Great Valley High School

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Great Valley High School

Established	1962
Type	Public high school
Principal	Mr. John Fidler
Grades	9-12
Location	Malvern, Pennsylvania, USA
Colors	Blue and white
Mascot	Patriots
Website	GVHS Website

Great Valley High School is a high school in eastern Chester County. It is located in Malvern, Pennsylvania. It is located on the same campus as Great Valley Middle School. [1] It is the only high school of the Great Valley School District.

The school teaches grades 9th Grade to 12th Grade. The school enrolls about 1169 students per year. The student to teacher ratio is about 14:1. [2]

1 School Administration and Authorities
2 Great Valley High School Parents' Organization 2006-2007 Officers
3 Schedule
- 3.1 Criticism
4 Athletics Program
5 External links

[edit] School Administration and Authorities

Principal: Mr. John Fidler
Assistant Principal: Dr. Chuck Bonner
Assistant Principal: Mrs. Paula Massanari
Director of Student Activities: Mr. Alex Venarchik
Student Services Coordinater: Mrs. Jane Trimble
Athletic Director: Mr. Russ Wren
Librarian: Mrs. Carol Calvalcanto
Head of Counseling Department: Mr. Chip Harvey
Attendance: Mrs. Lewis
Nurse: Mrs. Sandra Horosky
Director of Computer Administration: Mrs. Curran
Band and Orchestra Director: Mr. Douglas Wilfert
Food Service Coordinator: Mrs. Gail Schroeder

[3]

[edit] Great Valley High School Parents' Organization 2006-2007 Officers

Co-Presidents: Cindy Harwood/Patty Reed
Directory: Gerrie Schinski
Secretary: Susan Sylvester
Treasurer/Web Page:Frank Vassallo
Volunteer Coordinator: Patti Totaro

[edit] Schedule

Operates on a 6 day flex cycle

Starting in 2006 there were flex days initiated as part of the normal rotation. This meant every five days of school there would be a block, or flex day. However midway through the year it was changed to be every seven days. One day there would be periods 1, 3, 5, 7 (odd) and the other 2, 4, 6, 8, (even). The eight period is split into two segments, each one 45 minutes long, and used to get extra help from teachers.

[edit] Criticism

The block scheduling has been criticized by many teachers and students.^{[attribution needed]} Although superintendent Rita Jones has studied the program closely, there still appear to be flaws. For instance, science classes have lost lab day,^{[citation needed]} which greatly effects AP classes. This is especially true for AP Biology which lost two lab periods. Overall, that is 24 periods a year, or 48 for Biology. Other teachers who originally agreed with the scheduling (especially the social studies department) have admitted they were wrong in doing so.^{[attribution needed]}

Also, students criticise the length of the periods, saying they are too long. These periods run longer than most college classes and they are consecutive,^{[citation needed]} unlike almost all college classes. At present, the school insists it intends to finish the remaining four years of the test schedule,^{[citation needed]} however it is unknown whether administration will change their minds following the negative responses.

Further criticism involves students having campus during block periods; they typically sit in the cafeteria for almost two hours doing little or no work.^{[citation needed]} This negates the intended effect of the block periods, which was to allow for more instructional time in the classroom.

[edit] Athletics Program

A logo for GVHS's athletics program

Great Valley High School is a member of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association. Students are subject to guidelines and principles determined by this organization. More locally, Great Valley is a member of the Southern Chester County League and PIAA's District One region. However in 2007-2008 school year the team will be switching to the Chesmont League.The high school offers athletics in all high school grades. In addition, it has an intramural program. The athletic director as of 2006 is Mr. Russel Wren. The school has been to and won various state championships. The most recent girls state championship win was by the soccer team in 1991. The most recent appearance was in 2005 when the boys soccer team lost in the championship game, but they did win states in 1993. [4]