| Whitinsville Christian School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| 279 Linwood Avenue Whitinsville, Massachusetts United States |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Christian day school |
| Motto | Servatus Venia Per Fidem |
| Established | 1924 |
| School district | Worcester County |
| Principal | Mary Masselink (elementary) Don Godeke (middle) Chris VanderBaan (high) |
| Headmaster | Lance Engbers |
| Faculty | 60 |
| Grades | K-12 |
| Number of students | 640 |
| Campus size | 6-7 acres |
| Campus type | suburban |
| Athletics conference | Dual Valley |
| Mascot | Crusader |
| Affiliation | Christian Schools International |
| Website | http://www.wcs.mec.edu/ |
Whitinsville Christian School is a K-12 Christian day school, one of the oldest in Massachusetts. The school is organized into an elementary school (grades K-5), a middle school (grades 6-8) and a high school (grades 9-12). It is a member of Christian Schools International [1] and is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.[2]
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In 1907, a group of fathers from the Christian Reformed Church [3] of Whitinsville[4] organized a Society for Christian Instruction. It was their desire and purpose to educate their children in a school where the Scripture was central to all of learning. In 1924, the Society was incorporated by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as an educational institution. Classes began in 1928 in the basement of the Christian Reformed Church on Willow Street in Whitinsville.
In 1966, a 28 acre (11 hectares) site was purchased from the Whitin Machine Works, and on March 30, 1968, ground was broken for a new school building, which was completed in November, 1969. In August 2006, the school, located at 279 Linwood Avenue in Whitinsville, Massachusetts, serves about 640 students with about 60 faculty and staff.
WCS also has an orchestra program for students in grades K-12. The students are taught using the Suzuki Method[5]. Over 125 students participate in the WCS strings program. Every two years the most advanced members of the orchestra go on a tour to play their instruments and interact with the people in that area. Many trips are to places in the U.S., although past trips have included the Dominican Republic in 2005 and England in 1998. Many middle and high school students audition for the Central District orchestra, which is composed of musicians from the Central Massachusetts area. Two musicians from WCS made it to the All-Eastern level orchestra this year, and one student has gone on to the National Honors Orchestra. The high school and chamber orchestras are directed by Monica Vanderbaan, and middle school orchestra is directed by Tammy Kaye.
WCS also has a talented high school band which plays regularly. The band performs two major concerts during the course of the year: the Christmas Concert and Band Finale.
WCS's Choir has also gained acclaim in recent years. In 2004, four female singers (3 sopranos and 1 alto) were invited to sing in the Massachusetts All-State chorus. One of these went on to join the United States Youth Ensemble tour that year which visited six European countries during the course of a month. In 2011, 2 vocalists received recommendations to the All-State chorus. The WCS Choir also embarks on a tour of the Eastern United States each April and has recently performed concerts tour in Washington, D.C., Maryland, New Jersey and New York. A documentary will be produced in the Spring of 2011 chronicling the Tour Choir's most recent tour.
For high school students who want a more prestigious vocal experience, there is a singing group, "Encore", which meets after school once a week. Encore is a by-audition vocal ensemble which rehearses once a week and performs a variety of different music genres such as musical theater, pop, rock, gospel and jazz. Almost all of Encore's music is specifically arranged for the group[1] and they engage in a number of performances[2] throughout New England each year sharing their music.
Choir, band and Encore are directed by Joshua Lawson.
The school's sports facilities were updated in 2005-2006. At the end of the 2005-06 school year a track was completed. It circles the varsity soccer field that was added the year before. In 2005 the softball field was built in the memory of the late Karen Taylor. The school also has six tennis courts that were built in the memory of Kaitlin Sperry Koopman.
The boys varsity basketball team was the 2004-2005 division 3 state championship winner, and they have been district champions three years in a row: 2004, 2005, 2006. They have reached the district finals three years in a row: 2009, 2010, and 2011. They were the district champions in 2010 and have won again in 2011. The 2011 team has also won the second division 3 state championship in school history.
The cross country running team has made it to states for 11 years in a row.
Tennis is also one of the school's sports.
Baseball is one of the spring sports.
The school has varsity, junior varsity, and middle school volleyball teams open to girls only, and they play both public and private schools in the area. The varsity team reached the districts this year.
The school's soccer program includes varsity boys, junior varsity boys and varsity girls teams.
As of 2009-10: ^denotes required courses. /denotes semester courses. 'denotes classes with Honors components. %denotes courses with both Level 1 and Level 2 classes. Level 1 is harder and moves more quickly. Level 2 students cannot move up to Level 1 without approval from the administration.
Four Bible classes, one semester each, are required for graduation. Juniors and Seniors can choose which Bible class they want to take; this decision is usually based on avoidance of schedule conflicts.
WCS students score near the 90th percentile on standardized tests. Over 90% of students earn college degrees. The WCS average on each of the parts of the SAT is generally 100-200 points higher than the national average.