Traverse City West Senior High School

Traverse City West Senior High School (also known as West High School) is a public, co-educational secondary school in Traverse City, Michigan. It is one of two comprehensive schools in the Traverse City Area Public Schools district, and one of six high schools in Traverse City. The school enrolls about 1,700 students each year, making it the largest high school in Michigan north of Kent County.[2][3]

West's main cafeteria, colloquially called "The Commons"
Traverse City West Senior High School
Address
5376 North Long Lake Road

Traverse City
,
Michigan
49685

United States
Coordinates44°44′50″N 85°41′09″W
Information
Other namesWest, Traverse City West, TCW, TCWSH, WSH
School typePublic secondary
Motto"Home of the Titans!"
Established2 September 1997 (1997-09-02)
School districtTraverse City Area Public Schools
SuperintendentDr. Jon VanWagoner
PrincipalJoe Esper
Teaching staff69.75 (on a FTE basis)[1]
Enrollment1,707 (2018–19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio24.47[1]
Color(s)  Forest Green
  Metallic Gold
Fight song"The Fightin' Titan"
AthleticsMHSAA Class A
Athletics conferenceBig North
MascotGreek titan
Team nameTitans
RivalTraverse City Central High School
PublicationWestside Weekly
NewspaperThe Occidentalist
YearbookOdyssey
Feeder schoolsElementary schools:
Blair
Central Grade
Glenn Loomis
Long Lake
Silver Lake
Westwoods
Willow Hill
Middle school:
Traverse City West
Websitewww.tcaps.net/schools/high-schools/wsh/

West offers classes for students in grades 9–12 as of the 2008–2009 school year. Additionally, students are given the option to dual enroll and attend classes at Northwestern Michigan College.[4] In addition to the dual enrollment program, a wide variety of honors and AP classes are offered.

History

In 1997, Traverse City Senior High, the largest high school in Michigan at the time, was split by the school district into two distinct high schools due to extreme overcrowding. The newly constructed school in nearby Garfield Township was named Traverse City West Senior High, while the original high school facility was renamed as Traverse City Central High School. The name of Traverse City Senior High was discontinued at that time. The school was finally opened to students on January 26, 1998.[5] Since that time, West Senior High's enrollment has generally encompassed students living west of Division Street. In 2009, a new gymnasium and athletic hub was added to the school.[6]

Principals

In its history, Traverse City West has had two head principals:

Principal Tenure
Joe Tibaldi[7] 1997-2014
Joe Esper[8] 2014–present

Academics

Traverse City West offers 132 classes to its students, including 17 AP courses.[9][10] In addition, students are also given the option to dual-enroll with Northwestern Michigan College.[11] Students can also attend the Career-Tech Center of TBAISD, which offers special technological education for juniors and seniors at West, as those of other districts under TBAISD.[12]

West's student body is divided into three "neighborhoods": Athens, Olympia, and Sparta. These neighborhoods offer smaller learning communities and the chance to form better bonds with their peers and educators.[9]

Demographics

The demographic breakdown of Traverse City West's 1,707 students enrolled in 2018–19 was:[13]

  • Male – 48.6%
  • Female – 51.4%
  • Native American – 1.2%
  • Asian – 1.6%
  • Black – 0.6%
  • Hispanic – 3.5%
  • White – 91.5%
  • Multiracial – 1.6%

In addition, 499 students (29.2%) were eligible for reduced-price or free lunch.

A large metallic globe near one of the school's main entrances. This globe was removed in 2020.

Athletics

Traverse City West's sports teams are known as the Titans. The school is part of the Big North Conference, and is considered a Class A school by MHSAA. West offers the following sports:[14]

Fall sports
  • Boys' Soccer
  • Boys' Tennis
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross Country
  • Football
  • Girls' Golf
  • Rowing
  • Swimming
  • Volleyball
Winter sports
  • Basketball
  • Wrestling
  • Cross Country Skiing
  • Bowling
  • Figure Skating
  • Hockey
  • Skiing
Spring sports
  • Baseball
  • Boys' Golf
  • Equestrian Club
  • Girls' Soccer
  • Girls' Tennis
  • Lacrosse
  • Rowing
  • Sailing
  • Softball
  • Track and Field
The Titan Drumline performing in 2019

Traverse City Central High School

Since Traverse City Senior High School split in 1997, there has been a natural rivalry between West and Central.[15] In every year since, the two schools have met at least once every year, with West winning 14 of the 26 games the two schools have played.[16][17] Since 2012, this annual game has been known as the Traverse City Patriot Game, and honors fallen members of the United States Armed Forces from Northwest Michigan.[18] The winning team is awarded the Nowak-Olson Trophy. In 2020, the game was known as the Celebrate Service Game, and honors frontline workers of the COVID-19 pandemic.[19]

Grand Haven High School

Traverse City West also has an unconventional rivalry with the Buccaneers of Grand Haven High School in Ottawa County. This rivalry began in 2016, and has been played as West's second game of the season in every year since.[16] This game arose as the two cities are both designated Coast Guard Cities by the United States Coast Guard.[20] The winning team is awarded the Coast Guard Cup.[21][22] West has won three Coast Guard Cups since 2016.

Pre-2009 logo

Notable alumni

See also

References
  1. "West Senior High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  2. "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for West Senior High". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  3. "Michigan's 60 largest high schools in 2016–17 and their demographics". mlive. 2017-05-05. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  4. "High School Enrollment : Dual Enrollment : Northwestern Michigan College". Northwestern Michigan College. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  5. "When Trojans Became Titans". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  6. "Gymnasium Addition to Traverse City West Senior High School – Nealis Engineering". Retrieved 2019-12-01.
  7. "When Trojans Became Titans". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
  8. "Joe Esper Profile - District Home". www.tcaps.net. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  9. "Our School - TC West Senior High School". www.tcaps.net. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  10. "Advanced Placement - High School Programs". www.tcaps.net. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  11. "High School Enrollment : Dual Enrollment : Northwestern Michigan College". Northwestern Michigan College. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  12. "Career-Tech Center". TBAISD. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  13. "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for West Senior High". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  14. "Traverse City West High School". Traverse City West High School. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  15. "When Trojans Became Titans". The Ticker | Traverse City News & Events. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  16. "Traverse City West Titans Michigan High School Football Scores, Schedules, and Analytics". michigan-football.com. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  17. "Traverse City Central Trojans Michigan High School Football Scores, Schedules, and Analytics". michigan-football.com. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  18. Cook, James. "TC Central controls game for win over TC West". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  19. jatnip@record-eagle.com, JAKE ATNIP. "TC Central shuts out TC West in Patriot Game, 32-0". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved 2020-08-22.
  20. "Coast Guard Cities". www.uscg.mil. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  21. "Traverse City West Titans, Grand Haven Buccaneers to Play for Coast Guard Cup". 9 & 10 News. 2017-08-31. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  22. "Bucs' defense solid, but offense sputters in loss to TC West". Grand Haven Tribune. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  23. McCarthy, Ellen (2019-05-01). "Chasten Buttigieg has been a homeless community college student and a Starbucks barista. Now, he could be 'first gentleman.'". Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  24. "Buttigieg brings Michigan husband, Midwest roots to Democratic race". Detroit News. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  25. Sommers, Brett. "Fisher returns to TC West, has number retired". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  26. "Eric Gordon, Traverse City West, Outside Linebacker". 247Sports. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
  27. "Darren Keyton". Detroit Lions. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  28. Eckert, Mike. "Townsend mulls options". Traverse City Record-Eagle. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
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