Winter Park High School

Winter Park High School
Address
2100 Summerfield Road Winter Park, Florida 32792 United States
Coordinates	28°35′06″N 81°19′23″W / 28.5851°N 81.32293°W / 28.5851; -81.32293Coordinates: 28°35′06″N 81°19′23″W / 28.5851°N 81.32293°W / 28.5851; -81.32293
Information
Type	Public
Established	1927
School district	Orange County Public Schools
Superintendent	Ronald Blocker
Principal	Timothy A. Smith
Faculty	169
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	3177
Color(s)	Orange and Black
Mascot	Willie the Wildcat
Nickname	Wildcats
Website	www.wphs.ocps.net

Winter Park High School (often simply abbreviated as WPHS) located in Winter Park, Florida is one of nineteen public high schools in Orange County. Winter Park High School is a magnet school for the International Baccalaureate program and delivers Advanced Placement courses.

History

Winter Park High School was constructed at 528 Huntington Avenue in 1923, being one of the first high schools in Orange County. The school remained in this location until construction began in 1969 at the present location (420 Summerfield Rd).^[1] The original campus remains in use to this day as the Winter Park High School Ninth Grade Center, a campus exclusively used by ninth-grade students.

References in the national media

In 2008, Winter Park High School was listed at 160 in Newsweek's 1,200 Top U.S. Schools, with the criteria being which schools have the largest percentage of students taking Honors AP or IB exams.^[2]

In 2011, The Washington Post's annual ranking of American high schools identified WPHS as #156 in the country.^[3]

In the novel Paper Towns, written by John Green, Winter Park High School was attended by the main characters of the story. While Green himself did not attend school there, his brother Hank Green (see notable alumni) did.

Athletics

The following sports are offered at Winter Park:^[4]

Clubs

These clubs are available to Winter Park students:^[4]

Main Campus:

Freshman Campus:

Performing arts

Winter Park High School was named a 2004-2007 Music Demonstration School by the Florida Department of Education.

Ninth Grade Center (The Original WPHS)

First picture of the original WPHS campus in 1923.

Built in 1923 in Mediterranean Revival style at a cost of $137,000, the Winter Park High School Ninth Grade Center originally measured only 10 acres (40,000 m²). Over time, the school's population began to grow, and before long, it became overcrowded. In 1969, a new campus was constructed less than three miles (5 km) away. The old Winter Park High School became Winter Park Junior High School. In 1987, the county transitioned from junior high schools (grades 7-9) to middle schools (grades 6-8). Winter Park Junior High was not converted to a middle school; rather, it became the Ninth Grade Center affiliated with Winter Park High School, as there was not enough room on the newer high school campus for all four grades now part of high schools in the county. Now the freshman campus, with about 1,020 students, is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Freshman students wishing to participate in extracurricular activities (band, orchestra, sports, etc.) or classes not offered at the Ninth Grade Center can take a bus after their 4th, 5th, 6th, or 7th period from the Ninth Grade Center to the main campus. The Ninth Grade Center's schedule is offset eighteen minutes earlier^[5][6] to accommodate the bus ride. The campus offers a wide array of courses and prepares students for an excellent Winter Park High experience. Currently, what's left of this campus still stands today. The 100 Building, shown above, is the only original building still standing, but the newer buildings, the 500 Building and 400 Building, have been constructed. Some of the older buildings have been partially demolished in the 2008-09 school year.

Notable alumni

References

External links

• Winter Park High School official website