Plano West Senior High School
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| Plano West Senior High School | |
 The logo of Plano West Senior High School |
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| Motto | Leading With Pride |
|---|---|
| Established | 1999 |
| School type | Free public |
| District | Plano Independent School District |
| Grade levels | 11th and 12th |
| Principal | Kathy King |
| Location | Plano, Texas, USA |
| Campus | Suburban, |
| Enrollment | 1,969 |
| Faculty | |
| Mascot | Wolf  |
| Colors | Royal blue, black and white |
| Homepage | http://k-12.pisd.edu/Schools/pwsh/westweb.htm |
Plano West Senior High School (commonly West, Plano West, or PWSH) is a free public secondary school in Plano, USA serving high school juniors and seniors. The school is part of the Plano Independent School District, with admission primarily based on the locations of students' homes in the district. Students at Plano West attended one of two high schools: Jasper or Shepton. Plano West is accredited by the Texas Education Agency, which designates the school as "Recognized". The school colors are royal blue, black, and white, and the mascot is the Wolf.
This mascot was selected by future students of the school prior to its opening, and represents a departure from the theme of feline-related mascots used by the other two senior high schools. Before the founding of Plano West, there was a push by students to have the school mascot be the bulldog, but this was vetoed by the administration.[1]
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[edit] In the news
In July 2003, Taylor Hooton, a student athlete at Plano West, committed suicide which many believed was connected to depression caused by the use of steroids used for performance enhancement. This incident drew national focus to the issues of high school athletes and steroid use. Chris Wash was featured on the cover of the December 20, 2004, Newsweek magazine wearing a Plano West Senior High School shirt in an article about the use of steroids in high schools. On March 10, 2005, Taylor's father, Don Hooton, testified before a Congressional Subcommittee about the use of steroids in high school. This was a widely covered event as several prominent baseball players including José Canseco and Mark McGwire testified as well.
[edit] Academics
Plano West operates on a 9:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. schedule, which includes seven periods and a break for off-campus lunch during which all students may leave campus to eat lunch. There is one period from 8:00 a.m. to 8:50 a.m. called "Zero Hour" for students who need academic credits.[2]
Plano West offers 26 Advanced Placement courses out of the 31 possible courses. The school currently offers many vocational courses in agriculture, early childhood education, home economics, journalism, fashion design, advertising design, drafting, automotive technology]], criminal justice, and clinical rotation.[1]
In 2005-2006, students achieved an average composite SAT score of 1158 out of 1600 and a mean ACT score of 24.6 out of 36. Both scores are the highest out of all three PISD senior high schools.[3] Many Plano West students received National Merit Scholarship accolades in the 2005-2006 school year, including 30 finalists, 40 semi-finalists, and 59 commended students.[1]
[edit] Athletics
| Girls Soccer State Championship Games[4] | ||||||
| Year | Winning Team | Losing Team | Location (all in Texas) | Class | ||
| 2000 | Plano West | 2 | Katy Taylor | 1 | Round Rock ISD Stadium, Round Rock | 5A |
| 2001 | Plano West | 3 | Katy Taylor | 0 | Round Rock ISD Stadium, Round Rock | 5A |
| 2002 | Plano West | 3 | Humble Kingwood | 0 | Round Rock ISD Stadium, Round Rock | 5A |
| Girls Basketball State Championship Games[5] | ||||||
| Year | Winning Team | Losing Team | Location (all in Texas) | Class | ||
| 2006 | Plano West | 54 | Rockwall | 47 | Frank Erwin Center, Austin | 5A |
| Hockey State Championship Games[6] | ||||||
| Year | Winning Team | Losing Team | Location (all in Texas) | |||
| 2004 | Plano West | 2 | Clear Lake High School | 1 | Deja Blue Arena, Frisco | |
| 2005 | Plano West | 1 | Highland Park High School | 0 | Deja Blue Arena, Frisco | |
| Team Tennis State Championship Matches[7] | ||||||
| Year | Winning Team | Losing Team | Location (all in Texas) | Class | ||
| 2001 | Plano West | 10 | El Paso Coronado | 8 | Lakeway World of Tennis, Austin | 5A |
| 2003 | Lubbock Coronado | 10 | Plano West | 6 | Fairway Oaks Country Club, Abilene | 5A |
| 2004 | Plano West | 10 | Austin Westlake | 5 | Lakeway World of Tennis, Austin | 5A |
| 2005 | Plano West | 11 | San Antonio Churchill | 5 | Lakeway World of Tennis, Austin | 5A |
| 2006 | Plano West | 11 | Austin Westlake | 6 | Lakeway World of Tennis, Austin | 5A |
The Plano West hockey team has won back-to-back state championships in the Southwestern Bell High School Hockey League for the years of 2004 and 2005. However, during the 2004 Southwestern Bell High School Hockey Championship (Texas Cup) Plano West had to forfeit all games due to ineligible players. The 2004 Texas Cup was not awarded to any team. The team has played in the state championship game in four of the six years of its existence.[1]
In addition, the women's soccer team was ranked #1 in the nation and claimed the Texas state championship the first three years in the school's existence.
The men's lacrosse team for Plano West has also won state title honors, back in 2005. Plano West completed a 10-3 season in the Texas Division 2 North conference with the only losses coming to Division 1 teams. West then went 5-0 in the playoffs, including two riveting games against rival Plano East. West defeated East 15-14 in overtime in the conference finals, and 13-12 in the state finals to capture its first state championship in only its fourth season of existence.
The Plano West Wolves have also competed in three consecutive State 5A High School Tennis Championships in Austin, Texas, winning the UIL State Championship 5A Title in 2004 and 2005. Plano West made it to the Final Four in each of its six years of existence, the State Championship Match five times, winning the title three of those years, 2001, 2004 and 2005. They are heavy favorites for a 2006 title, as the standout "Fabulous Freshman" of 2003, Melissa Holzinger, Don Murray, Joe Hattrup, and Alex Blackington, all highly ranked USTA Superchampions, will be "Super Seniors" leading the Wolf Pack during the 2006 - 2007 school year.
The Plano West Runnin Wolves Cross Country team swept the 9-5A district meet in 2006, placing first in all four races. Both varsity teams advanced to regionals. The Plano West Girls Cross Country team qualified for state for the third time in school history. They placed first at regionals for the first time in 2006. The Plano West Boys Cross Country team qualified for the state meet for the first time in school history in 2006. The Girls team finished in 4th place, while the Boys team finished 6th.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Vickiel Vaughn (Class of 2002) — NFL defensive back with the San Francisco 49ers, formerly at the University of Arkansas.[8]
[edit] Music
The Plano West Chamber Orchestra has been named the outstanding string orchestra for the state of Texas by the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) 3 consecutive times. Directed by Jo Wallace-Abbie, the orchestra is made up of 30 musicians. TMEA rules prohibit a school from entering the competition the year after it has won, so the title of Texas "Honor Orchestra" was won in 2002, 2004 and 2006.
[edit] Theatre
The Plano West Theatre Department is currently under the direction of Ms. Carla Ford-Rich, who has been named the Secondary Teacher of the Year by the Texas Educational Theatre Association. Past theatre productions include performances of Les Misérables, The Laramie Project, To Kill a Mockingbird, Little Shop of Horrors, and Dark Side of the Moon.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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- Satellite image from WikiMapia, Google Maps or Windows Live Local
- Street map from MapQuest or Google Maps
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image from TerraServer-USA
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Plano West Senior High School - Campus Profile. Retrieved on 2006-10-09.
- ^ Bell Schedule. Plano West Senior High School Website. Retrieved on 2006-10-26.
- ^ 2006 PISD Class Profile. Plano Independent School District 2006 Annual Report-. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
- ^ Staff Reports. "UIL Girls Soccer Champions", Dallas Morning News.
- ^ Staff Reports. "UIL Girls Basketball Champions", Dallas Morning News.
- ^ AT&T Metroplex High School Hockey Stats/Schedules. Retrieved on 2006-10-06.
- ^ UIL State Team Tennis Tournament Records. Retrieved on 2006-10-19.
- ^ #32 Vickiel Vaughn. ESPN.com NFL Player Cards. Retrieved on 2006-10-19.
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|---|---|
| Senior High Schools | Plano Senior | Plano East | Plano West |
| High Schools | Clark | Jasper | Shepton | Vines | Williams |
| Middle Schools | Armstrong | Bowman | Carpenter | Frankford | Haggard | Hendrick | Murphy | Renner | Rice | Robinson | Schimelpfenig | Wilson |
| K-8 Schools | Special Programs Center |
| Elementary Schools | Aldridge | Andrews | Barksdale | Bethany | Beverly | Boggess | Brinker | Carlisle | Centennial | Christie | Daffron | Davis | Dooley | Forman | Gulledge | Haggar | Harrington | Haun | Hedgcoxe | Hickey | Hightower | Huffman | Hughston | Hunt | Jackson | Mathews | McCall | Meadows | Memorial | Mendenhall | Miller | Mitchell | Rasor | Saigling | Shepard | Sigler | Skaggs | Stinson | Thomas | Weatherford | Wells | Wyatt |
| Early Childhood Schools | Barron | Beaty | Pearson |
