High School

Mission Statement

At Western, we C.A.R.E.
Citizenship
We believe citizenship can be enhanced by effective communication and will improve our community, faculty, and student satisfaction.
We will measure growth by conducting community, faculty, and student satisfaction surveys.
Achievement
We believe achievement can be enhanced by relevant curriculum and will improve our academic progress.
We will measure growth by conducting Measures of Academic Progress (MAP).
Respect
We believe respect can be enhanced by collaborative dialogue and will improve our school culture.
We will measure growth by conducting school culture surveys and interviews.
Engagement
We believe engagement can be enhanced by interactive learning and will improve our learning environment.

About the School

Western High School, also known as Barry Western, or WHS, is a public four-year high school located at 401 McDonough Street in Barry, Illinois, a small city in Pike County, Illinois, in the Midwestern United States. WHS serves the communities of Barry, Hull, New Canton, and Kinderhook. The campus is located 30 miles southeast of Quincy, Illinois, 45 miles west of Jacksonville, Illinois, and serves a mixed small city, village, and rural residential community.

Western High School competes in the West Central Conference and is a member school in the Illinois High School Association. Their mascot is the Wildcats, with school colors of red, silver, and black. The school has no state championships on record in team athletics and activities. Due to their small enrollment, WHS coops with nearby Pleasant Hill High School for some athletics (football).

Western High School was formed out of the consolidation of Barry High School and West Pike High School in 2007. West Pike High School was preceded by Kinderhook High School years prior to that. Surrounding communities may have also possessed high schools at some time which were consolidated into the current WHS.