Merrill F. West High School

Merrill F. West High School (also known as West High School) is a four-year, public secondary school located on the northwest side of Tracy, California, United States. A member of the Tracy Unified School District, the school was founded in 1993. Enrollment for the 2009-2010 was 1,337 students.[2]

Merrill F. West High School
Address
1775 W Lowell Ave

Tracy
,
California
95376

United States
Coordinates37°44′53″N 121°27′04″W
Information
Established1993
School districtTracy Joint Unified School District
PrincipalGabriel Ortega
Faculty83.50 (FTE)[1]
Enrollment2,043 (2018-19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio24.47[1]
Campus size51 acres (21 ha)
Color(s)Navy blue and Vegas gold   
Athletics conferenceCIF Sac-Joaquin Section
MascotWolf Pack
AccreditationWestern Association of Schools and Colleges
NewspaperThe Zephyr
YearbookLos Lobos
WebsiteSchool website

History

Merrill Fuller West was a native of Laurel, Iowa who moved to Tracy in 1936 to farm produce crops and walnuts. Mr. West served as a TUSD board member for eleven years (1954-1965), four of which as president. He also served on the County Board of Education in the 1950s. Mr. West stated his vision for education as, "The important goal, as I see it, is to give all our children an equal opportunity for a quality education with maximum efficiency of the taxpayers’ dollar."

The campus stretches over 51 acres and currently supports more than 2,000 students. West High opened its doors in 1993 under the leadership of principal Bob Palous. Both the school colors (Navy blue and Vegas gold) and mascot (the wolfpack) were voted on by the first year students. Students are known as the Wolf Pack. Mr. Palous served as principal for only three years before leaving the district. The second principal, Herman Calad, met the challenge of bringing WHS into the 21st century while facing ever-shrinking budgets and increasing pressure to produce high standardized test scores. Mr. Calad served with distinction for twelve years before retiring. Mr. Frase, West's third principal, left his own mark on the school. To this day, through the leadership of its principal Troy Brown, WHS continues to uphold Mr. West's vision of giving all students an equal opportunity to a quality education. In 2017, Troy Brown moved on and was replaced by Zachary Boswell. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Zachary Boswell was replaced by Gabriel Ortega at the end of the 2019-2020 school year.[3]

In 2003, West High School was eligible for the Governor's Performance Award and was named a California Distinguished School.[4]

Curriculum

West High School provides a solid academic program for all students and offers many special programs, such as the Academy of Business and Law, Space and Engineering Academy,[5] Advanced Placement, and Advancement Via Individual Determination.[6]

West High School currently offers fifteen Advanced Placement courses.[7]

Athletics

The school's teams are nicknamed the Wolf Pack and school colors are Navy blue and Vegas gold, both of which were chosen by the student body in 1993. West High School offers a variety of sports, including cheerleading, American football, badminton, baseball, basketball, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, cross country, water polo, volleyball and wrestling. West High belongs to the Tri-City Athletics League (TCAL).[3]

Notable alumni

References
  1. "Merrill F. West High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  2. "For Merrill F. West High School" (PDF). Executive Summary School Accountability Report Card, 2009–10. tracy.k12.ca.us. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-03. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  3. "West High School: History". Tracy Unified School District. Archived from the original on 2012-02-01. Retrieved 2011-10-23.
  4. Aaron Swarts (January 28, 2004). "West High students set scholar mark". Tri-Valley Herald.
  5. "Space and Engineering". Merrill F. West High School. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
  6. "West High School". Merrill F. West High School. Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
  7. "West High School: Advanced Placement - Courses". Merrill F. West High School. Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-01-20.


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