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Westside High School (Houston)

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Westside High School
Front of Westside High School
Address
Map
14201 Briar Forest Drive

Houston
,
TX
77077
Coordinates29°45′34″N 95°38′16″W / 29.75944°N 95.63778°W / 29.75944; -95.63778
Information
School typeSuburban public secondary school
Founded2000; 24 years ago (2000)
School districtHouston Independent School District
PrincipalDr. Alisa C. Zapata[1]
Teaching staff159.76 (FTE)[2]
Grades9-12
Enrollment2,825 (2023–2024)[2]
Student to teacher ratio17.68[2]
LanguageEnglish
Color(s)   
MascotWestley The Wolf
Team nameThe Wolves
NewspaperThe Howler
YearbookCanidae
Communities servedportions of the Westchase District, South Eldridge Parkway portion of the Houston Energy Corridor, Walnut Bend, Briargrove Park, Lakes of Parkway, Parkway Villages, and Briarhills
Websitewww.houstonisd.org/Domain/13644

Westside High School is a secondary school in Houston, Texas, United States. It serves grades 9 through 12 and is part of the Houston Independent School District.

The school is located at 14201 Briar Forest in Houston, Texas, in the 77077 zip code. Westside High School is outside of Beltway 8, east of State Highway 6, inside State Highway 99 (Grand Parkway), and south of Interstate 10 (Katy Freeway) in the Briar Forest area.

Westside is HISD's Magnet School for Integrated Technology.[3] The program allows students to look at technology from one of five aspects: Fine Arts, Business, Media Relations, Applied Science/Health Science, and Computing Sciences. During the first year, all Magnet students take a technology survey course, a modular course that introduces them to the five strands of the program. The second year, students are asked to choose one of the five strands on which to focus their elective courses.

The school's academic programs, ranked #463, #196, #230, #245, and #1,958th in Newsweek magazine's 2005,[4] 2006[5] 2007,[6] 2008, and 2013[7] lists, respectively, of the top 2,000 high schools in the United States.

As of 2006, many students in other parts of Houston ISD transferred to Westside to escape high schools that do not have a good academic performance, causing the attendance figures of those schools to suffer.[8]

Westside athletics compete as the Westside Wolves, and the school's mascot is Wesley the Wolf.

History

[edit]

Westside opened in 2000 as a brand-new fifty-million-dollar building, taking about 1,000 students from Lee High School (now Margaret Long Wisdom High School), which was experiencing overcrowding.[9] Westside planned to compete with Bellaire and Lamar high schools in Houston ISD for "premier" status. It initially had a reputation as a school that could attract private school students to a public school.[10] When Westside opened, residents of the Lee attendance boundary were given the option to attend Westside instead of Lee, with no free transportation provided.[11] The school at first had 1,772 students, including 340 students who, in the previous school year, were not enrolled in HISD.[12] Westside is so-named because it is located in western Houston.[13]

Scott Van Beck was the first principal of Westside. In 2005 he was promoted to being the West District head.[14] Later in that year, Paul Castro became Westside principal;[15] he was 29 at the time he had his first school principal job.[16] That year about 300 students from New Orleans, displaced by Hurricane Katrina, enrolled at Westside, causing overcrowding and making the overall student population over 3,000.[15] According to the October 2006 HISD "For Your Information" newsletter, Westside was one of four high schools that took the most refugees from Hurricane Katrina.[citation needed]

By March 2006, Westside had posted slightly lower SAT and graduation rates than Lamar and Bellaire. In a March 2006 Houston Press article, Dr. Robert Sanborn, the president and CEO of the organization Children at Risk, said that Westside's "slow progress", as paraphrased by the article's author Todd Spivak, was more disappointing than Lamar and Bellaire's dropout rates.[10]

In fall of the 2008–2009 school year, a petroleum academy by the name of Westside Engineering and Geosciences Academy was opened at Westside High School.[17]

In 2007, 6% of high school-aged children zoned to Westside chose to attend alternative Houston ISD schools.[18]

In 2010, Richard Connelly of the Houston Press said that Westside became "something of a success story for HISD."[19]

In 2010, Castro was transferred to become the new principal of Lee High School (now Margaret Long Wisdom High School).[20]

Recognitions

[edit]
Westside viewed from the air

The Westside dance troupe Inertia Dance Co. has been featured in People magazine and on Good Morning America. At one point, a reality show was planned for the troupe.[21]

Westside won the Division II State Lacrosse title in 2004. Westside High School's rugby team incorporated with a public high school in the Houston Independent School District. The Westside Wrestling program has won Districts for the past 10 years and has had four individual state champions.

Westside High School won its first SECME State Competition in 2008.

Campus

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Westside is on a 50-acre (20 ha) campus,[22] located along Briar Forest Road, near Texas State Highway 6.[23] Several gated communities are in proximity to the school.[22]

The school was built for $50 million. The school has one auditorium, two theaters, four athletic fields, 11 music practice rooms, an orchestra hall, a band hall, a broadcast studio, a ceramics studio, and computer labs. Melissa Hung of the Houston Press wrote in 2000 that "The eating area resembles a college food court more than a high school cafeteria."[23]

Athletics

[edit]
Westside High School athletics logo

Westside High School's sports' mascot is the "Wolf". The girls' teams are sometimes known as the "Lady Wolves". Sports at the school include:[24]

  • American football
  • Baseball
  • Basketball (boys & girls)
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross-country (boys & girls)
  • Golf (boys & girls)
  • Lacrosse (boys & girls)
  • Rugby (boys)
  • Soccer (boys & girls)
  • Softball
  • Swimming/diving (boys & girls)
  • Tennis (boys & girls)
  • Track & field (boys & girls)
  • Volleyball
  • Water polo (boys & girls)
  • Wrestling (boys & girls)

Organizations and clubs

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Westside has about 50 clubs and organizations in addition to its athletic programs.[25]

Special interest

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Asian Cultural Society, Bike Club, Black Student Union, BSA Advancement, BPA, Chinese Club, Christians on Campus, Close Up, Drone Club, Ecology Club, EOE Step Club, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Fitness Club, FRC, French Club, Friends Club, Future Farmers of America, Future Teachers of America, Gaming/Anime Club, Gay-Straight Alliance, Guitar Hero Club, History Club, HOSA, Hot Air Balloon Club, Howlin' Respect, Humanities, Investment Club, Kite Flying Society, Korean Pop Culture Club (K-Pop), Latin Club, Math Club, Mental Health Awareness Club, Movie Buffs, Name That Book, Theatre Production, Technical Theatre, Playwrighting They Say Literacy Magazine Club, SECME, Ultimate Frisbee, Young Democrats, VEX robotics, Young Liberal Minds of America Young Republicans, W.O.R.D.

Performing arts

[edit]

Art Club (2D and 3D Animation, Drawing and Painting), National Thespian Honor Society, Orchestra, Band, Speech and Debate Team, Tri-Music Honor Society, Westside Choir, Westside Pride Dance Team, JV Inertia Dance Company, Inertia Dance Company, Colorguard, and Marching Band.

Academics and honors

[edit]

Asian Honor Society, National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, Quiz Bowl, Westside Engineering and Geosciences Academy, and the Academic Scientific Demonstration Club

Service and spirit

[edit]

Cheerleaders, Drill Team, Ecology Club, Interact Club, Key Club, JROTC, L.I.F.E, Recycling Club, S.A.V.E. Club, SADD, Marching Band and Colorguard

News

[edit]

Canidae (yearbook), The Howler (newspaper)

Outback program

[edit]

Westside has a three-year entrepreneurship program designed by the National Restaurant Education Foundation to teach students about how businesses run.[26] Outback Steakhouse sponsors the program and helped build a full-scale commercial kitchen and dining hall directly into the school.

The school utilizes the restaurant as part of an entrepreneurship course,[27] titled "Entrepreneur 101: Realizing the American Dream."[28] The course, using a curriculum designed by the Texas Restaurant Association Education Foundation (TRAEF), involves classroom study for first year (freshmen) students and restaurant operation performed by second year (sophomore) and third year (junior) students, supervised by Outback general managers and teachers.[29] As of 2003 there were six classes with a combined total of 140 students.[28]

Students learn the production aspect of the restaurant business in addition to basic business principles and cooking methods in the first year of the program, culminating in ServSafe certification by the end of the second year.[citation needed]

Aside from the program itself, the restaurant is open to students and the general public during lunchtime hours in the school year. Outback also caters exclusively for school functions.

Areas served

[edit]

When Westside opened in 2000, it relieved Margaret Long Wisdom High School, then known as Lee High School, of about 1,000 students that year.[30]

The Westside High School zone[31] covers small portions of the Westchase district that are north of Westheimer Road and the South Eldridge Parkway portion of the Houston Energy Corridor. Westside also covers several other neighborhoods, including Ashford Hill, Ashford West, Ashford South, the Houston ISD part of Ashford Forest, Walnut Bend, Briar Oaks, Briargrove Park, Briar Village, Briarhills, Lakeside Enclave, Lakeside Forest, Lakeside Landing, Lakeside Place, Parkway Villages, Reflections, Shadowbriar, and April Village.

Several gated communities, including Lakes of Parkway,[32] are zoned to Westside High School.

Students residing in the Margaret Long Wisdom (formerly known as Lee) attendance zone,[33] including the Uptown district, the neighborhoods of Briargrove,[34] Briarcroft, Larchmont, Briar Meadow, Tanglewood, Gulfton, Tanglewilde, Shenandoah,[35] Sharpstown Country Club Estates, Woodlake Forest, West Oaks, Jeanetta, and St. George Place (Lamar Terrace) and small portions of Westchase east of Gessner, may go to Lamar High, Margaret Long Wisdom High, or Westside High School. Small portions of the city of Hunters Creek Village and Piney Point Village are zoned to Margaret Long Wisdom with Lamar and Westside as options.[36]

In late 2005, the school absorbed more than 200 refugees from Hurricane Katrina who had moved into the Westside zone.[citation needed]

As of 2017, residents of the Westside zone are eligible for a transfer to Lamar High School.[37]

Feeder patterns

[edit]

Feeding from the Westside boundary

[edit]

Elementary schools that directly feed into Westside[31] include:

  • Ashford (Pre-K through 2)[38]
  • Askew (Kindergarten through 5)[39]
  • Barbara Bush[40]
  • Daily[41]
  • Walnut Bend[42]
  • Emerson (partial) (the rest of Emerson indirectly feeds into Westside)[43]

Middle schools that directly feed into Westside include all of West Briar[44] and parts of Revere.[45] Residents of the Westside attendance zone and the Revere attendance zone may apply to West Briar.

Residents zoned to Ashford, Askew, Bush, Daily, Emerson, and Walnut Bend may attend Shadowbriar Elementary School; therefore it is a feeder school for Westside.[46]

Residents of the Emerson Elementary School attendance zone may apply for the Briarmeadow Charter School, so the K-8 school feeds into Westside.[47]

Feeding from the Margaret Long Wisdom boundary

[edit]

Other schools also feed into Westside, since students zoned to Margaret Long Wisdom High School[33] have the option to go to Westside High School or Lamar High School.[36]

(portions)

Middle schools that feed into Lee (and therefore also feed into Westside) include:

Partial:

K-8 schools that feed into Lee (and therefore also feed into Westside) include:

All pupils zoned to Long and Pershing Middle Schools may attend Pin Oak Middle School.[61] Accordingly, Pin Oak also feeds into Lee High School.

Residents of the Briargrove, Emerson, Pilgrim, and Piney Point elementary attendance zones may apply for the Briarmeadow Charter School, so the K-8 school feeds into Lee.[47]

Residents zoned to Emerson may attend Shadowbriar Elementary School; therefore it is a feeder school for Wisdom (and therefore, Westside).[46]

Feeding from magnet schools

[edit]

Some students who graduate from T. H. Rogers School in the 8th grade choose to go to Westside.[citation needed]

Feeding from private schools

[edit]

Students of some private schools, such as Grace School, John Paul II School, and Presbyterian School, matriculate to Westside.[62][63][64]

Transportation

[edit]

Houston ISD provides school buses for students who live more than 2 miles (3.2 km) away from the school or who have major obstacles between their houses and the school. Students are eligible if they are zoned to Westside or are in the Westside magnet program.

A METRO bus stop (Briar Forest Drive @ Briar Home Drive) is located next to the school. Bus line 153 (Downtown/Galleria) stops at Briar Forest and Briar Home.

Notable people

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See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Westside High School". Houston Independent School District. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "WESTSIDE H S". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
  3. ^ "Magnet Program for Westside High School".
  4. ^ "America's Top Public High Schools".[dead link‍]
  5. ^ "America's Top Public High Schools".[dead link‍]
  6. ^ "America's Top Public High Schools".[dead link‍]
  7. ^ "The Daily Beast". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
  8. ^ Spencer, Jason (2005-09-04). "Transfer policy hinders schools". Houston Chronicle. p. B1 MetFront. Archived from the original on 2006-02-16. Retrieved 2021-03-18.
  9. ^ Viadero, Debra. "Personal Touches." Education Week. June 16, 2004. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  10. ^ a b Spivak, Todd. "The Also-Rans." Houston Press. March 2, 2006. Retrieved April 20, 2009.
  11. ^ "Westside and Lee HS Boundaries." Houston Independent School District. October 3, 2000. Retrieved on May 7, 2009.
  12. ^ Hung, Melissa. "Going Public." Houston Press. Thursday September 28, 2000. p. 1. Retrieved on April 2, 2014.
  13. ^ "School Histories: the Stories Behind the Names Archived 2011-07-10 at the Wayback Machine." Houston Independent School District. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
  14. ^ Baird, Annette (2005-05-05). "Westside High principal to step into new role". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  15. ^ a b McClam, Erin (2005-11-14). "Displaced Katrina teens tested at schools". Associated Press at NBC News. Archived from the original on December 30, 2018. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  16. ^ Falkenberg, Lisa (2013-06-18). "A principal shares his frustrations with education (Opinion)". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-12-30. - This content includes an interview with Castro
  17. ^ http://www.houstonisd.org/portal/site/HISDArchives/menuitem.8e2b79381bf69d9b00e45e10e041f76a/?vgnextoid=c01507e3e2b0c110VgnVCM10000028147fa6RCRD&vgnextchannel=e1b9393d9b623110VgnVCM10000028147fa6RCRD [dead link‍]
  18. ^ Radcliffe, Jennifer. "Critics: In HISD, too many don't go where zoned / Black leaders argue bond has no fix to get kids back to schools in their neighborhoods." Houston Chronicle. Sunday October 14, 2007. B1 MetFront.
  19. ^ Connelly, Richard. "Latest Principal Shifts In HISD Bring Grumbling Archived 2012-09-11 at the Wayback Machine." Houston Chronicle. January 27, 2010. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
  20. ^ Radcliffe, Jennifer. "The two faces of Lee High." (Archive) Houston Chronicle. February 8, 2010. Retrieved on March 3, 2010.
  21. ^ Neal, Rome. "Teaching Teens Success" (Archive). The Early Show, CBS News. November 1, 2004. Retrieved on December 22, 2015.
  22. ^ a b McClam, Erin. "Students adjusting after Hurricane Katrina." Seattle Times. Sunday November 13, 2005. Retrieved on November 3, 2013. - Also in the Eugene Register-Guard as "Katrina's kids learn to improvise", Sunday November 13, 2005, p. A4.
  23. ^ a b Hung, Melissa. "Going Public." Houston Press. Thursday September 28, 2000. p. 2. Retrieved on April 2, 2014.
  24. ^ "Westside High Sports".
  25. ^ "Clubs And Activities".
  26. ^ "Outback Cafe".
  27. ^ Buchen, Irving H. The Future of the American School System. R&L Education, January 1, 2004. ISBN 1578861357, 9781578861354. p. 161-162.
  28. ^ a b "The main course." (Food for Thought).(Outback Steakhouse Inc., Westside High School, Entrepreneur 101: Realizing the American Dream, Houston, Texas)(Brief Article) Restaurants & Institutions, April 1, 2003, Vol.113(8), p.24(1).
  29. ^ "Students to run on-campus Outback branch." (News Digests).(Brief Article) Nation's Restaurant News, March 3, 2003, Vol.37(9), p.20(1).
  30. ^ Grossman, Wendy. "Tee Time." Houston Press. Thursday November 13, 2003. Retrieved December 8, 2010. 1.
  31. ^ a b "Westside High School Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  32. ^ "Lakes of Parkway Map" (). Kickerillo. Revised February 13, 2007. Retrieved on April 30, 2014.
  33. ^ a b "Wisdom High School Attendance Zone, Houston Independent School District.
  34. ^ "Briargrove Subdivision Archived 2004-12-06 at the Wayback Machine." Briargrove Property Owners, Inc. Accessed September 24, 2008.
  35. ^ "Composite map of neighborhoods Archived 2009-05-30 at the Wayback Machine. Harris County Appraisal District. Accessed October 6, 2008.
  36. ^ a b Home page of Lee High School, as of May 9, 2005.
  37. ^ "Westside High School." Houston Independent School District. Retrieved on July 6, 2017. "Students zoned to this campus are eligible to apply for a Boundary Option Transfer to Lamar High School"
  38. ^ "Ashford Elementary Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  39. ^ "Askew Elementary Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  40. ^ "Bush Elementary Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  41. ^ "Daily Elementary Attendance Zone Archived 2009-02-06 at the Wayback Machine." Houston Independent School District.
  42. ^ "Walnut Bend Elementary Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  43. ^ a b "Emerson Elementary Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  44. ^ "West Briar Middle Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  45. ^ a b "Revere Middle Attendance Zone." Houston Independent School District.
  46. ^ a b "Energy Corridor Boundaries" (Archive). Houston Independent School District. Retrieved on March 18, 2016.
  47. ^ a b "Registration Archived 2008-05-07 at the Wayback Machine." Briarmeadow Charter School.
  48. ^ "Briargrove Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  49. ^ "Benavidez Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  50. ^ "Piney Point Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  51. ^ "Rodriguez Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  52. ^ "Braeburn Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  53. ^ "Condit Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  54. ^ "Cunningham Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  55. ^ "St. George Place Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District. Retrieved on April 20, 2009.
  56. ^ "Sutton Elementary School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  57. ^ "Long Middle School Attendance Zone Archived 2016-03-25 at the Wayback Machine," Houston Independent School District
  58. ^ "Long Middle School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  59. ^ "Pershing Middle School Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  60. ^ "Pilgrim Elementary Attendance Zone," Houston Independent School District
  61. ^ "Pin Oak Middle School." The Southwest District. Houston Independent School District.
  62. ^ "Grace School Quick Facts Archived 2013-08-01 at the Wayback Machine," Grace School
  63. ^ "Middle School Overview Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine," St. John Paul II Catholic School
  64. ^ "Beyond PS Archived 2013-05-15 at the Wayback Machine," Presbyterian School
  65. ^ "Warith Alatishe College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  66. ^ Sharma, Muskan (July 17, 2024). "Who is Jeffrey Louis? All about the American breakdancer competing at Paris Olympics 2024 who can win breaking's first ever Olympic medal". Sportskeeda. MSN.
  67. ^ "Shannon Shorter - Men's Basketball". Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Athletics.
  68. ^ "Daniel Utomi - Men's Basketball". USC Athletics.
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