Our School
West Carleton Secondary School serves a large geographical area stretching from Arnprior to the western part of Kanata and is an important resource for the surrounding community for use by local groups for athletic and other community programs. It is situated on 107 acres of field, wetland, and forest.
Our space is shared with the Bill Mason Centre, an outdoor education and environmental studies centre.
Our school is a modern facility with an average enrolment of 1100 students each year. We are proud to offer a full range of learning opportunities and pathways to meet the needs of all of our students. We pride ourselves on our sense of community, providing a supportive and family atmosphere that promotes student well-being and academic excellence balanced in a wide range of interdisciplinary and technological learning opportunities. Our results in EQAO measures (Grade 9 Mathematics and the Ontario Literacy Test) and OCDSB Board-Wide evaluations show high levels of student achievement.
Our Students
The community atmosphere at West allows students to feel comfortable and welcome within their environment, fostering a sense of family within our school. Of our graduating students, nearly 75 percent chose to pursue further studies at university or college, and the balance choose the world of work, apprenticeships, and travel. Students attending West Carleton come from a variety of community schools including Jack Donohue P.S., Huntley Centennial P.S., Stephen Leacock P.S., St. Michael's E.S., Stonecrest P.S., W.E. Johnston P.S., and other secondary schools in the area.
Our Staff
The West Carleton staff is composed of over 90 members including teachers, technicians, administrative and support staff and custodial staff who bring a wide range of experience and talent to enrich the learning environment of our students. The majority of our teaching staff members are specialists in their subject area. We have a dynamic blend of experienced teachers and beginning teachers, which creates a perfect mix of youthful enthusiasm and rich teaching experience. Our staff is very involved in providing an extensive program of clubs, teams, and other opportunities which forge positive connections between students and the school. We welcome additional staff from community to our school to support students in a wide variety of programs. Many of our staff live in the community we serve.
Our Community
Our school has fostered a close working relationship with support agencies within our community. We are currently working with the Western Ottawa Community Resource Centre, Rideauwood, the Early Intervention Program, Youth Services Bureau, Youth Net, the Youth Employment Resource Centre, Youth Connexxions, and the Regional Municipality Health Unit. The School Council meets in our school library monthly. If you would like more information about the School Council at West Carleton please see our website for contact information. Many of our senior students participate in co-operative education programs partnered with a diverse sector of employers.
Facilities and Resources
Our school is a very modern and well equipped facility housing:
- a tech wing with transportation, construction, communications labs and an exploring technologies facility;
- an arts wing containing a drama studio, a music studio, visual and computer arts classrooms;
- a double and single gym, a weight room, a fitness centre, a large dance studio, and a climbing wall including high rope elements;
- a library with an attached computer lab; four other fixed computer labs and three mobile computer labs, a kitchen classroom for food and nutrition instruction, modern science labs, and other specialized learning classrooms;
- a video projector in every classroom (including portables) and 23 classrooms equipped with SmartBoard technology.
Mission Statement
Our school slogan is:
“We Are West! Learning, Responsibility, Respect”.
This slogan reflects our sense of community and our focus on key values that are essential to all students regardless of academic goals or destinations.
Programs and Services
Academic Programs
As a composite community school we prepare our students for post-secondary education and employment. We offer a complete academic program in English, Math, Science, Canadian & World Studies, Social Sciences and a Languages program including Spanish and both French Immersion and Extended French certificates. Additionally we offer an Arts program including Music, Dance, Drama, Visual Arts, Photography, and Computer Art; Transportation, Construction and Communication Technologies; a Technical Skills Internship Program featuring a house-building partnership with local builders that includes an opportunity to obtain a Specialist High Skills Major certification; an excellent Physical and Health Education Department with expertise in Outdoor Education; and interdisciplinary programs such as Police Services and Fire Protection and Yearbook. Our Student Success program provides students with specialized literacy, numeracy and academic assistance and also involves credit recovery to support student success. A Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) program is available for interested students.
Classroom Organization
Our school is organized to provide a complete academic program in all pathways leading to a full range of opportunities for post-secondary education, apprenticeships and the world of work. The semestered structure offers many opportunities for students in areas such as House Building and other specialized Technology courses, Cooperative Education, Fine Arts, and Outdoor Education programs. All areas of the school have wireless internet access. Computers are widely available for class and individual use and students are encouraged to bring their own technology to support learning in all subject areas. All math and science classrooms benefit from dedicated SmartBoard technology, and SmartBoards are also installed in our library, business, languages, and social science classrooms.
The school day is comprised of 4 class periods of 75 minutes each. We operate on a day one/day two schedule with odd dates on the day one schedule and even dates on the day two schedule.
Special Education and ESL Programs
Our Learning Support Teachers work with students who require additional assistance and supports. They offer educational support within the classroom and in our resource center. A Learning Strategies course is also offered and we provide specialized support for students through our Student Success Teacher and Program. Enrichment opportunities are available for students who wish to take advantage of them. Our Student Success Team provides both short and long term support for credit rescue and credit recovery opportunities for our students as well as providing support for students taking e-learning and Independent Study courses.
Clubs and Activities
Students are encouraged to participate fully in school life. We offer a wide range of co-curricular activities including:
- an active Intramural program providing students with a lunch hour activity-based program;
- a full range interscholastic athletic program that includes over 20 teams for both boys and girls;
- Student Council initiatives such as dances, coffee houses and spirit days;
- fund raisers for charitable organizations;
- student activities and clubs to support a wide range of interests such as an anime club, improv team, school newspaper; art club, creative writing club, leadership camps, social justice club, GSA, debate team, the CoExist Crew, ski and snowboard club, environmental club, book club, D&D club, Ultimate team, and concert and jazz bands;
- musical, dramatic, and dance performances and a variety of other opportunities that enrich student experience.
- knowing the connection between eating breakfast and success at school, we run a breakfast club daily before class.