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Wilton High School is a public high school in Wilton, Connecticut, and considered "one of Connecticut’s top performers" in various measures of school success. The current principal is Timothy H. Canty, who also attended the school in the 1970s.

School enrollment increased 29 percent from 2001 to 2006. In Fall 2001, a major multi-million dollar construction project was completed, significantly expanding the square footage of the school.

In 2005-2006, Wilton High School students in 11 groups took part in the North American Music Festival in which eight schools and 1,300 students took part. Several ensembles from Wilton finished in first place and all 11 were rated "superior" or "excellent".

2007 cancellation of school play on Iraq War

In mid-March 2007, school Principal Timothy H. Canty canceled an original school play about the Iraq War, saying he was concerned the play might hurt Wilton families “who had lost loved ones or who had individuals serving." He also cited problems of political balance.

The play, "Voices in Conflict", had been written and practiced by students in an advanced acting class and planned to present it in April during the school day. The play was made up of reflections of soldiers and others involved in the conflict, including a letter from a 2004 graduate of the school who was killed in Iraq in September 2006, at age 19. Although the drama teacher and another teacher revised the play in an attempt to meet the objections, Canty again decided the play should not be shown. One rationale was that a high school stage was an inappropriate forum for such a discussion.

Canty's cancellation of "Voices in Conflict" was fully legal, despite notable uproar. The story achieved recognition on national television programs such as "Good Morning America." Yet, some of the students sympathized with Canty, recognizing that the situation had spun out of control. These students saw thousands of people around the world with no first-hand knowledge of the situation quickly become Canty's biggest critics, even ganging up on one student who had suggested cancellation.

First Amendment lawyers contacted by a New York Times reporter said the principal "had some leeway to limit speech that might be disruptive and to consider the educational merit of what goes on during the school day", according to a news article. But the cancellation became controversial in town, particularly among students.

The principal had restricted student speech at the school in previous incidents. The administration required that yearbook quotations come from well-known sources in order to prevent coded messages. (This was motivated by incidents occurring in nearby school districts.) Posters from the school's Gay Straight Alliance on stairwells prompted the administration, citing concerns over public safety, to require that all student posters be approved in advance. An initial decision to ban bandanas because they could be associated with gangs, prompted hundreds of students to start wearing them, and officials backed down.

Wilton Bulletin's March 29 issue contained an op-ed and many letters to the editor calling for either Canty's resignation or to allow the play to continue. Some letters, however, asked whether the Times article had been biased. The Bulletin's editorial supported Canty, stating that he "made a tough call...while at the same time reaching out to students in the hopes of finding a way to a middle ground." The editorial did criticize Canty and the drama teacher for not handling the situation better from the start so that bias issues could be addressed and the play could go on.

Days after the controversy became public, Music Theatre International, a 54-year-old company that supplies scripts and musical materials to theaters, created a "Courage in Theatre" award for the students in the class and announced the granting of the award.

The students have gone on to perform at the Fairfield Theatre Company, The Vineyard Theatre, The Culture Project, and The Public Theater.

The play was directed by Wilton drama teacher Bonnie Dickinson. The cast was formed of students Sarah Anderson, Nick Basile, Erin Clancy, Afton Fleming, Devon Fontaine, Seth Koproski, Chris Kozlowski, Natalie Kropf, Nick Lanza, Cameron Scott Nadler, Jimmy Presson, Allie Rizzo, Tara Ross, Dagan Rossini, Taylor Telyan, and Michael Ward.

The play will be featured in a documentary on HBO.

Swine Flu in Wilton High School

On May 10, 2009, the superintendent of schools in Wilton called every student's house to inform the school that there had been one report case of swine flu (H1N1 Virus) in Wilton. A voy who does crew. The school did not shut down because of this. So far, over 9000 cases have been reported.

History of secondary education in town

Before 1959

Even though Wilton became an independent town in 1802, separating from Norwalk, its education system was highly unorganized until the late 1950s. Prior to the 1959 academic year, all students seeking public secondary school education had to attend Staples High School in Westport. Although it must be noted, students who did not want to attend a public institution had many options. A Montessori School has existed in the town for many years, which originally catered to a high school curriculum, among others.

High School shuffle 1959-1971

The WHS class of 1959, which consisted of 57 seniors, is universally recognized as the first publicly educated class the town has ever produced; this was only the formation of a period of constant transition for Wilton students. These students were taught in the building known as the Cider Mill School, which is presently a post-elementary, pre-middle school institution, educating children in grades 3, 4 and 5. The facility was being used as a junior high school prior to 1959. In 1962, the public secondary education building moved again. This time the destination was a brand new structure presently known as the Middlebrook School. The first graduating class of this new high school, the class of 1963, numbered 170. Overall enrollment that year was 615. Although this was a new facility, it was quickly deemed as inappropriate due to its diminutive size, in the wake of the "baby boomer" education era. The present day Wilton High School opened its doors in September 1971, reaching a maximum student population of 1646 during the 1976-77 academic year. WHS has graduated nearly 12,500 students as of the 2006-07 academic year.

ProjectAsha

ProjectAsha is a sister city program with Kannauj, India which was established in October 2005 by Wilton students and run from within the school. WHS graduates Liz de Moll and Purvi Sarup ran the organization, providing computers for less fortunate girls in India.

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Athletics

Boys lacrosse

The Wilton High School boys lacrosse program is perennially regarded as a powerhouse in the northeast United States, as it is one of the most decorated programs in the country. In the 36 years since the sport gained school-sponsorship, the team has won 21 Connecticut state championships, and 13 FCIAC titles. Guy Whitten, who was already employed by the school as an algebra teacher and the varsity football coach, was hired in 1969 to field a competitive group of athletes from the schools club and intramural programs. Whitten, who is regarded as an influential figure to the popularity that the sport enjoys today throughout the state, would end up coaching boys lacrosse at WHS for 26 years before his retirement following the conclusion of the 1995 season. Whitten competed for years against veteran New Canaan coach Howard Benedict. Whitten and Benedict are considered the "Founding Fathers of Connecticut Lacrosse." Whitten was chosen to represent his country as the Head Coach of the USA U-19 National Team, who won the World Championship in Adelaide, Australia in 1988. Upon retirement, Whitten had tabulated 410 wins versus only 77 losses for a career winning percentage of %.842. At the time, he was one of only four coaches in the history of the sport to reach the 400 win plateau. In the history of Wilton Lacrosse, the varsity team has never had a losing season, the lowest record ever by the Warriors was in 2007 when they went %.500. Many of the program's athletes have gone on to compete in collegiate teams on the NCAA division I level;

Boys Ice Hockey

Wilton high school boys ice hockey was established in 1974, but has never won a state championship. Won 2 FCIAC titles in 1999 and 2004, and reached the semi-finals in the D. II state tournament. The warriors finished with a 14-6 record in 2004. The most notable players out of the Wilton high school ice hockey program are Jack Christian and Brendan Milnamow, who both went on to play Division 1 college ice hockey. (Harvard, Union, respectively)

Girls lacrosse

The girls varsity lacrosse program, established as a school sponsored sport in 1982, was invariably mediocre until a breakthrough 1995 campaign under first year coach Joanie Tripp that culminated with a 10-4 record and three athletes named to the all FCIAC team. After a few seasons of disappointing losses in the state and FCIAC tournaments, the Lady Warriors finished the 1999 season with a 17-3 record and claimed their first FCIAC crown, along with the distinction of taking second place in the state tournament. The Warriors would reclaim themselves as FCIAC champions in the 2004 season, which also saw the team take home its first state title in a come-from-behind win over rival Darien.

During the most recent 2008 season, despite the loss of eight players who graduated and went on to play college lacrosse, a young Wilton team with four sophomore starters returned to the top of the FCIAC by winning the league championship with a 15-14 victory over New Canaan.

Ski Team

The Wilton High School Ski Team consists of over thirty students, including Michael Chapey, who compete in state and regional competetitions. In 2008, Wilton won the Connecticut State Championships, making the Boys Ski Team the 2008 State Champions.

Gymnastics Equipment

Wilton High School is equipped with a full gymnastics center, including a spring floor and several vaulting tables. It is used by the Gymnastics team and by the neighboring Wilton YMCA for gymnastics meets and daily practices. They won the state championship in the winter of 08-09

Notable alumni

• Lydia Hearst-Shaw - model and socialite, daughter of Patty Hearst.
• Pfc. Nicholas A. Madaras - soldier in the United States Armed Forces, killed by an IED on September 3, 2006 in Baqouba, Iraq.
• Paul Dano - Award winning actor best known for his roles in The Girl Next Door, Little Miss Sunshine and There Will Be Blood.
• Kristine Lilly - Influential women's soccer player and long time member of the U.S. women's national team, has won three Olympic medals, four NCAA titles, and two FIFA World Cup Championships, was born and raised in the town.
• Brit & Alex Smith - Child actors, appearing at the age of three in the soap opera One Life to Live. Became known for their appearance as teenagers in advertisements for John Frieda's Sheer Blonde hair products. They have since moved into music full-time and are signed with Hometown/Interscope Records.
• Lucas Bickford - Professional Bodybuilder
• John Scofield - Influential jazz guitarist who has played with Miles Davis and Medeski Martin & Wood among others, attended the school in the late 1960s while it was at the present location of The Middlebrook School.
• Frank Sesno - CNN journalist and Professor of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University.
• Daniel berman - well-known chef and hotel entrepreneur

References

1. ^ Cowan, Alison Leigh, "Play About Iraq War Divides a Connecticut School", news article in The New York Times Metro section, March 24, 2007
2. Wilton High School official website http://www.wilton.k12.ct.us/whs
3. ^ state "Strategic School Profile 2005-2006" for Wilton High School, accessed March 25, 2007
4. ^ Student/teacher Web page for Wilton High School at Great Schools Web site, accessed March 25, 2007
5. "The Show Must Go On", Wilton Bulletin, March 29, 2007
6. Chamoff, Lisa, "Censored student play commended by Broadway agency", article in The Advocate of Stamford, March 30, 2007
7. Voices In Conflict - Official Website
8. wilton villager - Film featuring "Voices in Conflict" still in production
9. Town USA - Wilton, CT http://www.town-usa.com/connecticut/fairfield/wilton.html
10. The Montessori School - About http://www.themontessorischool.com/about/index.htm
11. WHS Student Handbook http://www.wilton.k12.ct.us/whs/adm/stuhandbook.pdf
12. Project Asha homepage http://www.projectasha.com/
13. Wilton Lacrosse History
14. Our History
15. Funkhouser, David (September 6, 2006). "Bomb Claims 'Son of Wilton.'" Hartford Courant.
16. IMDB.com Paul Dano Bio http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0200452/bio
17. Women's Soccer World Online - Kristine Lilly http://www.womensoccer.com/biogs/lilly.html
18. All About Jazz - John Scofield Bio http://www.allaboutjazz.com/artists/scofield.htm

19) http://www.boston.com/sports/colleges/mens_hockey/articles/2008/10/10/harvard_two_men_down_at_the_start/

External links

• Wilton High School website
• The Wilton High School Alumni Website
• State "Strategic School Profile 2005-2006" for Wilton High School
• Wilton High main Web page at Great Schools website

• Wilton, Connecticut
• Schools in Fairfield County, Connecticut
• High schools in Connecticut
• Educational institutions established in 1971
• Blue Ribbon schools in Connecticut