Madison West High School

Madison West High School is a grade 9-12 public high school in Madison, Wisconsin, operated by the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD). The school was founded in 1930. It is one of the five high schools in MMSD, and serves students from three municipalities: Madison, Shorewood Hills and Fitchburg. Located near the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the State Capitol, West High School was rated as “exceeds expectations” on the 2023–2024 School Report Card by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Its athletics teams, the Regents, compete in the WIAA Big Eight Conference. On multiple occasions, West High School has had more National Merit Scholarship semifinalists than any other high school in Wisconsin.^[6][7][8]

Madison West offers 20 out the total 40 AP classes.^{[11][12][13][14]}

West's AP courses include French Language and Culture, Spanish Language and Culture, Spanish Literature and Culture, German Language and Culture, U.S. Government and Politics, African American Studies, U.S. History, World History, Statistics, Precalculus, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science Principles, Computer Science A, Physics 1, Physics 2, Chemistry, Biology, Environmental Science, and Music Theory.^[15][14]

Though West's curriculum lacks both the English Language and Composition and English Literature and Composition AP courses, it features classes for juniors and seniors such as LUG (Language, Usage and Grammar), AWW (Advanced Writing Workshop), Survey of American Literature Honors, and Trends in 20th Century Literature that still serve to prepare students for those same exams.^[16][17][14]

In 2022, 78% of West graduates planned to "immediately enroll in a postsecondary institution." 58% planned to enroll in a 4-year college or university, 19% planned to enroll in a 2-year college, and 1% planned to enroll in the military. ^[7]

Of the colleges and universities that West graduates enrolled in, the most popular were Madison College, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities, the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse, Edgewood College, Macalester College, the University of Wisconsin–Platteville, the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire, the University of Colorado–Boulder, DePaul University, Lawrence University, Washington University, and the University of Wisconsin–Stout.^[7]

Madison West High School offers 101 extracurricular organizations and activities, alongside 21 interscholastic sports. Prominent academic competitive clubs with strong records in local, state, national, and international tournaments include:^[18]

• DECA (formerly Distributive Education Clubs of America)
• HOSA Future Health Professionals
• Mock Trial
• Math Team (offers exams for AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12, AIME, USAMO/USAJMO, and IMO)
• National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA): Forensics Team, and Debate Team are separate clubs under NSDA
• American Rocketry Challenge: Rocket Club
• Science Olympiad

The Madison West Math Team took first place in the 2015 state math meet.^[19] In 2016, they took first in the state math meet,^[20] the Wisconsin Math League,^[21] and the International Online "Purple Comet! Math Meet" for Wisconsin (20th in the U.S.).^[22]

Madison West Rocket Club was started in 2003 by freshman Thomas Hanzlik.^[23] In 2009, 2012, and 2019 it placed first in the American Rocketry Challenge (TARC) national finals.^[24][25][26] In 2020, the club submitted a proposal to the Ken Sousa Memorial Grant Contest to study the effects of space flight on organisms by sending slime molds into suborbital flight.^[27] The club completed Project Ariadne, putting slime mold through the stress of going on a suborbital flight and studying its ability to solve mazes and develop pathways competing in the 2020 NASA Student Launch Challenge.^[28][29] The club participates regularly in the American Rocketry Challenge and Rockets For Schools, where they have consistently placed at finals.

The Madison West Science Olympiad team began in 1985. The West team placed in the top 10 in the national tournament in three consecutive years from 1989 to 1991, placing 2nd in 1989.^[30] The team also finished first in the state tournament in 2012 and 2013.^[31] From 1989 to 2019 the Madison West team won state 19 times, placed second 15 times, and were invited to the national tournament 24 times. In 2024, the West team attended the National Tournament for the first time in five years, placing 13th and earning a Corteva Enterprise Award.^[32][33] In 2025, it beat its previous year's record by placing 7th nationally—representing the team's best run since 1990. ^[34][35]

Madison West's athletic teams are known as the Regents, and compete in the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association's Big Eight Conference. The Regents have won a WIAA-record 92 state championships.^[36]

Established in 1930, Madison West High School began as a junior-senior high before becoming a four-year high school in the 1960s.^[37] The building is an example of Collegiate Gothic Revival architecture, featuring pointed arches, stonework, and ornamental detailing.^[38]

At the time of its construction, the school was located at the western edge of Madison, inspiring its name. In the early 20th century, Madison’s only public high school was located downtown on the isthmus. A second school, East High School, opened in 1924 on the far east side. As western neighborhoods such as Nakoma, Wingra Park, and Westmorland grew, the school board selected the Carpenter farm on Regent Street for a new high school. The site, bordered by Highland Avenue at the city limits, was controversial. On April 22, 1924, the Capital Times reported that Board member E.E. Brossard opposed the location, citing concerns that Madison would not expand far enough west for the site to be considered central.^[39]

Fifty-seven alumni from the Classes of 1931 to 1944 are recognized as Gold Star alumni, having sacrificed in military service during for U.S. in World War II.^[40] Their names are inscribed on a memorial wall at the school's southern entrance, beneath a 13-folded triangle American flag.

In 2020, Madison voters approved a $317 million referendum to improve school facilities across the district. As part of this plan, extensive renovations began at West High in summer 2022 and were completed in fall 2024.^[41]

These renovations aimed to address overcrowding and accommodate a projected student population of 2,200, as noted in a 2019 facilities assessment by Zimmerman Architectural Studios, Inc.^[42]

Between 2022 and 2024, enrollment at West High increased significantly, contributing to overcrowding concerns.^[43]

The renovation included a new pool and gym with updated locker rooms, new classrooms and team rooms, and integrated wrestling and weight training facilities. Other additions include a library media center, expanded science labs, a welcome center, and a four-story accessibility addition to connect all school levels.^[44]

In 2020, the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) implemented a policy setting 50% as the minimum grade for assignments, including those that were not submitted. Critics raised concerns about grade inflation and its effects on academic preparedness.^[45]

Academic performance at Madison West High School has gradually declined since the 2018–19 school year, with some attributing the drop to factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, changes in district policy, and shifting cultural dynamics.^[46] From 2021 to 2024, the MMSD school board considered removing honors classes, though the proposal was not adopted following large community opposition.

In October 2019, a Black security assistant was terminated after using a racial slur while advising a student not to use it. The incident prompted student protests, and the staff member was subsequently reinstated.^[47]

In April 2021, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty threatened to sue both Madison West and the MMSD following virtual discussions on race (following the Derek Chauvin trial verdict) where parents were divided into groups for “white parents” and “parents of color,” as noted in school emails.^[48] In response, the district apologized for the "poorly worded message" and emphasized that students and families themselves had requested the separate affinity groups.^[49]

Madison West High School, in partnership with Advantage Archives, digitized its 2,414 pages of the West High Times (1930–1962) and 14,105 pages of yearbooks (1933–2020).^[44]

• School website
• District website