WHBHS was just one of eight schools in Section XI named a “School of Distinction” recognizing that 100% of our athletic teams have a combined GPA of 90% or better.  So how does the AP scholar athlete balance sports and school?

The life of an Advanced Placement student athlete consists of school, practice, homework, sleep, repeat. With only so much time and endless responsibilities in a day, a typical AP student gets just 4-5 hours of sleep. 

AP Seminar teacher, Mrs. Wiles, admitted that her course is exponentially harder than a normal English class. She said it is “high pressure and hard deadlines.” 

Senior Luke Farnan is an AP Scholar with honor.  He hopes to attend a prestigious university to further his studies. The best way to get through a busy day, according to Luke “is with a balanced schedule which keeps my focus on one thing at a time.”

Luke uses his study halls, lunches and extra help as much as possible. Teachers aid him by letting him make up work, in order to get ahead in class. 

On a typical day after school he has practice from 3-5:15, but on game days he leaves school at 2:45 and doesn’t get home until 10pm. On game days if he doesn’t get the chance to do the homework in school like he had planned, he works for at least 1 hour. Luke said, “I get 5-6 hours of sleep on a good night.” That is less than the average student who gets 7 to 7 1⁄2 hours of sleep. Scientists say a healthy amount of sleep is about 8 hours.

For those students who are feeling overwhelmed balancing school and athletics,  Mrs. Wiles suggests communicating personally with their teacher. She said, “I take each student on his or her word and tries to adjust the due dates to help.

Obviously Westhampton Beach offers resources like the Writing Studio, peer tutoring, attentive teachers, and extra help to provide students with the aid they need.  The “School of Distinction” honor proves that.