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Wentzville Holt High School

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Wentzville Holt High School
Address
Map
600 Campus Drive

Wentzville
,
Missouri

USA
Information
TypePublic co-ed secondary
EstablishedUnknown
PrincipalJohn Waters
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,538[2]
Color(s)Navy and Vegas Gold
MascotIndians
AccreditationNorth Central Association
Missouri School Improvement Program (MISP); A+ School[1]
NewspaperBlue & Gold
YearbookPow Wow

Wentzville Holt High School is the older and larger of the two high schools in the Wentzville R-IV School District. With a 2007 enrollment of 1,538, Holt is the sixth largest high school in St. Charles County. Although officially known as Emil E. Holt Senior High School, it was known only as Wentzville High School until 2000, when "Holt" became a common addition to the name in preparation for the addition of a second high school in the district. Now the school is often referred to as just "Holt" or "Holt High", though the common initials remain WHHS or sometimes still WHS.

Academics

Holt High School has two diploma options available to students depending on student performance and classes completed. Both the general diploma and the college preparatory certificate require completion of at least 25 units of credit; however the college preparatory certificate also requires students to maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 as well as achieving a score above the national average on either the ACT or SAT.

WHHS was the first high school in St. Charles County to receive A+ designation under the Outstanding Schools Act of 1993. Wentzville secured the A+ designation in 1997, which required the school to meet more rigorous academic guidelines and benchmarks for graduates. As a result, WHHS graduates who meet specific A+ defined criteria are eligible to receive state reimbursement for tuition and general fees to attend any Missouri public community college or vocational school. Because of this benefit, many graduates choose to attend a community college or vocational school prior to continuing on to a traditional four-year university. This is seen by many as a major reason why only 46.8% of Holt High students go on to attend a four-year colleges or universities directly after leaving Holt, even though the school has been long known for it's high academic reputation among area public high schools.

In addition to its A+ designation, WHHS has been accredited by the North Central Association since 1982

WHHS offers Advanced Placement (AP) courses and exams in American History, English, Advanced Biology, Advanced Physics, Advanced Chemistry, Calculus, French, Spanish, and German.

Block Schedule

Wentzville High School was one of the first high schools in the St. Louis area to adopt a block scheduling system. The decision to implement a block schedule plan grew out of a planning effort to develop a vision and a program of improvement for the high school. The planning team behind the move toward block scheduling consisted of teachers, students, parents, and administrators, and it began meeting in 1993. Following the implementation of block scheduling in 1995, Wentzville served as a model for many other districts throughout the Midwest looking to adopt similar scheduling systems.

After months of debate and strong protest from students, the Wentzville Board of Education voted 6-1 in February 2007 to changed from block schedule back to a traditional seven-block schedule beginning in the fall. The controversial move came following District Superintendent Terry Adams' request that district principals explore options to save money and increase instructional time in core subjects. Approximately 200 residents attended the board meeting to protest such a schedule change. They argued that reverting back to traditional scheduling would result in less project-based learning and lab time, more chaos between classes, and less time for individualized instruction. Some board members cited flat standardized test scores over the past few years as another reason for the change. They stressed the district's need to concentrate on improving performance levels on a global scale to reach international benchmarks, rather than only comparing performance to other area districts. Adams also referenced studies that indicate block scheduling results in higher grades but lower achievement.[3][4]

Students

The 2006 graduation rate for Holt High School was 85.2%, which was down nearly two percentage points from Holt's 2005 rate of 87.4%.[5] In 2006, the average composite ACT score of Holt students was 22.9, which is higher than the average state score of 21.6. 70.4% of graduates took the test.[6] 46.8% of Holt High students go on to attend a four-year colleges or universities, and 38.2% of students go on to attend two-year colleges.[7]

Staff

Holt High School faculty have an average of 11.5 years of experience, and the average student to classroom teacher ratio is 25:1.[8] The average annual salary is $45,466 for teachers and $86,128 for administrators, and 67% of teachers have a master's degree or higher.[9]

Athletics

MSHSAA Sanctioned Sports

Holt's MSHSAA sanctioned sports compete in the South Division of the Gateway Athletic Conference.[10] Until recently, the school's traditional colors were royal blue and gold. A couple years after "Holt" was added to the common name for the school, new athletic coaches and staff began re-branding the teams with new logos and a change in colors to the current Navy and Vegas Gold.

Fall Sports

  • Cross Country (Boys & Girls) (Class 4, District #5)
  • Football (Class 5, District #2)
  • Volleyball (Girls) (Class 4, District #8)
  • Softball (Girls) (Class 4, District 9)
  • Soccer (Boys) (Class 3, District #9)
  • Swimming (Boys)
  • Golf (Girls) (Class 2, District #4)
  • Tennis (Girls) (Class 2, District #4)

Winter Sports

  • Basketball (Boys) (Class 5, District #9)
  • Basketball (Girls) (Class 5, District #9)
  • Swimming (Girls)
  • Wrestling (Class 3, District #2)

Spring Sports

  • Baseball (Boys) (Class 4, District #9)
  • Golf (Boys) (Class 4, District #5)
  • Soccer (Girls) (Class 2, District #6)
  • Tennis (Boys) (Class 2, District #4)
  • Track and Field (Boys & Girls) (Class 4, District #5)

Club Sports

Notable Alumni

References

  1. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  2. ^ Missouri School District Directory: Wentzville R-IV
  3. ^ Wentzville Journal | News | Board reformats class scheduling
  4. ^ Wentzville Journal | News | Protest rings to keep block schedule
  5. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  6. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  7. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  8. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  9. ^ MODESE Annual Report of School Data
  10. ^ ::MSHSAA::Schools
  11. ^ Varsity Divisions
  12. ^ http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=81571
  13. ^ WGEM TV :: Quincy, IL
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