Appleton West High School Aerial View 1937

Appleton West High School (or AWHS, formerly known as Appleton Senior High School or Appleton High School) is a comprehensive

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

located in Appleton,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

that serves students in the

ninth In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

through twelfth grades. The school was founded in 1915 under the name Appleton Senior High School, but the current facility was constructed in 1938, and the name was changed to West High in 1967 following the construction of Appleton East High School. The current principal is Mark McQuade,

Ed.D The Doctor of Education (Ed.D. or D.Ed.; Latin ''Educationis Doctor'' or ''Doctor Educationis'') is (depending on region and university) a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for a ...

, who was awarded the Herb Kohl Educational Foundation Principal Leadership Award in 2022. One of the three public four-year

high schools A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

in the Appleton Area School District (AASD), West High also offers two charter academies: Appleton Technical Academy (A-TECH) and the Renaissance School of the Arts (RSA). These institutions are fully accredited by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Appleton West is also a member of the

Fox Valley Association The Fox Valley Association is an athletic conference comprising ten high schools located within the Fox Valley region of northeastern Wisconsin. The management of the conference is vested in the principals of the member schools, who determine the ...

athletic conference. Appleton West received the Wisconsin RtI Center School of Distinction Award for three years in a row from 2014 to 2016; as of the 2019–20 school year, they remain recognized for behavior and merit. According to the Fox Valley Association, 40 students of West High have been given a "Student-Athlete Spotlight" for excellent performance since the 2014–15 school year. As of the 2019–20 school year, West High had an enrollment of 1,336 students and 69.51 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis) for a student-teacher ratio of 19.22. There were 420 students (31.44% of students) eligible for

free lunch A free lunch is the providing of a meal at no cost, usually as a sales enticement to attract customers and increase revenues from other business. It was once a common tradition in saloons and taverns in many places in the United States, with th ...

and 86 (6.44% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.

History

In 1881, Ryan High School was constructed following the decision to unify Appleton into one school district (). On January 26, 1904, Ryan High School was destroyed in a fire and rebuilt as Union High School in the same year, at the cost of $92,000 (~$2,690,700 today). In 1938, students were relocated to the newly built Appleton High School so that Union High School could become the Carrie E. Morgan Elementary School. In 1967, construction on Appleton East High School was completed, and Appleton High School would become West High as a result. In the same year, following the death of Carrie E. Morgan, the elementary school in her name would be converted into the Morgan Administration Building and, as of today, remains as such. On March 13, 1970, an

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

fire caused by a

Molotov cocktail A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flamma ...

would set Appleton West ablaze, damaging one classroom and a faculty room as a result. Although a perpetrator was never caught, some believe that it had to do with a rise in political climate at the time, supported by similar happenings from radical activist movements such as the

Weather Underground Organization The Weather Underground was a far-left militant organization first active in 1969, founded on the Ann Arbor campus of the University of Michigan. Originally known as the Weathermen, the group was organized as a faction of Students for a Democr ...

and the

Student Strike of 1970 The student strike of 1970 was a massive protest across the United States, that included walk-outs from college and high school classrooms initially in response to the United States expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia. Nearly 900 campuses ...

. West High's mascot is the 'Terror', a fictional animal representing a genetic hybrid between a wolf and a fox, as the school is situated in between the Wolf and Fox Rivers. This mascot would be depicted for the first time in 1944 as an orange canine on a blue background, but would receive multiple redesigns in 1969, 1982, 1989, 1991, and 1993 until finally deciding on a minimalist design of a Terror head and the letters 'AW' in a vibrant orange and blue. In August 2014, a new football stadium was built on school grounds, but lacked the proper seating requirements issued by the FVA. Home games were played at

Lawrence University Lawrence University is a private liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Appleton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1847, its first classes were held on November 12, 1849. Lawrence was the second college in the U.S. to be founded as a coeducation ...

's Banta Bowl, as well as Neinhaus Field, Appleton North, Appleton East, and Einstein Middle School until the seating requirement was satisfied.

Structure

As of the 2019–20 school year, Appleton West has a modified school day that lasts from 8:15 AM to 3:50 PM. The beginning and end of each day (8:15 AM to 9:20 AM / 3:15 PM to 3:50 PM) is reserved for 'Student Support Time', or SST, that serves as a

study hall Study hall, known as private study, SAS, structured study or free periods in the United Kingdom, is a term for a place to have a study time during the school day where students are assigned to study when they are not scheduled for an academic cl ...

, followed by an eight-period

block schedule Block scheduling or blocking is a type of academic scheduling used in schools in the American K-12 system, in which each pupil has fewer classes per day. It is more common in middle and high schools than in primary schools. Each class is schedu ...

that alternates daily (commonly referred to as the "Monday-Thursday" and "Tuesday-Friday" schedules). Periods 1-4 are taken on Mondays and Thursdays, while Periods 5-8 are taken on Tuesdays and Fridays. Each period lasts 75 minutes, and there is a 30-minute

homeroom A homeroom, tutor group, form class, or form is a brief administrative period that occurs in a classroom assigned to a student in primary school and in secondary school. Within a homeroom period or classroom, administrative documents are distri ...

period that serves as a 'lunch hour' and/or additional study time every day from 12:05 PM to 12:35 PM. Students are not required to attended classes on Wednesdays, as those days are fully dedicated to SST, but are expected to continue working from home using

Chromebook A Chromebook (sometimes stylized in lowercase as chromebook) is a laptop or tablet running the Linux-based ChromeOS as its operating system. Initially designed to heavily rely on web applications for tasks using the Google Chrome browser, Chromeb ...

s issued by the AASD; however, RSA students are given mandatory class periods on Wednesdays. Following AASD standards and Wisconsin State Statute 118.33, students must earn 23 high school credits. This includes: * English Language Arts (ELA) - 4.0 Credits ** 1.0 ''ELA 9'' or ''*ELA 9'' ** 1.0 ''ELA 10'' or ''*ELA 10'' ** 1.0 ELA 11 Course Option ** 1.0 ELA 12 Course Option * Science - 3.0 Credits ** 1.0 Physical Science ** 1.0 Life Science ** 1.0 Science Course Elective * Social Studies - 3.0 Credits ** 1.0 ''Civics'' ** 1.0 World Studies ** 1.0 U.S. History * Mathematics - 3.0 Credits * Physical Education - 1.5 Credits ** 0.5 ''Freshman Physical Education'' * Fine Arts - 1.0 Credit ** "To include art, music, theatre, or humanities when not used for social studies." * Health - 0.5 Credit ** 0.5 ''Health'' * Financial Literacy - 0.5 Credit * Electives - 6.5 Credits Students enrolled in A-TECH or RSA are provided methods to obtain credits in necessary fields. For students who are failing, at-risk, or unable to complete these standards in the required time, West High provides an alternative education program that allows students to gain credits through

Edgenuity Imagine Edgenuity, formerly Education2020 (E2020), is a standard-based online learning resource for school districts produced by Imagine Learning, which teaches kindergarten through 12th-grade in core, elective, credit recovery, technical, and ca ...

courses and independent/directed study programs.

Extracurricular Activities

Athletics

Appleton West currently provides

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

, swimming and diving,

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

and

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

as options for student athletes. It is typical for students to maintain a high

GPA Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

before being able to participate in athletic tryouts, practices, and events.

Football

In 1992, the varsity football team won the Division 1 State Championship.

Baseball

The baseball team has won the state title seven times (1975, 1976, 1982, 1988, 1991, 1995, and 2004).

Basketball

In the 1969–70 school year, the Appleton West Terrors, led by coach Richard Emanuel, won the WIAA Boys Basketball Tournament undefeated.

Lacrosse

Independent from the FVA, members of Appleton United Lacrosse are recruited from all three AASD high schools.

Clubs

As of the 2019–20 school year, AWHS had over 35 clubs.

Fine Arts

The Appleton West Theatre, an all-student group directed by Kreston B. Peckham, perform live shows to be presented in the West auditorium. Each year, a stage play is presented in the Fall, and a musical is presented in the Spring; students are invited to audition to perform or work as backstage crew members. As well as hosting daily rehearsals after school hours, the Appleton West Theatre constructs and paints their own sets from scratch over the weekends leading up to the opening day. All proceeds from ticket sales and concessions go back into the group budget for future events. On February 4, 1978, the Appleton West Choral Department took first place at the St. Norbert Swing Choir Carnival.

Notable alumni

* John Bradley, a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Hospital Corpsman A hospital corpsman (HM r corpsman is an enlisted medical specialist of the United States Navy, who may also serve in a U.S. Marine Corps unit. The corresponding rating within the United States Coast Guard is health services technician (HS) ...

and recipient of the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

Purple Heart Medal The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

, and

Combat Action Ribbon The Combat Action Ribbon (CAR, ), is a high precedence United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States Marine Corps military decoration awarded to United States sea service members "who have actively participated in ground or sur ...

for raising the first

U.S. flag The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the ca ...

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. *

Brian Butch Brian Butch (born December 22, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He is currently working as a radio color commentator for the Wisconsin Herd of the NBA G League. He was a center on the 2003 McDonald's All-American baske ...

, current radio color commentator for the

Wisconsin Herd The Wisconsin Herd are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and are affiliated with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Herd play their home games at Oshkosh Arena. History On June 29, 2016, it was annou ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

and former professional basketball player for the 2003 McDonald's All-American Basketball Team. *

Donald Dafoe Donald Christian Dafoe is an American surgeon and research scientist. Biography The eldest son of a surgeon, Dafoe graduated from Appleton West High School in Appleton, Wisconsin, in 1967, where he was on the football and wrestling teams. He th ...

, current Chief of Transplantation Surgery at the University of California Irvine Medical Center, former Director of the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Center, Director of Surgical Education, holder of the Eris M. Field Endowed Chair in Diabetes Research at the

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

, and former medical director of the California Transplant Donor Network. *

John Francis Doerfler John Francis Doerfler (born November 2, 1964) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in Michigan since 2014. Biography Early life and education John Doerfler was born on ...

, current Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Marquette The Diocese of Marquette ( la, Diœcesis Marquettensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church, encompassing all of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The diocese is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical pr ...

. *

Catherine Ebert-Gray Catherine Ebert-Gray (born 1955) is an American diplomat. She served as the United States ambassador to Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Early life and education Born Catherine Ebert in Appleton, Wisconsin, she lived in Neenah and ...

, former United States Ambassador to Papua New Guinea,

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

, and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

. * Matt Erickson, professional baseball player for the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

. * Daniel John Felton, current Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Duluth The Roman Catholic Diocese of Duluth ( la, Dioecesis Duluthensis) is a Roman Catholic diocese in Minnesota. The episcopal see is in Duluth, Minnesota. The diocese includes Aitkin, Carlton, Cass, Cook, Crow Wing, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, P ...

. *

Harold Vernon Froehlich Harold Vernon Froehlich (born May 12, 1932) is a retired American politician and judge. He represented Wisconsin's 8th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives for one term in 1973–1974 as a Republican and broke wi ...

, former Chief Judge of the

Wisconsin Circuit Court The Wisconsin circuit courts are the general trial courts in the state of Wisconsin. There are currently 69 circuits in the state, divided into 10 judicial administrative districts. Circuit court judges hear and decide both civil and criminal cas ...

, 66th Speaker of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

, Vice Chair of the

Wisconsin Government Accountability Board The Wisconsin Government Accountability Board (G.A.B.) was a regulatory agency for the State of Wisconsin which administered and enforced Wisconsin law pertaining to campaign finance, elections, ethics and lobbying. The agency was re-organized, over ...

U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, and member of the

House Judiciary Committee The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...

. *

Danny Jansen Daniel Robert Jansen (born April 15, 1995) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Professional career Minor leagues Jansen attended Appleton West High School in Appleton, Wisconsin ...

, professional baseball player for the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. *

William Beverly Murphy William Beverly Murphy (June 17, 1907 – May 29, 1994) was an American food businessman. He was the president and CEO of Campbell Soup Company between 1953 and 1972. From 1942 to 1945 he was on leave from Campbell's Soup to the War Production Boa ...

, former CEO of the

Campbell Soup Company Campbell Soup Company, trade name, doing business as Campbell's, is an American processed food and snack company. The company is most closely associated with its flagship canned soup products; however, through mergers and acquisitions, it has gro ...

. * David Prosser, Jr., former Justice of the

Wisconsin Supreme Court The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over original actions, appeals from lower courts, and regulation or administration of the practice of law in Wisconsin. Location The Wi ...

. *Jacob Royster, current Student Body President of

Fox Valley Technical College Fox Valley Technical College (Fox Valley Tech or FVTC) is a Public college, public community college, technical college in Grand Chute, Wisconsin. It is a member of the Wisconsin Technical College System and serves people in the Appleton, Wiscon ...

. * Kathi Seifert, former Executive Vice President of

Kimberly-Clark Kimberly-Clark Corporation is an American multinational personal care corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. The company manufactures sanitary paper products and surgical & medical instruments. Kimberly-Clark brand n ...

. *

Brad Smith Brad or Bradley Smith may refer to: Sportspeople * Bradley Smith (cricketer) (born 1969), English former cricketer * Brad Smith (footballer, born 1948), Australian rules footballer and premiership coach of East Fremantle * Brad Smith (ice hockey) ...

, current President and Chief Legal Officer of

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

References

External links

* {{authority control High schools in Appleton, Wisconsin Educational institutions established in 1938 Public high schools in Wisconsin 1938 establishments in Wisconsin