The series of six totems celebrate various aspects of Garfield High School's academic and extracurricular activities. In the spirit of Jaime Escalante, the math teacher who challenged students to pursue excellence, the totems celebrate excellence in various disciplines including science, math, art, culture and history. An example is the blue totem with Mayan numbers textured with computer circuit boards connectint the past scientific achievement of ancient Mayan culture and the present the future of computer technology of today.