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Western International High School

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Coordinates: 42°19′8″N 83°5′31″W / 42.31889°N 83.09194°W / 42.31889; -83.09194
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Western International High School
Address
Map
1500 Scotten Street

Detroit
,
Michigan
48209

United States
Coordinates42°19′8″N 83°5′31″W / 42.31889°N 83.09194°W / 42.31889; -83.09194
Information
TypePublic high school
Established1898
StatusActive/open
School districtDetroit Public Schools
SuperintendentNikolai Vitti
CEEB code231235
NCES School ID261200004857[1]
PrincipalAngel Garcia
Teaching staff83.20 (FTE)[1]
Grades9-12
GenderCo-ed
Enrollment1,931 (2022-2023)[1]
LanguageEnglish, Spanish and French
AreaUrban
Color(s)Red and white
Athletics conferenceDPSL
NicknameCowboys
WebsiteWestern International

Western International High School is a public high school, located across from Clark Park, within southwest Detroit's Mexicantown. Western is operated by the Detroit Public Schools system.

As of 2012, it was the final remaining public high school in southwestern Detroit.[2] Western serves Mexicantown, Boynton–Oakwood Heights, Delray, and Springwells Village.[3]

History

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The school opened in 1898 as "Western High School."[4] The Webster School held high school classes on a temporary basis until Western was built.[5]

On February 26, 1935,[6] Western High School's campus was destroyed by a fire.[7] No classes occurred during the incident.[8] Western received a new campus as part of the Public Works Administration projects.[9] $216,381 (around $4683651.15 when adjusted for inflation) in federal aid was used to rebuild the school.[10]

Western International previously had a rivalry with Southwestern High School.[2] In 2012 Southwestern closed, and part of its boundary was reassigned to Western International.[11] Students from both schools protested the closure of Southwestern,[12] the perceived quality of education, and DPS policies. As a result, over 100 students from Western received suspensions, with several also receiving tickets from police officers. In response several students started a "freedom school" so they could receive education during their suspensions.[13]

In 2015 DPS designated Western as part of the "Clark Park K-12 Educational Comunidad" ("Comunidad" means community in Spanish) along with Earhart and Maybury elementary schools.[14]

Academics

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Curriculum

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As of 2000 the school offered training programs in technical skills, including work and school cooperative programs, with business education, computer-assisted drafting, desktop publishing, office management, and office technology available. In 1999 there were six teachers that were a part of this program, and the number doubled by 2000. In 2000 the school did not offer skilled manufacturing and trade courses.[15] These courses were offered at five different technical centers in Detroit, and interested students would arrive to their regular school early and board buses bound for a technical center. That year the technical schools had limited numbers of recruitment information available in Spanish, the primary language of many students at Western.[16]

Student assessments
2021–22 school
year[17]
Change vs.
prior year[17]
M-STEP 11th grade proficiency rates
(Science / Social Studies)
Advanced %1.0 / 1.3
Proficient %– / 6.8
PR. Proficient %7.2 / 46.1
Not Proficient %83.8 / 45.8
Average test scores
SAT Total782.8
(Decrease −70.4)

Admission

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WIHS holds no admission test; enrollment is open to all Detroiters of high school age. Western is the most culturally diverse public high school in Detroit; the student body is (approximate figures) 72.2% Hispanic/Latino, 20.6% African American, 5.3% Caucasian, and 1.9% listed as "other".

Notable alumni

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Author and athlete Ken Doherty was a 1923 graduate of Western High School, and went on to athletic fame as an All-American track and field performer at Detroit City College. During much of the 1920s, he was the nation's best decathlon performer; he won a bronze medal in the decathlon at the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam. Doherty's Track and Field Omnibook (1971) is the world's most widely read publication on the sport of track and field.[18]

Screenwriter John Briley (class of 1943) is a writer best known for screenplays of biopics. He won the 1982Academy Award For Best Original Screenplay for Gandhi. He has also written for television and theatre, and published several novels.[19]

Swimmer John Dudeck (class of 1952) was a nationally renowned athlete; as a WHS senior, he competed at the 1952 US Olympic Trials.[20] On the collegiate scene, he swam for Michigan State University. A former Big Ten Conference record holder and two-time Big Ten titlist in the 100-yard breaststroke (1953, 54), Dudeck was a nine-time All-American for the Spartans (1953–55).[21][22][23]

King Cole is a former MLB player for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, and the New York Yankees.

George Lerchen is a former MLB player for the Detroit Tigers and the Cincinnati Reds.

George Saldana was named to the 1963 National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association (NISCA) All-America team, in the 400-yard freestyle event.[24]

Todd Cruz (1955–2008) was a 1973 Western graduate who played six seasons of Major League Baseball. In 1982, he hit 16 home runs and drove in 57 runs for the Seattle Mariners. One year later, as a member of the Baltimore Orioles, he took part in the 1983 World Series.[25]

Ron Simpkins was a 1976 graduate of Western High School. He then enrolled at the University of Michigan to play football for coach Bo Schembechler. While attending Michigan, Simpkins earned NCAA All-America recognition; he also won the school's John Maulbetsch Award in 1977, and team MVP honors in 1979. He would eventually become the university's all-time leading tackler. Upon graduation, Simpkins entered the National Football League draft; he was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 7th round (167th overall). He played in Super Bowl XVI at the Pontiac Silverdome, losing to Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers. Simpkins would play in six NFL seasons before taking 1988 off. He returned for one more year in 1989, with the Green Bay Packers. In the spring of 1990, Simpkins came home to coach football. During a career that spanned eighteen seasons, he was at the helm for the Cowboys of Western High School; he retired in 2007.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for Western International High School". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Foley, Aaron. "Closing southwest Detroit schools would be devastating, protesters say" (Archive). MLive. Saturday February 25, 2012. Retrieved on November 1, 2012.
  3. ^ "High School Boundaries - 2012/13 School Year." (Archive) Detroit Public Schools. Retrieved on November 1, 2012.
  4. ^ Bak, Richard. Detroit: A Postcard History. Arcadia Publishing, 1998. ISBN 0738545775, 9780738545776. p. 95.
  5. ^ Delicato, Armando. Detroit's Corktown (Images of America). Arcadia Publishing, 2007. ISBN 1439618984, 9781439618981. p. 60.
  6. ^ "Hell's Heat and Helicon's Ice Fail to Move Old Discobolus". Detroit Free Press. Detroit. 1935-02-28. p. 5. - Clip at Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Mirel, Jeffrey. The Rise and Fall of an Urban School System: Detroit, 1907-81 (Ann Arbor paperbacks). University of Michigan Press, 1999. ISBN 0472086499, 9780472086498. p. 188.
  8. ^ "Western High School Fire". The Detroit Free Press. 1937-02-27. p. 6. - Clip at Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Mirel, Jeffrey. The Rise and Fall of an Urban School System: Detroit, 1907-81 (Ann Arbor paperbacks). University of Michigan Press, 1999. ISBN 0472086499, 9780472086498. p. 131.
  10. ^ Mirel, Jeffrey. The Rise and Fall of an Urban School System: Detroit, 1907-81 (Ann Arbor paperbacks). University of Michigan Press, 1999. ISBN 0472086499, 9780472086498. p. 148. "Between 1935 and 1941, federal aid for school construction in Detroit from the Works Project Administration and the Public Works Administration amounted to $1,303,323, of which $216,381 went to rebuild Western High School[...]"
  11. ^ Satyanarayana, Megha. "Contents of Southwestern High School go up for sale online today." Detroit Free Press. October 18, 2012. Retrieved on November 1, 2012.
  12. ^ Sands, David. "Detroit High School Walkouts At Southwestern High, Western High Look To Stop School's Closure" (Archive). Huffington Post. April 25, 2012. Updated April 26, 2012. Retrieved on July 3, 2015.
  13. ^ Cwiek, Sarah. "Detroit students suspended over walkout start "Freedom School"" (Archive). Michigan Radio. April 27, 2012. Retrieved on July 3, 2015.
  14. ^ Lewis, Shawn D. "DPS to expand academics, other school programs" (Archive). The Detroit News. May 13, 2015. Retrieved on July 4, 2015.
  15. ^ Brooks, Ann. Alternative Uses for Wolverine Tube and Beard/Chatfield Brownfield Sites (Archive). University of Michigan Urban and Regional Planning. April 26, 2000. p. 40. Also posted at Google Books (in snippet view form).
  16. ^ Brooks, Ann. Alternative Uses for Wolverine Tube and Beard/Chatfield Brownfield Sites (Archive). University of Michigan Urban and Regional Planning. April 26, 2000. p. 41. Also posted at Google Books (in snippet view form). Also in: Brooks, Ann, Steve Gutterman, Christina Kelly, Megan Masson, Kathryn Whiteman, and Moira Zellner. Planning for brownfield redevelopment in southwest Detroit. University of Michigan. p. 41.
  17. ^ a b "MI School Data Annual Education Report". Mi School Data. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  18. ^ John Kenneth Doherty (born 1905), University of Pennsylvania University Archives
  19. ^ John Briley - Google Books. 1982. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
  20. ^ "Final Swimming Tryouts for Men" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 30, 2005. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  21. ^ "School Sport Photos" (PDF). grfx.cstv.com.
  22. ^ Seibold, Jack (2003). Spartan Sports Encyclopedia: A History of the Michigan State Men's Athletic Program. Sports Publishing LLC. ISBN 978-1-58261-219-5.
  23. ^ "BIG TEN CONFERENCE Official Athletic Site – Big Ten Conference". Big Ten Conference. Archived from the original on July 3, 2010.
  24. ^ "NISCA All American" (PDF). woodswimming.org.
  25. ^ "Todd Cruz Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-02-05.

Further reading

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