George Washington High School (Charleston, West Virginia)
Encyclopedia
George Washington High School is a public high school in Charleston, West Virginia
, USA. GWHS opened in 1965 to accommodate students in South Hills and Loudendale ostensibly because Charleston High School
was overcrowded. Prior to this time students in Charleston were divided between Charleston and Stonewall Jackson high schools. With the advent of desegregation, the wealthy South Hills neighborhood carved out a new, virtually all-white, school district from the Charleston district. Within 15 years of this school being built due to "overcrowding" the school board closed Charleston and Stonewall Jackson, now ostensibly due to low enrollments, creating Capital High School
, and consolidated the racially mixed Dunbar High into South Charleston High School
. The race and wealth divide between GWHS and its rivals Capital and South Charleston is no longer apparent.
The school was nicknamed "The Hill", as it is located in the South Hills neighborhood, but in more recent years students have began referring to it as "GeeDub" for short. Traditionally, Charleston residents referred to Charleston High as "The High" and Stonewall Jackson High as "The Wall".
.
. The school's ideals of "self-direction", flexible scheduling and independent study, are intended to provide students with opportunities to direct themselves.
George Washington High School made national headlines in 1992, when, during an illegal off-campus Senior Skip Day
party with other students from South Charleston High School
, two students were shot and killed over an argument about payment for a keg of beer.
to win a blue ribbon for excelling in No Child Left Behind requirements. Additionally, the school offers a wide array of Advanced Placement courses to students such as English Literature and Composition, English Language and Composition, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Calculus, Statistics, Computer Science, US History, US Government and Politics, Art History, World History, Human Geography, and Spanish. In 2003, the schools's average SAT scores for Math and Verbal were 570 and 566, exceeding the United States' average.
This school in 2010 was recognized by President Barack Obama
.
Festival Grand Championship eight times (1986, 1991-92, 1994, 1996, 1998-2000) and they have had two girls named Miss Kanawha Majorette (Jill Pazerski in 1989 and Alexandra Ameli in 2010).
Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...
, USA. GWHS opened in 1965 to accommodate students in South Hills and Loudendale ostensibly because Charleston High School
Charleston High School
Charleston High School is a former high school, which was closed in 1989, in Kanawha County, West Virginia. Its final location is where CAMC General Hospital is now located in downtown Charleston, West Virginia. In 1989, Charleston High School and Stonewall Jackson High School consolidated to form...
was overcrowded. Prior to this time students in Charleston were divided between Charleston and Stonewall Jackson high schools. With the advent of desegregation, the wealthy South Hills neighborhood carved out a new, virtually all-white, school district from the Charleston district. Within 15 years of this school being built due to "overcrowding" the school board closed Charleston and Stonewall Jackson, now ostensibly due to low enrollments, creating Capital High School
Capital High School
Capital is a name for several high schools in North America, generally found in state capital cities. These include:*Capital High School *Capital High School *Capital High School...
, and consolidated the racially mixed Dunbar High into South Charleston High School
South Charleston High School
South Charleston High School is a public high school grades 9 through 12 located on the southern half of the Kanawha River, west of the city of Charleston, in the city of South Charleston's Spring Hill neighborhood. The School mascot is the Black Eagle and the enrollment is approximately 1,200...
. The race and wealth divide between GWHS and its rivals Capital and South Charleston is no longer apparent.
The school was nicknamed "The Hill", as it is located in the South Hills neighborhood, but in more recent years students have began referring to it as "GeeDub" for short. Traditionally, Charleston residents referred to Charleston High as "The High" and Stonewall Jackson High as "The Wall".
District
The school serves the South Hills neighborhood of the city and several incorporated areas nearby. It is one of eight public high schools in Kanawha CountyKanawha County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 200,073 people, 86,226 households, and 55,960 families residing in the county. The population density was 222 people per square mile . There were 93,788 housing units at an average density of 104 per square mile...
.
History
The school opened in 1965 with the idea of creating a college-like atmosphere and putting more responsibility on the students. The plan for the school was developed by local educators, members of the West Virginia Department of Education, and faculty from Ohio State UniversityOhio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
. The school's ideals of "self-direction", flexible scheduling and independent study, are intended to provide students with opportunities to direct themselves.
George Washington High School made national headlines in 1992, when, during an illegal off-campus Senior Skip Day
Senior Skip Day
International Ditch Day is a tradition in most American and Canadian high schools and junior high schools where most of the senior class skip school on a pre-determined day, typically the 111th day of school...
party with other students from South Charleston High School
South Charleston High School
South Charleston High School is a public high school grades 9 through 12 located on the southern half of the Kanawha River, west of the city of Charleston, in the city of South Charleston's Spring Hill neighborhood. The School mascot is the Black Eagle and the enrollment is approximately 1,200...
, two students were shot and killed over an argument about payment for a keg of beer.
Academics
The school consistently wins awards as a National School of Excellence. It is currently ranked as the 363rd best school out of Newsweeks America's top 1300 public high schools. In 2005 it was the only high school in West VirginiaWest Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
to win a blue ribbon for excelling in No Child Left Behind requirements. Additionally, the school offers a wide array of Advanced Placement courses to students such as English Literature and Composition, English Language and Composition, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Calculus, Statistics, Computer Science, US History, US Government and Politics, Art History, World History, Human Geography, and Spanish. In 2003, the schools's average SAT scores for Math and Verbal were 570 and 566, exceeding the United States' average.
This school in 2010 was recognized by President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
.
Extracurricular and co-curricular activities
George Washington H.S. has many opportunities for students to participate in extra curricular and co-curricular activities. George Washington currently has baseball, softball, football, volleyball, swimming, soccer, cross-country, golf, basketball, tennis, wrestling, lacrosse, and track teams. Music programs are also important at GW. The award winning band is the 2004 West Virginia Music Educators Association State Honor Band, an award held by the band every other year since 1992. The GW marching band has won the Daily Mail Kanawha County Majorette and Band FestivalDaily Mail Kanawha County Majorette and Band Festival
The Daily Mail Kanawha County Majorette and Band Festival is an annual festival dedicated to high school bands and majorette corps in Kanawha County, West Virginia. The event is held at the University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field in Charleston, West Virginia at the end of September of...
Festival Grand Championship eight times (1986, 1991-92, 1994, 1996, 1998-2000) and they have had two girls named Miss Kanawha Majorette (Jill Pazerski in 1989 and Alexandra Ameli in 2010).
Alumni
The school's noted alumni include:- Ann MagnusonAnn MagnusonAnn Magnuson is an American actress, performance artist, and nightclub performer who first gained prominence in the 1985 film Desperately Seeking Susan...
, actress - Anne WhiteAnne WhiteAnne White is a former professional United States tennis player from Charleston, West Virginia. She is most famous for wearing a white body suit at Wimbledon in 1985.-Early life:White attended John Adams Junior High School...
, professional tennis player - Bob WiseBob WiseRobert Ellsworth "Bob" Wise, Jr. is an American politician. A Democrat, Wise served as the 33rd Governor of West Virginia from January 2001 to January 2005.-Early life:...
, former Governor of West Virginia - Conor KnightonConor KnightonConor Knighton is an American actor, host, and television producer. He was the host and executive producer of infoMania on Current TV. He left the show at the end of 2010....
, host of Google CurrentGoogle CurrentGoogle Current is a brief, once every half hour, television program on the channel Current TV . Selected episodes are also available on the Internet. The series tracks not necessarily what the news is, but what people are searching for on Google.... - Danny Jones, Mayor of Charleston
- Giles Snyder, National Public Radio host and former news director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting
- Jennifer GarnerJennifer GarnerJennifer Anne Affleck , better known as Jennifer Garner, is an American actress and film producer. Garner gained recognition on television for her performance as CIA agent Sydney Bristow in the thriller drama series Alias, which aired on ABC for five seasons from 2001 to 2006...
, actress - John MorrisonJohn Morrison-In politics:* John Morrison , politician in Manitoba, Canada* John Morrison , Canadian Member of Parliament* John Morrison...
, actor - Sam TrammellSam TrammellSam Trammell is an American stage, film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Sam Merlotte in the HBO vampire series, True Blood, which saw him nominated for a 2009 Scream Award for "Breakout Performance - Male."...
, actor