West Catholic High School is a private Catholic

college preparatory A college-preparatory school (often shortened to prep school, preparatory school, college prep school or college prep academy) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to public, private independent or parochial schools primarily design ...

secondary school in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

(U.S.). It opened in 1962 with loans from Kenowa Hills Public Schools. It is located within the Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids.

Academics

West Catholic has been honored each year since 2008 as one of the top Catholic high schools in the United States by the

Cardinal Newman Society The Cardinal Newman Society is an American 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, nonprofit organization founded in 1993 whose stated purpose is to promote and defend faithful Catholic education. The organization is guided by Cardinal John Henry Newman's ''The Id ...

. With sixteen

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

courses taught on campus and

Dual Enrollment In the United States, dual enrollment (DE), also called concurrent enrollment, programs allow students to be enrolled in two separate, academically related institutions. Generally, it refers to high school students taking college or university cour ...

credits through a partnership with Aquinas College also offered on-site, the ''Washington Post'' listed West Catholic as one of the most challenging private high schools in the United States for 2014, 2015, and 2016.

Athletics

Grand Rapids West Catholic High School is a member of Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue Division. However, through the 2007-2008 school year, West Catholic was a member of

Grand Rapids City League {{unreferenced, date=January 2015 The Grand Rapids City League (GRCL) was a high school athletic league in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The GRCL originated in the spring of 1928 when seven Grand Rapids high schools competed in the first City Track Meet ...

. West Catholic is also a school of the

Michigan High School Athletic Association The Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) is a service organization for high school sports in Michigan and is headquartered in East Lansing, Michigan, East Lansing. It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Assoc ...

(MHSAA). State Championships (MHSAA unless noted): * 1970 Boys' Football - Class B * 1970 Boys' Cross Country - Class B * 1979 Girls' Basketball - Class B * 1984 Girls' Gymnastics - Open Class * 1990 Girls' Basketball - Class B * 2003 Boys' Across Country - Division 3 * 2004 Boys' Team Track n' Field - Division 3 * 2008 Boys' Team Track n' Field - Division 3 * 2008 Girls' Team Track n' Field - Division 3 * 2009 Boys' Team Track n' Field - Division 3 (MITCA) * 2010 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2013 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2014 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2015 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2016 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2017 Boys' Football - Division 5 * 2022 Boys' Football - Division 6

Student life

''The Westword'' is West Catholic's student newspaper. It is published on a monthly basis by members of the Journalism class each month. The ''Westword'', a staple of student life at West Catholic, won Spartan Awards, the highest honor awarded by the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association (MIPA). The name, ''Westword'', is a pun on ''westward'', which refers to a direction.Frank, Tom (2007, 08, 14). Catholic Schools. The Grand Rapids, p. B2.

Notable alumni

Greg Meyer Greg Meyer (born September 18, 1955) is an American long-distance runner. Meyer's winning time for the 1983 Boston Marathon race was 2:09.00. He was the last American to win the Boston Marathon until 2014, and the last person born in America to w ...

, 1983 Boston Marathon champion

References

External links

* {{authority control Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids Catholic secondary schools in Michigan Educational institutions established in 1962 Schools in Grand Rapids, Michigan 1962 establishments in Michigan