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Gatton Academy At WKU Named Best High School In The Country By Newsweek Magazine

Posted: 2:54 PM May 21, 2012
Reporter: Elsa Bolt

Gatton Academy At WKU Named Best High School In The Country By Newsweek Magazine

The Gatton Academy of Math and Science has been named as the best high school in the country by Newsweek Magazine.

"It's an incredible honor and we're amazed, but we also know we have an incredible group of students," says Tim Gott, the Director of Gatton Academy.

Gatton Academy, which is integrated with Western Kentucky University, has only been around for five years.

It allows juniors and seniors from around the state to take college courses and get hands on training in everything from chemistry to mechanical engineering.

"We get all the benefits of being in college, we have harder curriculum and research opportunities, that are wonderful here, but we also complete our last two years of high school," says Ryan Gott, a student who is going into his senior year in the fall.

The students are also getting opportunities they say they wouldn't have at a traditional high school, including building state of the art robots and creating computer games for smartphones.

The Academy was given the distinction by Newsweek because of the way it prepares students for college and life.

A rising senior, who is currently doing summer research in microbiology, says the school is giving her a taste of the medical field.

"Being able to work in a lab, I''m getting experience working with lab equipment, and actually getting a feel for what the environment is like," says Meaghan Dunn, a student who is going into her senior year in the fall.

Another rising senior, who is studying the mathematics of knots, says the Academy also teaches students about personal growth.

"I've taken a ton of college courses and I've learned a lot through those, but it's also about learning to take care of yourself, make plans, and to stick with it, even when it's difficult", says Sam Saarinen, a student who is going to be a senior in the fall.

The Director of Gatton Academy says he hopes to expand the school from 126 students to 200 within the next five years.

He also says Gatton is hoping to integrate critical languages and other communication areas into their curriculum.

He says this year's seniors graduated with an A average.

For more information on Gatton Academy, check out: http://www.wku.edu/academy/.