Principal's Newsletter-October-2024
Dear Parents/Guardians and Students,
The month of September went by quickly, but there were so many spirited events that got the year off to a great start. Spirit Week was filled with so much energy and enthusiasm and was capped off by incredible homecoming night games and senior days! Thank you to the Westlake Athletic Club for sponsoring our annual fireworks halftime show, it was a blast as always! Last night it was great to see everyone at our Back-To-School Night and spend time talking with you between periods.
As we move into October, students should feel their schedule and school routines are well established. October will launch a more pronounced focus on the Portrait of a Learner. These nine (9) dispositions will be integrated into our approaches to teaching and learning and students will be familiarized with the progressions and critical attributes aligned to each one. For example, the disposition of being a collaborator involves the critical attributes of being able to set and achieve common goals, to work cooperatively with individuals or groups, and to recognize individual roles/responsibilities to contribute to the common goal(s). As students embark on more performance-based work in classrooms, a focus on core content in conjunction with these dispositions, and our core competencies, will drive our instruction. Our goal is to familiarize students with all 9 attributes throughout the year.
Great News
AP Scholars
Congratulations are in order for 82 Westlake High School AP Scholars. This is the largest number of AP Scholars ever named for Westlake. We had 35 students named AP Scholar, 33 Students named AP Scholar with Distinction, and 14 students named AP Scholar with Honors.
Students designated with the following honor have met the criteria below:
AP Scholar with Distinction: At least a 3.5 AP Score Average with a 3 or better on five or more exams
AP Scholar with Honors: At least a 3.25 AP Score Average and a score of 3 or better on four or more exams
AP Scholar: A score of 3 or better on three or more AP exams
National Merit Commended Students:
We are also excited to recognize and celebrate two Westlake High School Seniors for being named Commended Students in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program. Each year approximately 1.5 million students take the PSAT and the top score earners are recognized for their achievement Please join me in congratulating Hayley Laygan and Danielle Motta for earning this honor!
These are impressive accomplishments for all our students!
Blood Drive
Attention all community members and interested students. The Blood Banks are in need of your help. If you are interested in donating blood please use the link https://donate.nybc.org/donor/
Spirit Day - September 29
On Sunday, September 29, the Wildcats will be hosting its 10th Annual Spirit Day at Westlake High School, where more than 400 athletes ranging from grades 1 through 6 will be participating. With over 1,000 people in attendance, Spirit Day is a large outdoor event for kids to participate in athletic games while helping to raise money to fight against childhood cancer. As a part of this fun-filled day of football games, there will also be a Fall Festival. All proceeds from this event will be donated to the Ty Louis Campbell Foundation (TLC) for childhood cancer research. For complete details, check this website.
As always, I want to extend my thanks for your continued support of WHS!
October Events
Wednesday, October 2: 1st Quarter Midpoint
Thursday - Friday, Oct. 3-4: School Closed -- Rosh Hashanah
Saturday, October 12: PSAT @ WHS -- Grades 10 & 11 only
Monday, October 14: School Closed -- Columbus Day
Friday, October 18: WHS Sketch Comedy -- 8:00 pm - WHS Auditorium
Attached is more information on the Blood Drive Blood-Drive Oct 2024.pdf and 2 exciting fundraisers from the Westlake Football Booster Club (Bingo and Jets Ticket Raffle) Jets Vs. Texans Raffle.pdf Designer Bag Bingo 2024.pdf