Woodside High School (Newport News)

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Woodside High School
Address
13450 Woodside Lane Newport News, Virginia, 23608 USA
Information
School district	Newport News Public Schools
Superintendent	Ms. Ashby Kilgore
Principal	Mrs. Susan Tilley
Assistant Principals	Mr. Scott Jefferies Ms. Michelle Banks Mr. Lloyd Eason Ms. Mercedes Lewis Mr. Carl Williams
Administrator	Mr. John Boyles (Arts Magnet)
Enrollment	2020 (October 2007)
School type	Public high school
Grades	9–12
Language	English
Campus	Suburban
Athletics conference	Virginia High School League Peninsula District Eastern Region
Rival	Denbigh High School
Mascot	Wolverines
Color(s)	Teal and Purple
Yearbook	Legacy
Founded	1996
Homepage	http://woodside.nn.k12.va.us

Woodside High School is one of five high schools in Newport News, Virginia. The school colors are purple and teal. The school's mascot is a wolverine. Opening in 1996, Woodside's sports teams have already won three state titles: one in softball (2001) and two for boys basketball (2003-04 and 2004-05). The school's boys and girls athletic teams are known as the Wolverines and Lady Wolverines respectively. The school was ranked 416th by Newsweek magazine's "America's Best High Schools" in terms of high schools and exam testing. Woodside has been accredited by the Virginia Department of Education since the 2003-04 school year, and has some of the highest passing rates in Newport News.

Woodside High School, located in the northern side of Newport News, opened its doors to students in September 1996. Woodside offers its students a unique learning environment in that it contains three learning "houses" designed to break down the larger school into several smaller, more personal learning environments. In February of 2006, the time between class periods was changed from ten minutes to six minutes as a result of a controversial incident popularly dubbed a "riot". In 2006, the distinctions between the three houses were more or less removed, in hopes of restricting as many of a student's classes as possible to one hall.

Contents 1 The Wolverine Walk 2 Essential Learnings at Woodside 3 Creative Arts Magnet 4 Demographics 5 Criticisms 6 Gun Incident 7 See also 8 External links 9 References

[edit] The Wolverine Walk

The Wolverine Walk Consists of the 5 R's:-

• Right - to be accountable for yourself and to respond wisely
• Respect - to know and to do what is right and ethical
• Responsibility - to act with purpose and good sense
• Reason - to have self-regard and to show respect for others
• Resilience - to bounce back from adversity

[edit] Essential Learnings at Woodside

Students are expected to become:

• Self-directed learners
• Collaborative workers
• Complex thinkers
• Quality producers
• Community contributors

[edit] Creative Arts Magnet

Woodside is the home of the Center for the Arts and Communication, which encompasses music, performing arts, visual arts, and writing.

Students may specialize in:

• Music: theory, musicianship, performing, composing, arranging
• Dance: with emphasis on ballet and modern dance, choreography
• Drama: acting, directing, producing, stagecraft, scenery, lighting, costumes
• Creative writing: create original poetry, prose, essays, scriptwriting, historical fiction and critical reviews
• Communications: journalism, production, engineering and technology and public relations
• Visual arts: painting, printmaking, drawing, clay sculpture, mixed media, computer art, and photography

Distinctive Features

• Arts instruction at a depth, level, and rigor not found in other Newport News high schools
• Opportunities to pursue an intensive study of the arts to enhance the student's overall academic program
• Chance to work and study with arts professionals
• Interdisciplinary study linking the arts with other disciplines
• Earned Adequate Yearly Progress designation for meeting or exceeding federal standards for No Child Left Behind
• Creative writers experience one-on-one conferences, peer evaluations, group readings, visiting authors and the Writing Center

[edit] Demographics

As of October 2007 ^[1]

Total Enrollment: 2,020 (100.0%)

Gender:

• Male: 895 (44.3%)
• Female: 1,125 (55.7)%

Ethnicity:

• Native American: 16 (0.8%)
• Asian/Pacific Islander: 69 (3.4%)
• Black: 1,113 (55.1%)
• Hispanic: 140 (6.9%)
• White: 655 (32.4%)
• Unspecified: 27 (1.3%)

Special Education: 200 (9.9%)

Talented and Gifted: 134 (6.6%)

Economically Disadvantaged: 567 (28.1%)

[edit] Criticisms

In early 2006, several fights broke out as well as a large scuffle that several of the students referred to as a "riot." To punish the students, principal Stephanie Hautz reduced the time between classes, allowing students less time in the halls to socialize or "fight." Students had ten minutes between classes, the longest time of all the city's high schools. It was cut back to six minutes, with hopes to cut down on problems in the halls. Tardiness was already an issue prevalent in the school, and the fight was related to the amount of time between classes. Several Newport News police officers were also on site at the school for a few days after to dissuade any further attempts of violence. No further incidents have occurred, but students protested the schedule change, saying that six minutes was not enough time to get from class to class. For the 2007-2008 school year, students have 8 minutes. Rumors of gang fights also became a major issue, and drug problems led to a police dog search in which all the students were directed to leave their belongings in the hallway and remain in class while the dogs were out.

[edit] Gun Incident

On February 6, 2008, a student was arrested for bringing a loaded handgun into the building. Police reports indicate that administrators were made aware of the gun by an anonymous informant's call before the school opened for the day. The student, a 16-year-old sophomore at the time, was arrested during the school's first period of the day and taken into custody. Police found in his waistband a .40 caliber Glock and eight bullets. There were no bullets in the chamber, but the gun was loaded. No students were injured. ^[2]

[edit] See also

• Newport News Public Schools

[edit] External links

• Woodside High School

[edit] References