high 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 '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
(grades 9–12) in
Weston
Weston may refer to:
Places Australia
* Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra
* Weston, New South Wales
* Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra
* Weston Park, Canberra, a park
Canada
* Weston, Nova Scotia
* ...
,
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, a suburb 12 miles west of
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
. The school is located at 444 Wellesley Street in Weston. During the 2022-2023 school year, it had 639 students. It is accredited by the
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
The New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. (NEASC) is a United States' regional accreditation association providing educational accreditation. NEASC serves over 1500 public, independent schools, and technical/career institution ...
. In 2023, ''
Boston Magazine
''Boston'' is a monthly magazine concerning life in the Greater Boston area and has been in publication since 1805.
History and profile
''Boston'' magazine was started in 1805. Metrocorp, Inc. bought the magazine in 1970. The company also owns ...
'' ranked Weston High School #1 in the Boston area, and '' U.S. News & World Report'' ranked the school #7 in the Boston area, #10 in Massachusetts, and #355 in the United States. In 2023, Niche ranked Weston High School #4 of 363 public high schools in Massachusetts and #93 of 20,032 public high schools in the United States.
Weston High School offers its students a comprehensive and diversified program. Academic courses range from basic to advanced levels. Honors courses are offered in mathematics, world history, foreign languages, and science, while specific Advanced Placement subjects include art, biology, chemistry, calculus, statistics, computer science, English, French, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, European and U.S. History, and physics. Students must take at least five "minors" each semester and may include courses in the fine and applied arts, business, and home economics.
The high school also has a highly successful extra-curricular program that includes athletics, clubs, student government and community service programs. Most students participate in these after-school activities, with athletics, theater, music, art, and publications being the most popular. Wildcat Tracks ' is the school newspaper.
Specialists in the Skills Center and Guidance Department provide a broad range of tutoring, personal counseling, and college placement services. Among the special facilities available to students are library with more than 15,000 books, videos, ebooks, and audiobooks and extensive on-line databases; four networked computer laboratories; a modern world language laboratory; a recorded books library; choral and instrument rooms; a dance studio; and a physical fitness and weight room. An indoor swimming pool and a synthetic surface track are among Weston's athletic facilities.
History
Between the end of WWII in 1945 and 1970, the "Boomer" generation, the number of school-age children in Weston increased 363%, from 635 students to 2,937. The town embarked on 25-year school building program resulting in five new school complexes. After a devastating fire in 1948 destroyed the roofing and interior of the new Weston High School, the building was rebuilt as an elementary school and a new replacement high school was commissioned.
This new high school, which was located near Weston Town Center by the current Weston Public Library, Country & Woodland Elementary Schools, was renowned as the "architectural achievement of the century" by the Boston Herald when it opened in January 1950. The nation's first million-dollar public building, Weston High School offered resources and technologies never before seen in a public school. Revolutionary architecture and layout of the school allowed for new teaching and class organization methods. The building has since been torn down due to the building of the new
Field School A field school is a short term academic program consisting of mentored field research
Weston High School is a large brick and glass building, surrounded by trees and sports field There are several fields, tennis courts, baseball diamonds, and a large track, shared by the Middle School, which is located on an adjacent campus. There is also a pond situated between the middle school and high school campuses.
Weston High School, designed and built in 1961 at a cost of $64.3 million (2012 dollars), has been renovated periodically since its construction. The facilities have maintained a modern appearance, marked especially by the extensive use of glass.
The design of Weston High School is largely natural-light intensive. Floor-to-ceiling windows mark the facade of three sides of the cafeteria as well as most stairwells. Hallways and classrooms can be lit almost entirely by natural light. The new science wing also features extensive floor-to-ceiling glass.
The building itself consists of a large gymnasium, weight room, library, theater and tech center, dance studio, music rooms, auditorium, computer labs, and many classrooms. The building is split into different wings for each subject, including English and History, Math and Science, and Language. There are currently no plans to reconstruct the existing infrastructure; only to add and renovate.
A seventh wing (G Wing) has been constructed for the 2012–2013 school year. The 23,000 square foot addition serves as the science wing, housing eight science classrooms, a 58-seat lecture hall, an outdoor amphitheater-style classroom, and copious atrium space. The project is designed for and seeking Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, LEED Silver certification.
Outside of the building stands a 40 inch bronze statue of a wildcat. At the cost of $19,000 (2020 dollars) this was the gift to the school from the class of 2020.
Online Education
In 2016, Weston partnered with
MOOC
A massive open online course (MOOC ) or an open online course is an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the Web. In addition to traditional course materials, such as filmed lectures, readings, and problem sets, m ...
provider edX to offer several free online courses in a variety of subjects. Courses include
On-Ramp to AP* French Language and Culture, On-Ramp to AP* Calculus, and others.
Acton-Boxborough Regional High School
Acton-Boxborough Regional High School (ABRHS) is an open-enrollment high school in Acton, Massachusetts, United States. A part of the Acton-Boxborough Regional School District, it serves the Massachusetts towns of Acton and Boxborough and has s ...
Concord-Carlisle High School
Concord-Carlisle High School (CCHS) is a public high school located in Concord, Massachusetts, United States. It is northwest of Boston. The school serves grades 9–12, and as part of the Concord-Carlisle Regional School District, has students ...
,
Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School
Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School (LSRHS or L-S) is a public regional high school in Sudbury, Massachusetts, with a 99% graduation-rate. The school was founded in 1954, and the building was replaced prior to the 2004–2005 academic year, wi ...
,
Newton South High School
Newton South High School is one of two public high schools in the city of Newton, Massachusetts, United States, the other being Newton North.
History and student life
By the late 1950s, Newton's sole public high school, Newton High, grew to 3,00 ...
,
Waltham High School
Waltham High School is a public high school located in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is the only high school operated by Waltham Public Schools.
History
The current Waltham High School was constructed in 1968 and expanded in 1998 a ...
,
Wayland High School
Wayland High School is the public high school for the town of Wayland, Massachusetts, United States. During the 2021-2022 school year, there were 831 students enrolled at the high school. Wayland High School is consistently ranked as one of the b ...
, and
Westford Academy
Westford Academy is the public high school for the town of Westford, Massachusetts, United States. It was incorporated in 1792 and is one of the oldest public high schools in the United States.
History
Westford Academy (WA) was founded as a ...
. The athletics department is headed by Athletic Director Mike McGrath.
In 2022 Weston High School fielded athletic teams in 20 sports during three seasons.
During the winter 2022 season, which ran from November 2021 to February 2022, students participated on teams in alpine ski, basketball, ice hockey, indoor track, nordic ski, swimming and diving, volleyball, and wrestling. Weston won state championships in boys swimming and diving and girls indoor track.
During the fall 2022 season, which ran from August to October 2022, students participated on teams in crew, cross country, field hockey, football, soft, soccer, and volleyball. Weston won state championships in golf and girls cross country. MetroWest Daily News ranked Weston’s fall 2022 athletics program #3 among all high schools in the state.
During the spring 2022 season, which ran from March to June 2022, students participated on teams in baseball, crew, lacrosse, outdoor track, sailing, softball, and tennis. Weston won state championships in boys tennis and girls outdoor track. MetroWest Daily News ranked Weston’s spring 2022 athletics program #2 among all high schools in the state.
More than 50 percent of the school’s student body participated in each of the three sports seasons in 2022.
Music and theater
Weston's music program is directed by Christopher Memoli, while Jonathan Eldridge directs the chorus. Weston also offers an AP Music Theory class, taught by Steven Fulginiti. 31 students were accepted to the MMEA Northeastern Sr. Districts Festival in January 2007, and 13 students were accepted to the MMEA All-State Conference.
The high school chorus, along with the Community Chorus and InCoro Novo, has a performance at Regis College every year where they perform a selection from the vocal repertoire. The large chorus is accompanied by selected high school orchestra members and adult musicians.
Weston's music department also runs the Weston Friends of Music, a parents' group that helps the Weston school music department.
In addition, Weston has a theater program after school. The Weston High School Theater Company performs three plays a year and competes in the Boston Globe's Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild (METG) festival annually. The company holds several state titles, having won finals at the 2005 and 2008 MHSDG festivals. They advanced to finals in 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and most recently in 2013.
In addition to a full concert choir and chorus, Weston has three student run a cappella groups. In 2010, the boys' group took third place in the International Competition of High School A Cappella in New York City. They were also honored as the number one group in New England, the top all male group, and the top student-run organization in the competition. Additionally, they received top honors for their choreography as well as an individual award for the best solo performance (Nolan Neu). All three groups perform at monthly all-school assemblies.
Academic teams
Weston High School offers a range of academic teams: math, science, debate, robotics, and NAQT Quizbowl.
Notable alumni
*
Grover Norquist
Grover Glenn Norquist (born October 19, 1956) is an American political activist and tax reduction advocate who is founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, an organization that opposes all tax increases. A Republican, he is the primary ...
, class of 1974, political activist and lobbyist, journalist for ''
The American Spectator
''The American Spectator'' is a conservative American magazine covering news and politics, edited by R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. and published by the non-profit American Spectator Foundation. It was founded in 1967 by Tyrrell, who remains its editor-i ...
'', president of
Americans for Tax Reform
Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) is a politically conservative U.S. advocacy group whose stated goal is "a system in which taxes are simpler, flatter, more visible, and lower than they are today." According to ATR, "The government's power to control ...
*
John Garabedian
John H. Garabedian is an American radio personality and disc jockey. He is best known as the creator and former long-time host of ''Open House Party''. He has been involved in Massachusetts radio and television stations for more than fifty years. I ...
, disc jockey, nationally syndicated host of the
Open House Party
''Open House Party'' (often referred to as "OHP") is an American radio show hosted by Kannon (Saturday) and Joe Breezy (Sunday), branded as "The Biggest Party on the Planet!", playing contemporary hit radio, contemporary hit music. From its incep ...
radio show and a veteran in broadcasting for over 60 years
*
Alec Sulkin
Alexander Matthew Sulkin (born February 14, 1973) is an American screenwriter, producer, and voice actor known for his work on ''Family Guy'' and ''The Cleveland Show''.
Career
Sulkin began as a writer for ''The Late Late Show (CBS TV series)#C ...
, television writer, writer and producer of
Family Guy
''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...