West Ashley High School (WAHS) is helping all students develop the world- class skills and career characteristics of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by providing them with varied curricula and a comprehensive list of extracurricular opportunities. The staff at WAHS is providing the best learning environment to increase student achievement and to help every child become a global learner who is able to adapt and succeed in a world that is changing daily.
During the 2019-2020 school year, faculty and staff worked diligently to improve students’ performance in College and/or Career Ready categories. In comparison to the 2018-2019 school year, and without spring assessments/certification tests being administered, the senior class still demonstrated a 4% increase in College Ready, 6% increase in Career Ready, 5% increase in College or Career Ready, and 4% increase in College and Career Ready. Additionally, the Class of 2020 produced 83 Life Scholarship Qualifiers, 95 HOPE Scholarship Qualifiers, and 14 Palmetto Fellows while earning an estimated $3,063,074.00 million dollars in scholarships. Wildcats successfully demonstrated collaborative skills in competitive arenas.
Students were encouraged to challenge themselves throughout the year with a wide variety of advanced level classes including 20 honors level courses, 15 Advanced Placement courses, and 16 Dual Enrollment courses. Students are also provided access to 14 Career and Technical Education majors, 6 Fine and Performance Arts programs, and 3 foreign languages courses. In addition, 14 athletic programs, 29 club opportunities, as well as an exemplary NJROTC program afford students the opportunity to develop world class leadership skills, to collaborate, to think critically, and to problem solve in a competitive, nurturing learning environment WAHS’s 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.
Additionally, many of WAHS’s clubs and organizations competed and scored at the highest levels this year. The Mechatronics team advanced to the World Championships; Philosophy Team was crowned State Champions at the Ethics Bowl, and the Speech and Debate Team placed in the top 10 at the state competition. The Wildcat NJROTC scored Excellent in its annual inspection and took 1st place overall in academics, while the Drill team took 1st place in unarmed exhibition and 2nd place for unarmed regulation. Culinary Arts took 2nd place in the South Carolina Junior Chef Competition.
The faculty and staff at WAHS are committed to providing West Ashley with an excellent community high school focused on educating and developing future leaders.
Ryan Cumback, Principal
