Group formed to enhance Webster
DAVID SCHULTE World Staff Writer
10/01/2003
Tulsa World (Final Home Edition), Page ZW1 of Community

Parents, city officials and west side business leaders have been asked to participate in the newly formed Southwest Education Initiative in an to effort increase enrollment and expand academic programs at Webster High School.

Officials from Tulsa Public Schools recently created the Southwest Education Initiative to give people an opportunity to come up with a plan to enhance educational opportunities at the high school, 1919 W. 40th St.

The group will hold its first meeting Tuesday at Tulsa Public Schools' Education Service Center, 3027 S. New Haven Ave.. Among those attending the meeting will be David Sawyer, superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools, along with other school officials, including board member Gary Percefull.

"We want to think about what we want our schools in southwest Tulsa to look like in future years," Percefull said.

Webster's future became a community concern when its enrollment dipped to 545 students last year, the lowest among Tulsa high schools. Webster then came under review by the district's School Consolidation Task Force.

Concerned that officials from the task force would recommend to the superintendent to close Webster or consolidate it with another school, the community held several meetings earlier in the year to discuss the future of the high school.

From those community meetings, an eight-page document emerged, containing many strategies to enhance the school's curriculum. That document was submitted to the district last spring.

The Southwest Education Initiative represents the next step to help improve Webster and its feeder schools in the area, Percefull said.

He added Tuesday's meeting would most likely resemble a brainstorming session that would allow members of the Southwest Education Initiative to set future academic goals for Webster and its feeder schools. Members of that group include County Commissioner Randi Miller; City Councilor Chris Medlock; Brenda Miller, director of the Urban Development Department; John Gray, president of the Southwest Chamber of Commerce; Roy Heim, president of the Southwest Tulsa Historical Society, and David Breed, executive director of Western Neighbors.

The district hopes to have a comprehensive plan in place for Webster that would target the graduating classes of 2010 and 2015, Percefull said.

Although Webster's status has created concern among school officials and the community as a whole, the school has received some good news since the start of the academic year.

As of Sept. 24, Webster had an enrollment of 645 students, which was 80 students more than what the district projected for the high school, said Don Undernehr, principal.

Though Undernehr sent more than 3,000 letters last year to families who would have children enrolled as freshman for this academic year, he credited a high rate of families with students moving to Tulsa as a reason for Webster's enrollment increase.

"I'm just thrilled that they are here," Undernehr said.

Richard Niles, president of the Webster High School Alumni Foundation, was also pleased with Webster's increase in enrollment, and hoped that if its student population remained high in future years, the district would be able to find funds for more teachers and programs at the school.

Undernehr received more good news last September when the district named Webster as one of its Standard Bearer schools.

The Standard Bearer distinction was created to recognize those schools that have shown achievement or improvement in 50 different criteria, including students' scores on standard tests and schools' attendance rate.

Percefull said he was pleased with the recent events at Webster.

"They (Webster faculty and staff) have been named a Standard Bearer school, and their enrollment is up," Percefull said. "Don Undernehr and his staff are working really hard, and now we got community that is going to work with the district and ask 'what do we want these southwest schools in Tulsa to look like in the future?'"

Both Percefull and Undernehr believe that Webster needs to continue to recruit students from the west side community, including its main feeder school, Clinton Middle School, 2224 W. 41st St.

Undernehr has already begun a recruiting drive for next year. He has planned an open house on Oct. 10 to showcase Webster's academic programs to eighth-graders, who will be in high school next year.

"We want to get them excited about the school's programs before the magnet schools talk to them," Undernehr said.

As for future programs, Undernehr said any addition to the school's curriculum would most likely require more funds for teachers and materials -- something the district didn't have last year due to budget cuts.

One program that has helped attract students to Webster is its business and information technology department. Webster offers concurrent enrollment with Tulsa Community College that allows high school students to receive college credit in business and information technology classes.

Percefull said the opportunity for Webster students to receive college credit for these classes is a definite plus for the school.

"There is no other high school in Tulsa right now that is offering concurrent enrollment like that," he said.

Percefull said Webster's enrollment could continue to increase if the city works to develop available property in west Tulsa.

He said he believed that more housing additions and retail centers in west Tulsa could draw families to the Webster community, causing students to want to attend the local high school.