West Potomac High School

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West Potomac High School (created by merging Fort Hunt High School and Groveton High School) is a public secondary school in Alexandria, Virginia. It is located on 6500 Quander Road and is part of Fairfax County Public Schools.

[edit] History

West Potomac High School was formed by combining the student bodies and staff of Groveton and Fort Hunt High Schools in 1985. The Fairfax County School Board, citing costs and declining enrollment as causes, decided to close Fort Hunt and combine the schools on Groveton's site. Since Groveton and Fort Hunt had a traditional rivalry going back for many years, this was a highly controversial decision which prompted the School Board to rename Groveton in a mostly-successful move to defuse the controversy.

The school's facilities have been expanded since the merger, with two wings added to the main building over the intervening years.

The site of Fort Hunt High school is now Carl Sandburg Middle School. In West Potomac's inaugural year, 1985-1986, the school motto was "The Tradition Begins Now". As the school performed well compared to high schools throughout the rest of the county, the motto was later changed to "Excellence is a Tradition".

There is an intense rivalry with neighboring Mount Vernon High School.

[edit] Demographics

In 2006-2007, West Potomac's student body was 44.43% White; 26.40% Black; 18.30% Hispanic; 7.58% Asian; 3.29% Other^[2]

[edit] School newspaper

West Potomac High School's newspaper, the West Potomac Wire, is published monthly.

[edit] Sports

In recent years, the school's track and field program, cross country, and also the crew team have been very successful. In the 2004-05 season, the boys track team won the regional title. In the 2005-06 season, the boys track team remained the AAA Patriot District champions for the 5th year in a row, while the girls track team moved up to the second place standing, behind Lake Braddock Secondary School.

West Potomac won Virginia AAA football championships in 1989 and 1990.^[3] The Wolverines also won state championships in girls cross country in 1989 and 1990.^[3] The West Potomac It's Academic team won first place in the Patriot District and fourth in the region in January 2008.

[edit] Notable alumni

• Tiombe Hurd, '91 — 2004 Olympian who holds the American record in the triple jump^[4]
• Willie Pile, '98 — Professional American football player (Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys)^[5]
• Michelle Madison, '89 — Model, TV personality^{[citation needed]}
• Micah Johnson, — American football player for the University of Kentucky. Transferred to Fort Campbell High School in Fort Campbell, KY in 2004, graduated '06
• Donna Dixon, — Groveton High School graduate. Actress wife of Dan Aykroyd. Daughter of Earl Dixon, owner of the now-defunct club Hillbilly Heaven, which was on Jefferson Davis Highway in Lorton, Virginia, graduated '75

[edit] External links

• West Potomac Wire

[edit] References