Whatcom Middle School

Whatcom Middle School, home of the Wildcats, is a middle school located in Bellingham, WA. With enrollment of 606 students in 2006-2007, it was the largest of four middle schools in the Bellingham School District. It was also the oldest existing school building in the Bellingham School District.^[1] On November 5, 2009, a fire broke out and caused irreparable damage to the school building.^[2] Since the fire, students have been dispersed to the three other Bellingham School District middle schools, and some sixth graders will remain at their elementary schools for the 2010-2011 school year. The building is expected to be rebuilt on the same site, and is expected to take two to three years to complete.^[3]

History

In 1903, North Side High School was built to service the city of Bellingham, the conglomerate of four communities that surrounded Bellingham Bay - Whatcom, Bellingham, Sehome, and Fairhaven. In 1916, additional construction doubled the size of the building, and the name was changed to Whatcom High School. In 1937, Bellingham High School was built, and the students from Whatcom High School were moved to the new building.^[4] The old building became Whatcom Junior High for grades 7-9. The school was reorganized into Whatcom Middle School in 1967 to serve grades 6-8.^[5]

The school was heavily damaged in a major early morning fire on November 5, 2009 while undergoing a retrofit. As of November 2010, the fire was revealed to be accidental. The fire was related to the welding work at Whatcom Middle School, as the Bellingham Fire Department revealed.

Academics

In 2006-2007, Whatcom met WASL standards for Adequate Yearly Progress in 17 of the 19 required categories, failing in only reading and math assessment for Special Education students with an individualized education program.^[1]

External links

• Official website
• Bellingham School District

References

Coordinates: 48°45′32″N 122°28′49″W / 48.75889°N 122.48028°W / 48.75889; -122.48028