Kensington Woods High Now Enrolling
January 11, 2006
Livingston Press & Argus
Kensington Woods High School is welcoming enrollment for the second semester. For parents and students interested in obtaining more information about Kensington, an open house will be held from 4-7 p.m. Thursday.
In 1995, the future Kensington Woods High School administration felt the most effective way to both reach students and prepare them for the challenges of the world was to increase flexibility — in instruction, scheduling and offerings. Ten years later, KWHS is seeing the results of this belief.
At Kensington Woods, zero hour begins before the start of the school day, and seventh hour extends one hour past the typical day's end — both times that were underutilized or nonexistent in traditional school scheduling.
The additional hours are meant to accommodate the students, instead of the other way around. This means students can start and end their six-hour day earlier or later, whichever works best with their schedule. Also, FlexTrac classes from 3-7 p.m. can be used for accelerated learning, credit recovery or the full-time program.
Kensington Woods student Kyle Walker explores his professional interests and earns high school graduation credits within the same schedule. He spends third through sixth hour on campus studying chemistry, geometry, American history and American literature. Kyle takes French as a community resource class through KWHS. In addition, he also focuses on his true calling and professional goal—flying.
"I've always had an interest in flying," Kyle said. "I plan on studying aviation in college and making a career out of it."
Kensington Woods' nonpaid internship program, is also geared to the students' academic schedule. Likewise, community resource courses allow students to work with a licensed or degreed professional for elective credit. The specially designed syllabus and curriculum is tailored to fit the schedules and academic focus of Kensington Woods students.
"This is not the old work-study or co-op mold of the past," says Kensington Woods principal Jim Perry. "Our internships are built around the academic rigor of the Kensington Woods curriculum and around the professional goals of our student body."
Kensington Woods is on the campus of Cleary University, 3700 Cleary Drive, Genoa Township. For information, call Perry at (517) 545-0828 or visit www.kensingtonwoodshs.com.