West Springfield High School (Virginia)

Infobox Education in the United States
name= West Springfield High School


imagesize= 100px
motto= Spartan Pride means Spartan Honor
streetaddress= 6100 Rolling Road
city= Springfield
state= Virginia
zipcode= 22152
url= http://www.fcps.edu/westspringfieldhs
district= Fairfax County Public Schools
principal= Paul Wardinski
assistant_principals=
staff= approximately 220
fundingtype= Public
schooltype= high school
grades= 9–12
language= English
communities=
feeders= Irving Middle School
campus= Suburban
mascot= The Spartan
colors= Blue and orange ██
founded= 1966
enrollment= 2,198
enrollment_as_of= 2006
free_label_1= Rival schools
free_1= Robert E. Lee High School South County Secondary School
free_label_2= Athletic conferences
free_2= Patriot District Northern Region
bgcolor_section= #BBDDBB
bgcolor_label= #BBDDBB
bgcolor_value= #EEEEEE
bgcolor_address= #EEEEEE
bgcolor_url= #EEEEEE

West Springfield High School is a public high school located in Springfield in Fairfax County, Virginia, at 6100 Rolling Road, and is part of the Fairfax County Public Schools system. West Springfield (often referred to as WSHS) enrolls students from grades 9-12, offers the Advanced Placement program and currently enrolls over 2,200 students.

History

The school opened in 1966. A planetarium was added in 1967. A school renovation was completed in 1991, which included the construction of new classrooms in a courtyard and remodeling the library, Auditorium, Spartan Hall, and the Career Center.

Layout

The school is laid out on two stories with the library, planetarium, administration offices and cafeteria in front and auditorium and gymnasium in the back. The school shares a layout with Herndon High School, located in the western part of the county and Oakton High School, located in the central part of the county.

Demographics

White: 62%, Asian/Pacific Islander: 17%, Hispanic: 10%, Black: 7%, Native American: less than 1%. 4% are unspecified.

Athletics

WSHS participates in a wide variety of high school sports. West Springfield's school mascot is a Spartan soldier and school colors are orange and blue.

The school competes in the Patriot District which is in the AAA Northern Region of the Virginia High School League. Major rivals have traditionally been Lake Braddock, Robinson, and Lee, based on their geographic proximity. Top ranked WSHS athletic programs include its boys and girls soccer teams, girls basketball team, girls softball team, and boys and girls cross country teams.

Alumni of note include Jeremy Kapinos (punter for the NY Jets), James Dexter (former NFL offensive lineman with the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals), Peter Lalich (Starting Quarterback at UVA), Kara Lawson (Guard for WNBA Sacramento Monarchs), Ryan Speier (Baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies), Joe Saunders (Baseball pitcher for the LA Angels of Anaheim), and Brian Carroll who plays for the Columbus Crew and Jeff Carroll who plays for D.C. United.

Varsity baseball

Of the three main sports, baseball has the longest tradition of success. The Diamond Spartans, coached for 26 years (1974 - 2000) by Ron E. Tugwell (Father of Phillies 3B Prospect Marc S. Tugwell), has won:

2 Virginia AAA State Championships (1991 & 1998)
6 Northern Region Titles (1983, 1985, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1998)
12 District Championships (1974, 1975, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2005)

The Spartan Baseball motto is "From Season to Season the Tradition Continues".Current Head Baseball Coach John James has been leading the Diamond Spartans since the 2005 season, in which the Spartans won the Patriot District Title, defeating the Lake Braddock Bruins 4-2. Coach James is assisted by Jason Olms (Outfield/Hitting Coach), Tim Alley (Infield/Hitting Coach), Julio Rivas (Pitching Coach), John Batchelor (Head JV & Catching Coach), Joey Tinsley (Asst Coach JV) and Matt Thorn (JV Pitching Coach).

Varsity football

The 06-07 West Springfield Spartan varsity football team holds the Virginia State High School Football record for most combined points for two teams in a single game with West Potomac High School. The West Potomac Wolverines won the game 81-74 in 4 overtimes. The Spartans' losing score of 74 has the notorious distinction of being the highest score by a losing team in the history of high school, college, or professional football.Fact|date=August 2008

The 07-08 West Springfield varsity football team (10-3) won the Patriot District Championship for the first time since 1994, but went on to lose in the Northern Region Final against the would-be 15-0 State Champion Westfield Bulldogs.

The 08-09 varsity football team returns 16 starters and will face returning Division 5 State Champion Stone Bridge High School in its season opener at Stone Bridge.

Varsity wrestling

The West Springfield Spartan wrestling team has claimed three individual state championships; 1982, 1988, and 1990.

Cheerleading

The Spartan Cheerleading squad won the AAA state title in 2003. They also won the Patriot District Cheerleading Competition in 2006 for their second time, beating out a major rival, the Lake Braddock Bruins.

Track and field

For the first time in recent history, the West Springfield boys team took home the indoor track Patriot District Championship in 2007.

Music

The Wind Symphony has, under the baton of Laurence J. Einus Jr., received consistent ratings of "Superior" at band festivals for the past several years, and the Symphonic and Concert bands, while playing lower grade pieces, continue to receive "Superior" ratings. The Jazz band has received "Superior" ratings in all of their recent competitions, and received several awards during their last spring trip. The school's marching band, the Marching Spartans, has won the USSBA Group 5-A Championships, and are Virginia champions and All-States champions. The band earned its fourth Honor Band title in 2008. The Symphonic Orchestra, under the direction of Mr. Steve Fraser, played as an honor orchestra in the 2005 Virginia Music Educator's Association.

WSHS has a Guitar program, with school-provided guitars for students to use. Their Jazz Guitar Combo is one of few high school groups of its kind in the region. They receive consistent ratings of "Superior," as does the Advanced Guitar Ensemble and Guitar Ensemble. The current director is Mr. Keith Owens. The Guitar Program is currently the largest music department in terms of population, with their 5 different levels of difficulty. Many Freshman begin with Guitar 1 to learn the basics of the guitar, with many going on to Guitar 2, and many still go on to other ensembles.

The choral program at WSHS features five classes, three of which are auditioned for. Treble Choir is unauditioned all women's choir. Men's Choir is also an unauditioned choir, but it is comprised entirely of men. The three audition choirs are Ladies Select, Madrigals and Personality. Ladies Select is an all women's choir that sometimes sings a capella. Madrigals is a mixed a capella choir. Personality is a mixed dance choir. The all girl's show choir, Pizazz, was disbanded at the end of 2007, despite its numerous awards. At competitions, the Choral department has received many awards and recognitions, as well as many Superior ratings over the past several years. All choral classes were taught by Michael Dombrow through the 07-08 school year, and all show choirs performances are choreographed by John Gonzalez. Choral director Erin Huss will be the new chorus teacher beginning in the 08-09 school year.

External links

*http://spartans.metroamericanvbc.org/ West Springfield Volleyball Program
*http://wshs.furrfu.com/ West Springfield Alumni Site
*http://www.classreport.org/usa/va/springfield/wshs/ Another Alumni Site
*http://spartansports.org/ West Springfield Sports Site
*http://wshsband.org/ West Springfield Bands Site
*http://wsbaseball.org/ West Springfield Baseball Site
*http://www.spartantdclub.org/ West Springfield Football Booster site