompetitive activities compares favorably with smaller schools," he said.

New Trier High School in Winnetka, Ill., near Chicago has 3,070 students on one campus for 10th through 12th grades and a separate campus with 1,024 freshmen, but few parents or students complain about the size. "Our ability to construct a student's optimal schedule of classes is maximized because more teachers are available for assignment in a given class period in a large school," said Hank Bangser, superintendent of the New Trier Township High School District.

At Robinson, Garces said he likes the array of classes and activities. He is active in DECA, a club for students interested in marketing and entrepreneurship. The Robinson DECA club has won several international marketing competitions, and Garces raved about the opportunities it had opened for him.

Katie Planert, an 18-year-old senior, said she is also active in DECA and other activities. That allows her to overlook the annoyances of getting around the school. Where she stood, next to the junior and senior class lockers, "sometimes you can't move five feet in five minutes," she said, but otherwise she is glad to be there.

Meier said he and his large staff keep students and parents happy by emphasizing challenging academic classes, such as those in the International Baccalaureate program, which is the largest in the country. Recognition for acts of kindness and hard work, such as awards for student of the quarter and teacher of the quarter, also improve the mood, he said. At the last quarterly award ceremony, Meier said, many students praised teachers for making the big school "feel like home."

Meier said big schools do better in sports because they have so much talent but also make it hard for students to participate in more than one sport because of the demands of high-level competition. The same goes for drama and music.

So, he said, he has to think about ways to make a big school feel small. "You really work at trying to do as many things as you can to recognize the individual," he said.