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Winston Churchill High School
11300 Gainsborough Rd, Potomac, MD, 20854-3799 -  Map
tel: (301)469-1200
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School Overview:
Definition of Terms Winston Churchill High School
School Level High school
Grades Offered Grades 9 - 12
County Montgomery County, MD
Awards Honored for National Blue Ribbon Award Blue Ribbon School – Selected in 2007  
Students & Faculty
Total Students 2146 students
% Male / % Female 53%  /  47%
Total Classroom Teachers 116 teachers
Students by Grade
Grade 9 - 542 students
Grade 10 - 519 students
Grade 11 - 546 students
Grade 12 - 539 students
This School ( MD ) School Average
Teacher : Student Ratio 1:19 1:16
Students by Ethnicity
This School ( MD ) School Average
% American Indian n/a n/a
% Asian 21% 5%
% Hispanic 6% 8%
% Black 7% 40%
% White 67% 46%
Additional Student Information
This School ( MD ) School Average
% Eligible for Free Lunch 2% 23%
% Eligible for Reduced Lunch 1% 8%
% Migrant Students Enrolled n/a n/a
School Performance:
( MD ) Statewide Testing Performance
School Statewide Performance View Education Department Test Scores
School District:
School District Name Montgomery County Public s School District
This School's Agency ( MD ) District Average
Number of Schools Managed 199 27
Number of Students Managed 141,639 students 16,524 students
District Total Revenue $2,068,665,000 $159,214,000
District Expenditure $2,003,474,000 $153,923,000
District Revenue / Student $14,605 $9,539
District Expenditure / Student $14,145 $9,315
District Graduation Rates 92% 86%
School Notes:
  • Winston Churchill High School, often referred to as WCHS or Churchill, is a high school in Potomac, Maryland.
  • The school's namesake is Winston Churchill, British Statesman and Prime Minister. The school was founded in 1964 and is part of the Montgomery County Public Schools system. The majority of the students come from Herbert Hoover Middle School and Cabin John Middle School.
  • Academics: Departments at Churchill:
  • Alternative Education, Art, Bridge, Computer Science, English, Family Science, Foreign Language, Jewish Studies, Mathematics, Music, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, Theater.
  • Churchill has a Signature Program, which allows students the opportunity to follow one of several rigorous course paths to specialize in a particular career field. The Signature Program is comprised of three academies: The Academy of Math, Science, & Technology; The Academy of International Studies; and The Academy of Creative and Performing Arts.
  • Performing Arts: School instrumental ensembles include the entry-level concert band and concert orchestra, the higher-level symphonic band, wind ensemble, and symphonic orchestra, and the high performance jazz ensemble. Vocal ensembles include the general chorus, Showstoppers, and Simply Irresistible. Each ensemble is assembled in an accompanying scheduled class. All ensembles typically perform at two concerts each academic year. The more advanced ensembles (namely the jazz ensemble, Showstoppers, and Simply Irresistible) perform at their own occasional concerts. Collectively, instrumental musicians participate in a pep band for rallies and football games. See the Instrumental Music Department.
  • Many theater productions are put on regularly, including several nights of one-act plays every two years, in which many students are able to participate. Theater classes at two levels and a television production class are taught.
  • Churchill is well known for its annual Blast From the Past production, in which over 200 student singers, dancers, and musicians perform a variety of popular songs from the 1950s to today, which all relate to a selected theme for each year.
  • The departments of music and theater collaborate on other productions throughout each academic year.Churchill has an excellent instrumental program, and many students successfully audition for all-county and all-state groups.
  • David Levin and Kristofer Sanz conduct Churchill's bands and orchestras. Levin is also the conductor of the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra (MCYO) Symphony Orchestra.
  • Many students form their own bands, typically of a rock variety, and the school occasionally facilitates this by sponsoring a battle of the bands or allowing band performances or even day-long concerts (such as The Merritthon, a fundraising event for Leukemia research which occurred annually from 2002 through 2004) to take place on school grounds.
  • Publications: Churchill has three publications, all of which are award-winning, including its newspaper, The Churchill Observer; its yearbook, Finest Hours, and its literary magazine, Erehwon. Each publication is accompanied by three levels of instruction in the related publishing topics.
  • Fall sports: Cross Country, Field Hockey, Football, Golf 5 consecutive state championships, Boys' Soccer, Girls' Soccer, Girls' Tennis, Girls' Volleyball.
  • Winter sports: Boys' Basketball, Girls' Basketball, Boys' Ice Hockey, Indoor Track, Swimming, Wrestling.
  • Spring sports: Baseball, Boys' Lacrosse, Girls' Lacrosse, Softball, Boys' Tennis, Track and Field, Boys' Volleyball, Co-ed Volleyball.
  • Teams are usually divided into Varsity and Junior Varsity divisions. Almost all practice daily and compete with teams from other schools, primarily other schools within Montgomery County.
  • Clubs: The school has at least 87 faculty-sponsored student-run clubs. These include many community service groups, activist groups, and interest groups.
  • Notable alumni: Mike Barrowman, 1992 Olympic gold medalist in 200m breaststroke.
  • Travis Curtis, retired NFL defensive back.
  • Jerome Dyson, Guard for the UConn Huskies. (Attended Churchill freshman and sophomore years).
  • Jeff Halpern, Dallas Stars (Attended Churchill freshman year).
  • Brian Holloway, retired NFL offensive lineman, three-time Pro Bowler.
  • Joe Jacobi, 1992 Olympic gold medalist in Whitewater Canoe Slalom.
  • Dhani Jones, linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles.
  • Jeff Kemp, retired NFL and CFL quarterback.
  • Alex Kim, 2000 NCAA Men's Tennis Champion, retired professional Tennis player.
  • Nino Marcantonio, forward for the Kansas City Comets.
  • Bruce Murray, American soccer player.
  • Paul "Boo Boo" Palmer, running back for several teams in the NFL and WLAF.
  • David "Robben" Klein lit up the field with his 18 goals in a pick-up game.
  • Others: Ben Feldman, actor.
  • Sara Gay Forden, author, "House of Gucci".
  • Michael Hardt, American literary theorist, co-author of "Empire" and "Multitude: War and Democracy in the Age of Empire".
  • Leon Harris, former CNN and current ABC anchorman.
  • Bryant Keil, owner of Potbelly Sandwich Works.
  • Deborah Copaken Kogan, journalist and author of Shutterbabe (film rights for her book were purchased by Darren Star).
  • Marti Leimbach, novelist, author of Dying Young and Daniel Isn't Talking.
  • Vijai Nathan, comedian.
  • Rachel Nichols, reporter for ESPN.
  • Hal Niedzviecki, Canadian writer.
  • George Roth, actor, graduate of Yale and Central School of Speech and Drama in London, film credits include Batman and The Russia House, TV credits include episodes of Get a Life and Murphy Brown, stage credits include the National Theatre (London) production of Brighton Beach Memoirs. Now doing regional theatre in Cleveland.
  • Brad Snyder, author of "Beyond The Shadow of The Senators," a book about the Homestead Grays, and "A Well-Paid Slave," a book about St. Louis Cardinals centerfielder Curt Flood.
  • Darren Star, television and film producer and screenwriter, best known for Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place and Sex and the City.
  • Clifford Taubes, mathematician (see Taubes's Gromov invariant.).
  • Laetitia Thompson, asked President Bill Clinton if he wore "Boxers or Briefs."
  • Bill Wadhams, Singer/guitar player for the band Animotion who had several hit songs in the 1980s including "Obsession."
  • Incidents: 26 February 1999: James A. Misenheimer, a teacher at Winston Churchill High School, is arrested on charges of one count of child abuse and two counts of third degree sexual offense. [5].
  • 3 March 2003: Robert Slack, a math teacher at Churchill, commits suicide. Two fellow math teachers visit his house to check up on him after he does not show up for work to find a note reading "Do not go upstairs. Just call the police.".
  • 13 November 2004: Sarkis "Sako" Nazarian Jr, 16, a Junior at Winston Churchill High School, is killed in a drunk-driving related accident on Travilah Rd in Potomac, MD.
  • 11 May 2005: Alexander Chaufournier, 18, dies about a month before his high school graduation from an overdose of ectasy at his home in Potomac, MD.
  • 9 October 2005: Mark Makki, an alumnus of WCHS, is arrested for murdering his mother at the family home in Potomac, MD. About a month later, charges against him are dropped after DNA evidence from an unidentified male is found on his mother's body.
  • 2 June 2006: Three teens are arrested at Winston Churchill High two nights after their graduation for vandalism and fourth degree burglary.
  • Source: Wikipedia; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL
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School Zip Code:
About This Zip Code (20854)
School Zip (20854) (MD) State Average
Population (Approximate) 46,255 people 5,071,990 people
% (age 25+) w/College Degree 79% 32%
Population Average Age 43 years old 36.0 years old
Average Household size 3.0 persons 2.5 persons
Median Household Income $140,222 $52,064
Avg. # of Rooms in Household 9.1 rooms 6.0 rooms
Median Age of Housing Structure 32 years old 42 years old
View current housing listings in 20854
% Owning / % Renting 94% / 6% 65% / 35%
School Map:
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  Nearby Schools:
1. Montgomery County Evening High School - 88 students - view location
2. Rock Terrace School - 101 students - view location
3. Thomas S. Wootton High School - 2407 students - view location
4. Walt Whitman High School - 1869 students - view location
5. Richard Montgomery High School - 1944 students - view location
View all schools in: Potomac Town, Montgomery County, Zip 20854 
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Note: Data has been gathered from several government and commercial data sources. School data reflects years 2002-04 statistics (most recent years available). Area and demographic data reflects year 2000 statistics. Public School Review does not ensure the timeliness or accuracy of the information on this site.

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