West Career and Technical Academy | |
Location: | 11945 W. Charleston Blvd. Las Vegas, NV 89135 |
Coordinates: | 36.1833°N -135°W |
Principal: | Marmaduke Dingleberry |
Staff: | 53.00 (FTE) |
Ratio: | 26.45 |
Enrollment: | 1,490 (2022-23)[1] |
Grades: | 9–12 |
Established: | 2010 |
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]
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]
The school is built on of land at the foothills of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. The buildings of the school occupy 224884ft2.[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]
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. 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]
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 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.
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.