Nevada Union High School (NU) is located in the Sierra Nevada foothills northeast of California's capital, Sacramento. Situated between Nevada City and Grass Valley, the school serves those two incorporated cities and a large surrounding community. The Nevada Union High School district covers a huge geographic area with some students bussed in from as far as 56 miles away. NU was named a California Distinguished School in 1997 and 2012 and in 1998 was recognized as a National Blue Ribbon High School. NUHS serves ninth through twelfth grade students. NUHS does not have an ethnically diverse student population, as 99% are Caucasian.