Bellingham School District Explained

Bellingham Public Schools
Address:1985 Barkley Boulevard
Zipcode:98225
Country:U.S.
Motto:A Collective Commitment
Grades:K–12, with preschool and pre-K offered for certain students.[1]
Superintendent:Greg Baker
Schools:14 elementary, 4 middle, 4 high
Students:11,614 (2022–2023)
Teachers:705.48 (FTE; 2022–2023)
Ratio:16.46 (2022–2023)

Bellingham School District No. 501 (operating as Bellingham Public Schools) is a public school district serving Bellingham, Washington. The district enrolls nearly 12,000 students across its schools and programs,[2] [3] and is the fourth-largest employer in Whatcom County.[4] The strategic plan of Bellingham Public Schools is known as "The Bellingham Promise".[5]

In 2006, the Center for Digital Education, along with the National School Boards Association, named the Bellingham School District 6th in the nation for districts with 2501-15000 students.[6] [7] They were also awarded an "excellence in equity" award in 2019, from the Washington State School Directors' Association,[8] and a green ribbon for sustainability from the U.S. Department of Education in 2022.[9]

Schools

High schools

Bellingham Public Schools includes four high schools, all serving grades 9–12.[10]

!School!Mascot!Enrollment (2022–2023)!WIAA[11] !Notes
Bellingham High School (BHS)Bayhawks1,218[12] Northwest Conference (2A)Located in the Sunnyland neighborhood, Bellingham's attendance area includes most of Bellingham's city center, and is bound by Squalicum's area to the north and Sehome's to the south.[13]
Options High School (OHS)Armadillos188[14] NoneLocated directly adjacent to Bellingham High School, Options is a "school of choice" and does not have its own attendance area.[15] Options provides an alternative education experience, with smaller class sizes for more accessible learning.[16] [17]
Sehome High School (SHS)Mariners1,163[18] Northwest Conference (2A)Located in the Happy Valley neighborhood, Sehome is the southernmost of the district's high schools.
Squalicum High School (SqHS)Storm1,280[19] Northwest Conference (2A)Located in the Barkley neighborhood, Squalicum is the northernmost of the district's high schools.

Middle schools

The district includes four grade 6–8 middle schools.

!School!Mascot!Feeds to!Notes
Fairhaven Middle SchoolGrizzly Bears[20] SehomeFairhaven is located in the Edgemoor neighborhood. The school was originally Fairhaven High School, but it burned down New Year's Eve of 1935, reopening as a junior high in 1937 and a middle school in 1967.[21]
Kulshan Middle SchoolThunderbirds[22] Bellingham, Sehome, and SqualicumKulshan is located in the Whatcom Falls neighborhood.
Shuksan Middle SchoolCougars[23] Bellingham and SqualicumShuksan is located in the Birchwood neighborhood.
Whatcom Middle SchoolWildcats[24] Bellingham and SqualicumWhatcom is located in the Lettered Streets neighborhood. The school was originally built in 1903 and named North Side High School. It was also named Whatcom High School before becoming a middle school.[25] [26] Whatcom Middle School burned down on November 5, 2009; due to rebuilding, the school reopened in 2011.[27]

Elementary schools

Grades K–5

Other programs

Neighborhood references: City of Bellingham.[28] [29]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Early Childhood Education . . 2023-11-12.
  2. Web site: Bellingham School District . 2024-11-02 . Search for Public School Districts . National Center for Education Statistics.
  3. Web site: Bellingham School District . 2024-11-02 . Washington State Report Card . OSPI.
  4. Web site: 2021 Whatcom County Top Employers List . Center for Economic and Business Research . Western Washington University.
  5. Web site: The Bellingham Promise . 2023-11-13 . . en-US.
  6. Web site: Digital School Boards Survey . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20061130053249/http://www.centerdigitaled.com/surveys.php?survey=school_boards . 2006-11-30 . 2023-11-12 . Center for Digital Education.
  7. Bellingham School Board Honored as Tech-Savvy . . Rowe . Tanya Kerstiens . https://web.archive.org/web/20070927040708/http://www.bsd501.org/go/doc/420/138321/ . 2023-11-12 . 2007-09-27.
  8. Web site: Teehan . Joe . November 25, 2019 . Bellingham Schools Board of Directors honored . 2023-11-13 . . en-US.
  9. Web site: Hoffman . Hailey . April 23, 2022 . Bellingham Public Schools awarded Green Ribbon for sustainability . 2023-11-13 . . en.
  10. Web site: Our Schools . 2024-11-03 . . en-US.
  11. Web site: Bellingham School District . 2024-11-02 . FinalForms . Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.
  12. Web site: Bellingham High School . 2024-11-02 . Search for Public Schools . National Center for Education Statistics.
  13. Web site: Attendance Areas . 2023-11-13 . . en-US.
  14. Web site: Options High School . 2024-11-02 . Search for Public Schools . National Center for Education Statistics.
  15. Web site: Registration . 2024-11-02 . Options High School . Bellingham Public Schools.
  16. News: Mittan . Kyle . June 6, 2016 . What to know as new Options High School gets built in Bellingham . 2023-11-12 . The Bellingham Herald.
  17. News: Showalter . Rachel . June 28, 2024 . Bellingham School District’s first school-based health clinic in development at Options High . 2024-11-02 . The Bellingham Herald.
  18. Web site: Sehome High School . 2024-11-02 . Search for Public Schools . National Center for Education Statistics.
  19. Web site: Squalicum High School . 2024-11-02 . Search for Public Schools . National Center for Education Statistics.
  20. Web site: Students . 2024-11-24 . Fairhaven Middle School . Bellingham Public Schools.
  21. News: Gallagher . Mary Lane . March 15, 2012 . November 10, 2007 . Milestones: Bellingham students still walk historic hallways . 2023-11-12 . The Bellingham Herald.
  22. Web site: About Our School . 2024-11-24 . Kulshan Middle School . Bellingham Public Schools.
  23. Web site: About Our School . 2024-11-24 . Shuksan Middle School . Bellingham Public Schools.
  24. Web site: Whatcom: Track & Field and Cross Country Statistics . 2024-11-24 . . en.
  25. Web site: 2009-11-05 . Historic Bellingham middle school destroyed by fire . 2023-11-13 . . en-US.
  26. News: Whatcom Middle School history . 2023-11-12 . The Bellingham Herald.
  27. News: Cox . Kira M. . August 30, 2011 . February 9, 2011 . Whatcom Middle School to reopen in fall 2011, one year early . 2023-11-12 . The Bellingham Herald.
  28. Web site: CityIQ Online Map Viewer . 2024-11-02 . . en-US.
  29. Web site: Neighborhood Map . 2024-11-02 . . en-US.

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