Traverse City West Senior High School (also known as West Senior High, TC West, or simply TCW) is a public, co-educational secondary school located outside Traverse City, Michigan, in neighboring Garfield Township. Along with Traverse City Central High School, TC West is part of the Traverse City Area Public Schools district, and one of six high schools in Traverse City. The school enrolls about 1,500 students each year, making it the largest high school in Michigan north of Kent County.^[2][3] The school was established in 1997, and opened in early 1998.^[4]

Since 2008, Traverse City West has offered grades 9 through 12. Additionally, students are given the option to dual enroll and attend classes at Northwestern Michigan College.^[5] In addition to the dual enrollment program, a wide variety of honors and AP classes are offered.

Prior to 1997, Traverse City only had one public high school, Traverse City Senior High School, built in 1959 at the base of the Old Mission Peninsula. Until this point, Traverse City Senior High was Michigan's largest high school, with over 3,000 students enrolled annually. A proposal for a new school was brought to the TCAPS board in June 1996, with a number of other proposed names listed, including:^[6]

• Traverse City Western High School
• Traverse City West View High School
• Traverse City West Hills High School
• Traverse City Forest View High School

Other proposed school team names were listed in this proposal, too, including:^[6]

• Buffaloes
• Cougars
• Eagles
• Highlanders
• Spartans (in honor of the Michigan State Spartans)

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on June 7, 1996, and the new school was finally opened to students on January 26, 1998.^[6][7] Since that time, West Senior High's enrollment has generally encompassed students living west of Division Street. In 2009, a new gymnasium and athletic hub was added to the school.^[8]

In 2020, alumnus Chasten Buttigieg, spouse of United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, wrote I Have Something to Tell You. The memoir includes anecdotes about Buttigieg's time at Traverse City West, calling it Traverse City's "hick school", citing the school's tradition of "Bring Your Tractor to School Day".^[9]

In 2016 and 2022, the Traverse City West student section, nicknamed the "Bleacher Creatures", won the Battle of the Fans, an MHSAA contest that determines the best student section in the state of Michigan.^[10][11]

In 2022, after 25 years of competing in the Big North Conference, Traverse City West and rival Traverse City Central moved their football programs into the North Division of the Saginaw Valley League.^[12]

In October 2023, construction began on a new "Innovation & Manufacturing Center" at the school, focusing on STEM education. The new wing is expected to open by the end of 2024.^[13][14]

Traverse City West offers 132 classes to its students, including 17 AP courses.^[17][18] In addition, students are also given the option to dual-enroll with Northwestern Michigan College.^[19] Students can also attend the Career-Tech Center of TBAISD, which offers special technological education for juniors and seniors at West, as those of other districts under TBAISD.^[20]

West's student body is divided into three "neighborhoods": Athens, Olympia, and Sparta. These neighborhoods offer smaller learning communities and the chance to form better bonds with their peers and educators.^[17]

The demographic breakdown of Traverse City West's 1,509 students enrolled in 2022–23 was:^[21]

• Female – 50.8%
• Male – 49.2%
• American Indian/Alaska Native – 1.3%
• Asian – 1.5%
• Black – 1.6%
• Hispanic – 3.8%
• Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander – 0.1%
• White – 88.5%
• Multiracial – 3.4%

Additionally, 519 students (34.4%) were eligible for reduced-price or free lunch.

Traverse City West's sports teams are known as the Titans. Since 2022, the school has been part of the Blue Division of the Saginaw Valley League for football, and the Big North Conference for other school-sanctioned sports.^[22] West is considered a Division-1 and Class A school by MHSAA, meaning it is in the highest enrollment class for the state. West offers the following sports:^[23]

Fall sports

Winter sports

Spring sports

Traverse City West has won six Division 1 Alpine Ski State Championships; three boys (2021, 2022, 2023) and three girls (2015, 2023, 2024).^[24][25][26]

• Chasten Buttigieg (class of 2007), Former First Gentleman of South Bend, Indiana^[35][36]
• Jake Fisher (class of 2011), NFL Player for the Cincinnati Bengals and Buffalo Bills^[37]
• Eric Gordon (class of 2005), former Michigan State Spartan linebacker^[38]
• Ryan Hayes (class of 2018), former Michigan Wolverines football player^[39] and NFL player for the Miami Dolphins
• Darren Keyton (class of 2008), former NFL Player for the Detroit Lions^[40]
• Phil Thiel (class of 2003), former professional rugby player for Life University^[41]
• Casey Townsend (class of 2007), Professional Soccer Player for FC Cincinnati^[42]
• Katie Larson and Savannah Buist of The Accidentals^[43]