At West Ashley High School, the belief that we educate, encourage and empower every student to embrace learning experiences successfully in their high school career is the foundation of our commitment to our students and school. We strive to develop world class skills and knowledge while cultivating 21st Century Skills inclusive of critical thinking, collaboration, communication and creativity in all students. Our staff works daily to increase our graduation rate, close the achievement gap and improve the level of achievement of all students.
As a Capturing Kids’ Hearts School, Wildcats believe it is necessary to engage, explore, communicate, empower, and launch all stakeholders towards successful outcomes. Students challenge themselves in a diverse, world class curriculum inclusive of 21 Honors, 14 Advanced Placement, and 16 Dual Enrollment Course Opportunities. Our students have access to 14 Career and Technical Education majors, 6 Fine and Performance Arts programs, and 3 foreign languages. In addition, 14 athletic programs and 29 club opportunities, along with an exemplary NJROTC Program, provide our students the opportunity to develop world class leadership skills, collaborate, think critically, and problem solve in a competitive, nurturing learning environment in order to be well-prepared with the necessary career characteristics needed in a global workplace. Our 21st Century learning environment includes daily use of iPads, Chromebooks, TI Inspire Calculators, and Pre-Engineering and Robotics technology; all of this enables students to innovate and problem solve while using outstanding tools.
During the 2017-18 school year, we worked diligently to improve our students’ performance in critical thinking and collaboration skills as compared to prior years. Our faculty empowered our student body to attempt 730 College Credit Bearing Courses in Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment, an improvement of greater than ten percent! These rigorous courses challenged each participating student to demonstrate a higher degree of academic rigor. The Class of 2018 produced 114 Life Scholarship Qualifiers, 84 HOPE Scholarship Qualifiers, and 9 Palmetto Fellows, all an improvement over the previous year, while earning an estimated $4.1 million dollars in scholarships. Our students successfully demonstrated collaborative skills in competitive arenas in SeaPerch, Mechatronics, HOSA, and DECA Competitions. Our NJROTC Rifle Team, Archery Team, Skeet Shooting Team, and Boys’ Basketball Team competed for state and national honors. Our Mechatronics team competed in the National and World Championships. Our Band, Strings, and Choral Programs all achieved superior ratings in state assessments, and our Drama Studio produced an outstanding spring musical, “Copa Cabana”. Our Wildcat Press Team communicated these accomplishments and more through social media, the school webpage, West Of, and The Post & Courier newspapers. These opportunities and accomplishments motivate our faculty, staff, and community to continue collaborative work, which is focused on our mission statement, and to produce successful students in a diverse population who stand ready to serve and lead our community as professional, world class citizens.
William Lee Runyon III, Principal
Rusty Griffith, SIC Chair