SEHOME HIGH SCHOOL
2700 Bill McDonald
Parkway
Bellingham,
WA 98225
2008-2009 480-083 http://sehome.bham.wednet.edu
Counselors:
Bobby
Stafford Julie Kratzig Michelle Nilsen
A – F G – M N
- Z
rstaffor@bham.wednet.edu jkratzig@bham.wednet.edu mnilsen@bham.wednet.edu
Sehome High School is located in Bellingham,
Washington. Located on Bellingham Bay
with Mt. Baker as its backdrop, Bellingham, in Whatcom County, is the last
major city before the Washington coastline meets the Canadian border.
Bellingham, the county seat, is 90 miles north of Seattle and 52 miles south of
Vancouver, B.C. Bellingham’s active
waterfront hosts a range of marine activities with significant change on the
horizon as area community leaders and residents consider options for development. Bellingham is home to Western Washington
University, a nationally recognized and respected, mid-sized comprehensive
university of approximately 13,352 students.
Located in a district with approximately 10,577 students, Sehome High is
one of three traditional high schools.
Sehome serves the population living in the western and southwestern
section of the city. This area includes
attractive residential and multiple dwelling housing along with lakefront and
hillside communities. Bellingham is a
community experiencing rapid growth.
Sehome High School offers a comprehensive four-year
curriculum enrolling 1,100 students in grades nine through twelve. The school opened in 1966 and has maintained and encouraged a rich tradition of academic excellence. Over 75% of the faculty hold masters
degrees; many are leaders in their field and have received local, state and
national honors. Eight of the teachers
are National Board Certified. The
Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges and the Office of the
Superintendent of Public Instruction accredit Sehome. Sehome also holds membership in the Pacific Northwest Association
for College Admission Counseling (PNACAC).
Sehome’s academic program is organized around a
six-period day. Sehome uses a modified
block schedule where students attend six 55 minute periods three days a week
and attend three two-hour periods two days a week. In addition, students leave at 10:30 on Mondays, seven times a
year, to allow for faculty curricular development. Ninth, tenth and eleventh graders are required to take six
classes. Twelfth graders are required
to take at least five classes, or less with special permission. Sehome is one of two English Language
Learner (ELL) designated high schools.
A minimum of 23.0 credits is required for graduation: 0.5 credit=1 semester, 1.0 credit=1 year. 2008-2009 graduation requirements include 3.5 credits English; 2.0 credits Mathematics; 2.0 credits Lab Science; 3.0 credits Social Studies; 1.5 credits Physical Education; 0.5 credit Health; 1.0 credit Occupational Education; 1.0 credit Fine Arts; 8.5 credits of electives. Additional requirements include the completion of a High School and Beyond Plan, a Culminating Project and meeting standard on the English and Writing sections of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL).
Sehome High School provides two curricular choices
for students in order to provide the most rigorous curriculum available to
prepare students for college.
(1) Advanced Placement (AP) is an open-enrollment
program. Courses are offered in AP
Biology, AP Calculus AB, AP Chemistry, AP English Language, AP English
Literature, AP Environmental Science, AP French Language, AP Government &
Politics: US, AP Physics B, AP Spanish Language, AP Statistics, AP US History
and AP World History. In 2007-2008, 226
students sat for 366 exams. Of the 366 exams taken, 70% earned
scores of 3, 4, or 5.
(2) Honors courses are offered in the subject
areas of English 10th, Biology, Chemistry, German IV, Advanced Orchestra,
Chamber Orchestra, Chamber Choir, Jazz Band, and Drama III.
College in the High School: In collaboration with Whatcom Community College (WCC), students
enrolled in the following classes may earn college credit: AP Physics B.
Running Start: This Washington State program allows high school juniors and
seniors to enroll in college classes that earn both high school and college
credit. Sehome High School students
most commonly attend Whatcom Community College.
Tech Prep:
This Washington State program is a technical education alternative to
the standard “college prep” sequence of study.
High school juniors and seniors enroll in high school courses that are
articulated with community or technical college programs that earn both high
school and college credit. Students
enrolled in the following classes may earn college credit: Health Care Services (HCS) I, HCS Anatomy
and Physiology, Health Care Services 2 Externship, Computer Programming Visual
Basic & Advanced Visual Basic, Design Engineering 1, 2 & Advanced, and
Web Design I & II.
Sehome High School assigns letter grades using a 4.0
system. All credited classes are
included in computing grade point average and class rank. Class rank is computed on October 1,
February 1 and June 15 using unweighted, final grades in all subjects.
Verbal Math Writing
Washington State Average 520 530 510
National Average 500 510 490
English Math Reading Science Composite
Sehome HS Average 24.8 25.3 26.2 23.5 25.1
Washington State Average 22.7 23.2 23.7 22.4 23.1
National Average 20.6 21.0 21.4 20.8 21.1
National Merit (Class of
’08): Finalists: 2 Semi-Finalists: 2 Letters of Commendation: 13
213 students graduated in the Class of 2008.
91%
of the class plans to attend college after graduation. Of that 91%, 33% matriculated to 4-year
in-state institutions, 29% matriculated to 4-year out-of-state institutions,
and 29% matriculated to 2-year institutions.
The following list indicates those institutions attended by the Class of 2008:
In State: Out-of-State:
Art Institute of Seattle Arizona State University Pitzer College
Bellingham Technical College (14) Biola University Pomona
College
Central Washington University Brigham Young University Portland State University (2)
Cornish College of the Arts Cal Polytechnic State University Rice University
Edmonds Community College Cal State University – Long Beach Sarah Lawrence College
Everett Community College College of Santa Fe Santa Monica College
Olympic Community College (2) Cornell College Simon
Fraser University
Seattle Central Community College Duke University Smith
College
Seattle Pacific University Emily Carr Institute South
Dakota State University
Skagit Valley Community College (4) Fashion Institute of Design & Merch Southern Oregon University
Spokane Falls Community College Franklin W. Olin College of Eng. University of Advancing Tech.
The Evergreen State College (2) Harvey Mudd College University of
Arizona (2)
University of Washington (25) Humboldt State University (3) University of
Colorado-Boulder (2)
University of Washington-Bothell Johns Hopkins University University of Great
Falls
Washington State University (6) Laguna College of Art & Design University of Hawaii-Manoa (2)
Western Washington University (31) Lewis & Clark College University of
Idaho
Whatcom Community College (36) Lewis & Clark State College University of
Nebraska-Lincoln
Whitman College (3) Montana
State University University
of Oregon (4)
Mount
Holyoke College University
of Portland
Northeastern
University (2) University
of San Francisco
Northwestern
University US
Military Academy-West Point
Occidental
College Vassar
College
Okanogan
College Yale
University
Orange
Coast College Willamette
University (2)
Oregon
State University (3)