West Career and Technical Academy

Last updated
West Career and Technical Academy
Logo of West Career and Technical Academy, Las Vegas.png
West tech academy, las vegas.JPG
Façade in January 2014
Location
West Career and Technical Academy
11945 W. Charleston Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV 89135
Coordinates 36°9′28″N115°21′14″W / 36.15778°N 115.35389°W / 36.15778; -115.35389
Information
School type Magnet public high school
Established2010
School district Clark County School District
PrincipalAmy Dockter-Rozar
Staff53.00 (FTE) [1]
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,490 (2022-23) [1]
Student to teacher ratio26.45 [1]
Website wctawranglers.com

West Career and Technical Academy (WCTA, West Tech) is a magnet high school located in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. The school opened in August 2010 as the first magnet school in Summerlin, a community in the western Las Vegas Valley. [2] It is administered by the Clark County School District. As of 2019, the school had an enrollment of 1,397 students and 61 classroom teachers on a FTE basis, for a student-teacher ratio of 23:1. [3] West Tech offers nine programs to prepare students for a career in the field selected. [2] [4] [5]

Contents

History

After one and a half years of construction costing $83.5 million, West Tech opened to students on August 30, 2010. It is the last high school built under a 1998 bond program to revitalize schools in the Clark County School District (CCSD), which involved the construction, replacement, and rehabilitation of more than 100 schools. [2] [4] For its first year of operation, West Tech admitted 750 freshmen and sophomores. [2] [5]

In December 2014, student Angelique Clark applied to begin a pro-life club at the school; however, the administration denied her application, claiming the subject was too controversial. [6] She proceeded to send two demand letters to CCSD, but when she failed to receive a response, she sued West Tech in August 2015. The following month, the school agreed to the formation of the club. [7]

Facilities

WCTA campus, September 2014 WCTA campus, 09-2014.JPG
WCTA campus, September 2014

The school is built on 42 acres (17 ha) of land at the foothills of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. The buildings of the school occupy 224,884 square feet (20,892 m2). [2]

A rotating solar panel and a ground heat source exchange system help to power the campus. There is also a computerized weather station and four greenhouses, which are used to facilitate students' learning in horticulture, biotechnology, and other fields. [5] West Tech also includes multiple computer labs and a student WiFi system. [2] [4]

Academics

West Tech offers the following nine programs: . [2] [4] [5]

Students select one of these programs to study throughout high school, designed to assist them in future studies and a career in the field. [5] A student must be enrolled in West Tech by their sophomore year so that all required classes for their program can be completed in a timely manner; for this reason a student may not change their chosen program after sophomore year.

West Tech utilizes the Google Apps for Education, which grant each student a free e-mail account, access to Google Sites, and other services. [5]

Clubs and activities

WCTA offers several career and technical student organizations (CTSOs), including DECA, FBLA, Skills USA, FFA, and HOSA. There are no NIAA sports teams. [5] The school is also home to Key Club and UNICEF club chapters, and offers honors societies, including National Honor Society (NHS), Mu Alpha Theta, Tri-M, and Spanish Honor Society (SHH).

WCTA competes in the FIRST Robotics Competition as Team 7183, as "W.A.R.". [17]

WCTA is home to a multitude of other clubs started by students with the assistance of faculty and classmates, including clubs like Mock Trial, Speech and Debate, K-Pop Club, and Architecture Club.

Project-Based Learning

West Tech incorporates one school-wide project-based learning (PBL) event per semester which lasts two days. Topics for the PBL vary, including exploring different cultures, researching new technologies, and improving school spirit.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunrise Manor, Nevada</span> Census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, United States

Sunrise Manor is a census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, United States, located on the western base of Frenchman Mountain, east of Las Vegas. The population was 205,618 at the 2020 census. If Sunrise Manor were to be incorporated, it would be one of the largest cities in Nevada. Sunrise Manor was formed in May 1957.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union County Magnet High School</span> High school in Union County, New Jersey, United States

The Union County Magnet High School (UCMHS) is a magnet public high school located in Scotch Plains on the Union County Vocational Technical Schools Campus, serving the vocational and technical educational needs of students in ninth through twelfth grades throughout Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school's goal is to prepare students for college/vocational training utilizing technology through problem solving, project-based learning, and interdisciplinary education. Students must apply to enter the school and the school accepts one-thirds of applicants. The school is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1946.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Summerlin, Nevada</span> Planned community in Nevada, United States

Summerlin is a community in the Las Vegas Valley of Southern Nevada. It lies at the edge of the Spring Mountains and Red Rock Canyon to the west; it includes the census-designated place of Summerlin South, is partly within the official city limits of Las Vegas and partly within unincorporated Clark County. This community occupies over 22,500 acres and holds over 230 parks, more than two dozen public and private schools, 14 houses of worship, ten golf courses, three resort hotels, recreational facilities, retail and entertainment centers, well-established office parks, a medical center, and more.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KLVX</span> PBS member station in Las Vegas

KLVX, branded Vegas PBS, is a PBS member television station in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is the flagship outlet of the KLVX Communications Group, a subsidiary of the Clark County School District. KLVX's studios are located at the Vegas PBS Educational Technology Campus in Paradise, and its transmitter is located atop Black Mountain, near Henderson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clark County School District</span> School district in Nevada, US

The Clark County School District (CCSD) is a school district that serves all of Clark County, Nevada, including the cities of Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, and Boulder City; as well as the census-designated places of Laughlin, Blue Diamond, Logandale, Bunkerville, Goodsprings, Indian Springs, Mount Charleston, Moapa, Searchlight, and Sandy Valley. The district is divided into three regions and operates over 365 schools. The district has limited involvement with charter schools, and with the exception of providing some bus service, does not have any involvement with the private schools in the county. As of 2020, the district is the fifth largest in the United States, serving over 320,000 students.

Eldorado High School is a public high school in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The school is a part of the Clark County School District, located in Sunrise Manor, an unincorporated area on the northeast part of the Las Vegas Valley, south of Nellis Air Force Base. Its team mascot is the Firehawks and its school colors are maroon and gold.

Charleston County School District is a school district within Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. It educates roughly 50,000 kindergarten to 12th grade students in 80 schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Las Vegas Academy of the Arts</span> Magnet high school in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

The Las Vegas Academy of the Arts is a magnet high school located in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. Students are accepted through an audition process and claim a major pertaining to performing arts or visual arts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tampa Bay Technical High School</span> Public magnet high school in Tampa, Florida

Tampa Bay Technical High School (TBT) is a public comprehensive magnet high school for grades 9–12 in Florida, United States. It was established in 1969 as Tampa Bay Vocational Technical School. The school mascot is the Titan. Students apply for one of three programs: Tampa Bay Technical High School Programs, Academy of Architecture & Environmental Design, or Academy of Health Professions. The school campus resembles a community college campus with laboratory facilities for technology programs. Transportation is provided by the Hillsborough County Public Schools through a bus transfer system.

Basic Academy of International Studies also known as Basic Academy and Basic High School, is a public high school with an embedded magnet high school that is part of the Clark County School District. It was the first high school in Henderson, Nevada, United States.

Advanced Technologies Academy (A-TECH/ATA) is a magnet public high school in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It focuses on integrating technology with academics for students in grades 9–12. The magnet school program was founded in 1994 and is part of the Clark County School District. The first year included only 9th and 10th grade, adding a grade each year. The first graduating class was 1997, and the first graduating class with all four years of attendance was 1998. The magnet school focuses on computer and technology related study fields.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palo Verde High School</span> Public high school

Palo Verde High School is a high school in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. The school was built in 1996 with an adjacent 10 portable classrooms located in Summerlin, a rapidly growing suburban community in the western portion of the City of Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County. The origin of the school's name comes from the surrounding palo verde trees. The school's ethnic ratio is 59.4% Caucasian; 17.1% Hispanic; 11.5% Asian/Pacific Islander; 11.4% African American and 0.6% Native American.

Valley High School (VHS) is a public school located in Las Vegas, Nevada that also offers three widely recognized magnet programs: the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme and Middle Years Programme, the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism (AOHT), and the MSTEM Program that was introduced in 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A, which is a part of the Clark County School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palm Harbor University High School</span> Public school in Palm Harbor, Florida, United States

Palm Harbor University High School, also known as PHUHS, is a Pinellas County public high school in Palm Harbor, Florida for grades 9–12. The school's mascot is the Hurricane and the school's colors are navy and maroon. The campus was built in 1996 and was originally to be known as the University High School at Palm Harbor. The word University emphasized the intended cooperation with the University of South Florida, but this did not materialize. In the 2014–2015 school year, the school added a biomedical focus to the existing CWMP program. Students at PHUHS belong to either the traditional program, which is called the University Program, or one of two magnet programs:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canyon Springs High School (North Las Vegas, Nevada)</span> Public high school in Nevada, United States

Canyon Springs High School is a public high school in North Las Vegas, Nevada, and is part of the Clark County School District. Canyon Springs is also home to the Leadership and Law Preparatory Academy and was one of three schools opened by the district in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southeast Career Technical Academy</span> Magnet public high school

The Southeast Career Technical Academy is a magnet public high school in Las Vegas, Nevada. Opened as the Southern Nevada Vocational Technical Center in 1966, it was the first public educational institution of its kind launched by the Clark County School District. Its name was changed before the start of the 2007-2008 school year.

Desert Pines High School is a public high school in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, and is a part of the Clark County School District. The school which opened in 1999, also houses the Academy of Information Technology and the Academy of Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Desert Oasis High School</span> Public high school

Desert Oasis High School is a public high school located in Enterprise, in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the United States. Opened in August 2008, the school is a part of the Clark County School District and was the first new public school to be opened in Clark County since Legacy High School was opened in 2006. The school also transferred approximately 1,000 students from Sierra Vista High School and others from Liberty High School.

Northwest Career and Technical Academy, or NWCTA, is a nine-month magnet school in Las Vegas, Nevada in the Clark County School District (CCSD). The school first opened for the 2007-2008 school year, admitting only freshman and sophomores. Each year, another grade was added to accommodate the influx of students until all four grades were implemented in the 2009-2010 school year. Currently, the school holds a five star rating with the district.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "West Career & Technical Academy". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "West Career and Technical Academy opens in Summerlin". Las Vegas Review-Journal. September 4, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  3. ↑ "West Career & Technical Academy Profile (2019-20) | Las Vegas, NV". Public School Review. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Takahashi, Paul (August 30, 2010). "Summerlin magnet school welcomes 750 students". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "About Us". West Career and Technical Academy. Archived from the original on March 8, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  6. ↑ Morton, Neal (August 13, 2015). "Student sues CCSD for banning formation of anti-abortion club". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  7. ↑ Morell, Casey; Schoenmann, Joe (September 9, 2015). "CCSD Student Talks About Pro-Life Club". Nevada Public Radio. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Biomedical Science". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  9. ↑ "Biotechnology". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  10. ↑ "Business Management". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  11. ↑ "Cybersecurity". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  12. ↑ "Digital Media". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  13. ↑ "Engineering". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  14. ↑ "Environmental Management". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  15. ↑ "Nursing". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  16. ↑ "Sports Medicine". wctawranglers.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  17. ↑ https://frc-events.firstinspires.org/team/7183

Commons-logo.svg Media related to West Career and Technical Academy at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.