Westmount Secondary School
| Westmount Secondary School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
 | |
39 Montcalm Drive , , Canada | |
| Coordinates | 43°13′38″N 79°53′45″W / 43.22722°N 79.89583°W |
| Information | |
| School type | Secondary school |
| Motto | Laboris Dulcedo |
| School board | HWDSB |
| Superintendent | Michael Prendergast |
| Area trustee | Wes Hicks |
| School number | 952478 |
| Principal | Dana Ferguson |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Enrollment | 1540[1] (21 September 2014) |
| Language | English |
| Colour(s) | Blue & White |
| Mascot | The Wildcats |
| Newspaper | The Westmount Procrastinator[2] |
| Public transit access | HSR 41 Mohawk and 35 College |
| Special Programs | Advanced Placement Gifted Self-Paced, Self-Directed Sports Academy |
| Website | www |
Westmount Secondary School is located at 39 Montcalm Dr Hamilton Ontario, and is a member of the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board. The school opened in 1961, and has a 2009–10 enrolment of 1217 students. The school is a member of the Canadian Coalition of Self-Directed Learning, 1 of 8 schools in Canada. Westmount is also known for its Sports Academy. Westmount also offers gifted classes, special education classes, as well as an ESL programming for students with needs.
Since 1990, Westmount has operated under a self-directed learning program, more commonly known as self-paced, environment, where the students work at their own pace. They are able to carry over unfinished courses into the next semester, or fast track courses, finishing in half a semester.[3] This unique teaching approach draws students from all over the Greater Hamilton Area. It is one of the only schools with this program in Canada, and often plays host to international visitors wishing to view the teaching process in person. It is also home to a 'sports academy', in which students looking to gain a career in professional sports may hone their skills. Due to the self pacing program, they are also able to miss school to attend championships and not fall behind. Westmount is also home to a newly instituted Advanced Placement program, and one of Hamilton's best gifted programs. Westmount has a growing media arts and animation program, and owns a Macintosh computer lab with a separate Macintosh network. Approximately 35% of computers used at Westmount are Apple Mac computers.
Westmount is an extremely multicultural school. Its primary language spoken, after English, is Arabic. There are both Christian and Muslim prayer societies, with the Muslim prayer group meeting daily to fulfil salat.[4]
It is currently the only secondary school in Hamilton to make it into the Fraser Institute's top 100 High Schools in Ontario, ranked at #84 out of 718.[5] In Hamilton, it is well known for its academic excellence and sports academy program.
Noble alumni
- Summer Mortimer Paralympic swimmer and world record holder
- Tony Peebles Grammy award-winning musician [6]
- Paul Chafe, author/soldier
- Tom Jackson, city councillor
- Patrick McKenna, actor
- Haydain Neale, musician, with Jacksoul (deceased)[7]
- Wei Chen, Host, CBC Radio One, Ontario Morning
- Jim Witter, Musician[8]
- Michael Simoncic, Professional Football Player, Ottawa Rough Riders 1995-1996, Canadian Football League.[9]
- Jeffery Croonen, Professional Football Player, CFL 1989 to 1993, 2 Grey Cup wins. Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Edmonton Eskimos, Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Toronto Argonauts.
- Bruce Boyko, Professional Football Player, CFL 1990 to 1999, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and BC Lions.[10]
- Allan Boyko, Professional Football Player, CFL 1991 to 1997, Saskatchewan Roughriders & Winnipeg Blue Bombers.[11]
See also
References
- ^ Westmount School Profile
- ^ The Wesmount Procrastinator
- ^ http://schools.hwdsb.on.ca/westmount/about/
- ^ http://www.hwdsb.on.ca/schools/schoolprofiles/index.aspx?school_id=westmount Archived November 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ http://ontario.compareschoolrankings.org/SchoolsByRankLocationName.aspx?schooltype=secondary
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2212888/bio
- ^ http://www.thepianomen.net/bio.htm
- ^ 1995 Ottawa Rough Riders season
- ^ http://www.cflapedia.com/Players/b/boyko_bruce.htm
- ^ http://www.cflapedia.com/Players/b/boyko_allan.htm
Sources
- Hamilton Community Foundation. Protecting Our Environment Together (POET): Youth Focus 2004-2005 Grants. Retrieved June 30, 2005.
- Fitzgerald, Tony: "Westmount students making waves", The Hamilton Spectator, (23 February 2005)
- Eastwood, Joel:"The Spirit of Westmount", The Hamilton Spectator, (17 January 2006)
- Welcome, hwdsb.on.ca, Retrieved December 21, 2010.
- Simoncic, Michael": 1995 Ottawa Rough Riders season", Wikipedia - C.F.L., (28 May 2012)