Congrats to the Class of 2024

June 8, 2024 was W.F. West's 132nd annual Commencement ceremony and 199 members of the Class of 2024 walked across the stage at Bearcat Stadium and into the next leg of their journey. Congratulations to our recent graduates and their families. Here's a few things we want you to know about the Bearcat Class of 2024:

• 24% are starting their secondary education and training in an apprenticeship, military, or in specific careers
• 76% are starting their post secondary education and training at a 2 year college, technical school, or a 4 year college or university
• 29 Running Start students earned both their high school diploma and their associates degrees

• As of June 8, the Class of 2024 had been awarded scholarships worth more than $3.2 million

• 55 received the West and Coffman scholarships

• 76 earned a place on the Honor Roll, meaning they maintaining a total grade point average of 3.25 or above
• 10 earned full honors, fulfilling the requirements in three or four honors pathways.
• 14 earned honors in STEM coursework
• 21 earned honors in the English curriculum
• 30 received honors in the field of Humanities (social studies and world languages)
• 13 earned honors in performing arts
• 24 earned the community service honors award, completing a combined total of 13,068 hours of community service and
• 3 achieved the Seal of Biliteracy, meaning they are fluent in 2 or more languages
• 6 earned the CTE Pathway Commercial Arts Award
• 2 earned the CTE Pathway Automotive Technology Award
• 9 earned the CTE Pathway award for Child and Family Science
• 2 earned the CTE Pathway Welding Award
• 2 earned the CTE Pathway Metals Technology Award
• 7 earned the CTE Pathway Sports Medicine Award

On June 14, nine members the Lewis County Alternative School/Turning Point Class of 2024 gathered at the Olympic building to celebration graduation with their friends and family. In all, 15 students graduated from Turning Point this year and they were the 10th class of graduates to come out of the alternative school since it was founded. Here are some more numbers about Turning Point's graduates:

• 128 students total have graduated from Turning Point
• 60% graduated on time
• 29% graduated later than their peers
• 11% graduated earlier than their peers

A total of 11 members of the Class of 2024 wore blue and white honor cords at graduation marking that they had completed 4 years in the AVID program. A special ceremony held on June 5 honored these students' accomplishments and allowed them to share their experiences and words of thanks to teachers and mentors who had helped them succeed.

This year's AVID graduates were: Krisel Aburto-Ortiz, going into the U.S. Air Force; Cameron Elliott, heading to Everett Community College; Emily Hartwell, heading to Centralia College; Ava Hilkemeier, headed to Aveda Institute, Portland; Gabriel Lopez, heading to St. Martin's University; Gabriel Martinez, heading to U.S. Army; Andyn McGinty, U.S. Marine Corps; Savanna Pluard, heading to Centralia College; Ceeley Porter, heading to Centralia College; Justino Sanchez Hernandez, heading to Bates Technical College; and Maritza Valencia Alvarado, heading to Washington State University.

Three students from the VISIONS class of 2024 graduated June 13. Friends, family and staff gathered to honor the work of Chance Naumann of Centralia, John Striedinger of Centralia, and Morgan Walker of Chehalis. Congratulations to all three of these awesome students and best of luck on your next journeys.

Re-Watch the Stream

Did you miss the W.F. West Scholarship Night on June 6 or Commencement Ceremonies on June 8 or do you just want to relive the fun? Both events are still available to view on the Chehalis School District Website or the W.F. West Website. Viewing links are located on the right hand side, near the bottom of the page.

If you'd like a copy of the video to keep, you can bring in a thumb drive that can hold more then 1.2 gigabytes to the Chehalis School District Office at 310 SW 16th Street (sharing a parking lot with W.F. West High School) and we can download a copy for you. Contact Public Information Officer Carrina Stanton at cstanton@chehalisschools.org to arrange a time.

Download Photos

CLICK HERE to go to a Google Folder of photos from W.F. West Senior Week activities, W.F. West Commencement, AVID graduation, Turning Point Commencement and VISIONS Commencement. Families may download these photos for free to enjoy or share.

Catch up With The Chronicle

A big thank you to Ridley Hudson of The Chronicle for attending the W.F. West Commencement ceremony. CLICK HERE to check out a gallery of her photos from the event.

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