Pocono Mountain West High School

Pocono Mountain West High School is a large, rural high school located in Pocono Summit, Pennsylvania, in the Pocono region of Northeast Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pocono Mountain School District and opened in 2002 to accommodate the growing population of the area. Before 2002, all high school students in the district attended one school called Pocono Mountain High School. Since 2002, students in the district have been assigned to Pocono Mountain West or Pocono Mountain East based on geography.[1] The school served 1,901 students in grades 9th through 12th, with 820 students qualifying for a federal free lunch due to family poverty. It had 114 classroom teachers in 2013.[2]

Pocono Mountain School District region in Monroe County

Graduation rate

In 2011, the school's graduation rate declined to 92%. In 2010 the graduation rate was 94%.[3]

Academics

In 2011, Pocono Mountain West High School declined to Corrective Action II 4th Year status due to chronic low achievement in mathematics and reading. In 2010, the school was in Making Progress: in Corrective Action II Level AYP status.[4]

PSSA Results
11th Grade Reading
  • 2011 - 67% on grade level, (17% below basic). State - 69.1% of 11th graders are on grade level.[5]
  • 2010 - 65% (16% below basic). State - 66% [6]
  • 2009 - 63% (18% below basic), State - 65% [7]
  • 2008 - 56% (21% below basic). State - 65% [8]
  • 2007 - 57% (20% below basic). State - 65% [9]
11th Grade Math
  • 2011 - 63% on grade level (18% below basic). In Pennsylvania, 60.3% of 11th graders are on grade level.
  • 2010 - 62% (18% below basic). State - 59%
  • 2009 - 54% (19% below basic). State - 56%
  • 2008 - 56% (25% below basic). State - 56%
  • 2007 - 44% (31% below basic). State - 53%
11th Grade Science
  • 2011 - 20% on grade level (38% below basic). State - 40% of 11th graders were on grade level.[10]
  • 2010 - 19% (37% below basic), State - 39%
  • 2009 - 19% (32% below basic). State - 40%
  • 2008 - 17% (23% below basic). State - 39%

SAT scores

From January to June 2011, 318 PMWHS students took the SAT exams. The school's Verbal Average Score was 449. The Math average score was 444. The Writing average score was 431.[11] Pennsylvania students as a whole ranked 40th among states, with SAT scores: Verbal - 493, Math - 501, Writing - 479.[12] In the United States 1.65 million students took the exam in 2011. They averaged 497 (out of 800) verbal, 514 math and 489 in writing.[13]

College remediation

According to a Pennsylvania Department of Education study released in January 2009, 26% of Pocono Mountain School Districts graduates required remediation in mathematics and or reading before they were prepared to take college level courses in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education or community colleges.[14] Less than 66% of Pennsylvania high school graduates, who enroll in a four-year college in Pennsylvania, will earn a bachelor's degree within six years. Among Pennsylvania high school graduates pursuing an associate degree, only one in three graduate in three years.[15] Per the Pennsylvania Department of Education, one in three recent high school graduates who attend Pennsylvania's public universities and community colleges takes at least one remedial course in math, reading or English.

Athletics

Pocono Mountain West is part of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference.

Athletic facilities

Pocono Mountain West's athletic facilities include one all-weather track, two baseball fields, one field hockey field, one football field, one general purpose field, one main gym, two auxiliary gyms, one pool, two soccer fields, two softball fields, and four tennis courts.[16]

Clubs and activities

Students at Pocono Mountain West can join the following clubs: poetry club, scholastic scrimmage, FBLA, Odyssey of the Mind, SADD, Science Olympiad, FCCLA, Leo Club, Speech and Debate, Yearbook, West Ambassadors, library club, green club and mock trial.[17]

Music

Pocono Mountain West Marching Band

The PMW Marching band is the 5 time Chapter Seven Group II Champions. They have participated in and won dozens of competitions along the East Coast, including two TOB Atlantic Coast Championships, a USSBA Pennsylvania State Championship, as well as placing in the top 5 in all major competitions from 2006-2009. The band is currently under the direction of Jeff Mark.

The PM West Marching Band won the Group 2 Atlantic Coast Championship in 2004 and 2005.[18] The Pocono Mountain West Marching Band also had the honor of playing for President George W. Bush when he came to the Poconos in 2005.[19]

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References
  1. Pocono Mountain School District Profile, http://www.pmsd.org/Default.aspx?tabid=67
  2. National Center for Education Statistics (2010). "Common Care data - Pocono Mountain West High School".
  3. Pennsylvania Department of Education (September 29, 2011). "POCONO MT WEST High School AYP Data Table 2010 & 2011". Archived from the original on February 28, 2014. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  4. Pennsylvania Department of Education (September 29, 2011). "Pocono Mountain West High School AYP Overview". Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  5. Pennsylvania Department of Education (September 29, 2011). "2010-2011 PSSA and AYP Results".
  6. "2010 PSSAs: Reading, Math, Writing and Science Results".
  7. Pennsylvania Department of Education (September 14, 2010). "2009 PSSAs: Reading, Math, Writing and Science Results".
  8. Pennsylvania Department of Education (August 15, 2008). "2007-2008 PSSA and AYP Results".
  9. Pennsylvania Department of Education (2007). "PSSA Math and Reading results".
  10. Pennsylvania Department of Education (September 29, 2011). "2010-2011 PSSA results in Science".
  11. Pennsylvania Department of Education (2011). "Public School SAT Scores 2011". Archived from the original on 2011-10-15.
  12. College Board (September 2011). "SAT Scores State By State - Pennsylvania". Archived from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  13. "While U.S. SAT scores dip across the board, N.J. test-takers hold steady". NJ.com. September 2011.
  14. Pennsylvania Department of Education (January 2009). "Pennsylvania College Remediation Report".
  15. National Center for Education Statistics
  16. About Pocono Mountain West High School, http://www.pmsd.org/Default.aspx?tabid=561
  17. PMSD > Schools > Secondary > Pocono Mountain West High School > Clubs & Activities
  18. Tournament of Bands Information Archive, http://www.tob-info.net/accchampions/accchampions.html
  19. President George W. Bush Visits Tobyhanna Army Depot, http://www.poconohistory.com/MonroeCounty.htm#GWbush Archived 2012-02-08 at the Wayback Machine

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