According to the U.S. News & World Report's 2015 Best High Schools rankings, Westside is 463 nationally and 41 in Texas.

The U.S. News & World Report rankings are designed to identify great high schools that serve all students - no matter their socioeconomic status. The list is determined by looking at results from state assessments results, as well as the degree to which students at each school are prepared for college-level work.

This ranking earns the campus a Gold Medal distinction. Six other schools joined Westside in this category.

"We are proud to see these schools recognized for their commitment to academic excellence," HISD Superintendent Terry Grier said. "This recognition highlights all the hard work being done by teachers and students on these campuses."

The Westside Theatre Production Company sent everybody away with smiles as it put on its last show of the year. The whole gang showed up on stage, including Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Peppermint Patty. Check out the cast below and try to match them with the picture above.

Snoopy is played by Christian Crawley and Juliette Mudd; Charlie Brown is played by Lorenzo Perrett and Simon Simonian, Lucy is played by Lydia Nassab and Margaret Obot, Linus is played by Walker Metyko and Kurt Hummel, Patty is played by Elizabeth Hammerly, Sally is played by Zeynep Turanli and Hannah Lykins, Woodstock is played by Edrienne Agustin, Matt Grabowski and Tre'vion Dangerfield.  Featured Singer: Malayah Stewart, Chorus: Mari Delgado, John Rhoden, Maxwell Meyko and Hannah Henderson.

Tatum was presented with an award from the HISD special education office in her classroom on Thursday for making it to the top 5! 

Pictured with her teacher, Ms. Salinas, Tatum hopes her message of autism awareness and compassion will empower those on her campus. Her artwork will be on display this summer during the HISD special education summit in July. 

Westside High School nominated Mrs. PuiMun Molloy, mother of Juliette Molloy for the VIPS of the Year Award. Last Thursday, the district announced at a special recognition ceremony at the Hattie Mae White Educational Center that Ms. Molloy was one of the top three volunteers in HISD for school year 2014-2015. 

VIPS annual volunteer awards are designed to recognize the many valuable contributions made by volunteers in the Houston Independent School District. 

Thank you so much Mrs. Molloy for everything you do for us here at Westside! You are our "Winner"! 

The CBVI Program is designed to provide vocational instruction. Participating in community employment allows students to put their functional academic skills to practical use, and aids in the acquisition of social, behavioral, and job skills. 

 Throughout the year, our students who participate in CBVI, train so hard out in the community and on campus. To show appreciation for their excellent work ethic, I have them choose a place they would like to go to celebrate their accomplishments. This year they chose The Downtown Aquarium, and we all had a blast!

Westside will offer summer school to students who failed classes during the school year.  Please check your child's last report card to see if he/she will need to take classes this summer.  If you have additional questions, please contact your child's dean.  Students may register for summer school after each final every day starting May 22nd  and ending May 29th.   Summer School applications are online at www.westsidewolves.org

Summer School will start June 3 and end July 1. 

The days are Monday - Thursday from 8:00 to 2:30.  The following classes will be offered:

English 1

English 2

Algebra 1

Geometry

Biology

Chemistry

World Geography

World History

US History

Some junior and senior classes are offered in the Grad Lab with Ms. Moser.  Summer School Grad Lab applications are on the web at here.

If you have any questions, please contact Cheryl Williams at 281 920-8044 or cbyrd@houstonisd.org

Mrs. Ford's AP Chemistry class and Mr. Dan Fox, beloved volunteer visited Houston Fire Department Station 22. The focus was with the Hazardous Materials Response Team. 

The presentations were arranged by Captain Charles Rogers, who donated his free time, as he came in on his day off.

 
Captain Rogers and the crew had prepared a fascinating program of lectures, demos and hands-on activities.  They explained a lot of applied chemistry and demonstrated several field instruments like radiation detector, infrared spectrophotometer, and four-gas analyzer.  

The highlight was letting some of the students and Mrs. Ford put on haz-mat suits and an air pack.   

 
Half-way thru our trip an alarm sounded; there were some pallets burning in a warehouse.  That's not a Haz-Mat callout issue, but the burning pallets were near some acetylene cylinders, and that was a Haz-Mat issue.

The regular fire truck put out the fire quickly, so the Haz-Mat crew just came back to the station.  The response of the Haz-Mat crew was impressive:  Within 60 seconds of the alarm sounding, three trucks were rolling to the call.

 
We deeply appreciate the efforts of Captain Rogers and the crew.  Outstanding job!  Thank you! 

A special thanks to Mr. Fox, who volunteers a lot with our science classes for chaperoning and submitting this article.

Afterwards, Dave & Busters was the place to be where fabulous snacks were served from 1 a.m.-3 a.m., followed by a great breakfast spread from 3 a.m.-5 a.m. Students passed the time playing pool & many different games, bowling, taking pictures in the photo booth and eating. Nobody went home hungry but lots of lucky seniors went home with terrific prizes! 

A successful Senior Prom & After Prom and huge thanks to ALL the terrific parents that helped out!!! We could not have done it without you! Good luck to all our seniors as they begin the next step in their life journey! We'll miss you!

Come check out what our Westside at students have created at the Winter Street Studios, located at 2101 Winter St. Houston, TX 77007.  For more information, visit there website www.winterstreetstudio.com.

The reception is May 28, from 6-9 p.m. Thursday night, but the show will be up through the May 31. The gallery is open from 10 a.m.-6 p.m., daily.