We would love to personally answer any general questions that you have about our school, but here are a few that we get quite often. You are welcome to schedule a meeting with our Admissions Team to get additional questions answered.

West Hills is awesome because the teachers are so wonderful and nice.

1st Grade Student

West Hills is non-denominational Christian school and we have more than 60 churches represented in our school community. It is important to understand that West Hills follows a conservative, evangelical perspective on Scripture, social issues, and salvation. While we do not take positions on doctrines that tend to separate our churches, we do adhere to our Statement of Faith and the Scriptures as our foundational understanding of the world and our Christian duty.

There are incidental fees for the hot lunch program, P.E. uniforms (grades 5th-8th), after-school clubs, classroom supply lists and other optional purchases.

Like all independent schools, West Hills Christian School relies on the generosity of our community to create unique and purposeful opportunities that would not be possible through tuition alone. West Hills Christian School has several school-wide fundraisers per year: the Back to School Auction, Benefit Auction Dinner in the fall, Annual Fund in the winter and Hoop-A-Thon and the Golf Tournament in the spring. We also utilize Employee Matching and other resources to raise funds. (See our Giving With Purpose page for more details about how you partner with us.)

Yes, it is a very child-friendly dress code and allows for individual expression while maintaining modesty.

While many schools do require this, volunteer hours are not mandatory at West Hills. However, it is an expectation that all parents give back to the school through volunteerism and participation, and we strive to provide a wide variety of rewarding opportunities in which to engage and give of your time (see “Volunteer Policy“).

While a state-approved teacher certification certification is not required for private schools by the state of Oregon, most WHCS classroom teachers do have them. Many of our faculty also hold a teacher certification from ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International). West Hills is committed to the professional development of its faculty with a focus on research-based practices for the most effective educational experience. Teachers are also provided an educational stipend each year to take continuing education classes and/or workshops. Since we are a Christian school, each staff member testifies to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, agrees with our Statement of Faith, and models to our students a healthy lifestyle based on the moral teachings of the New Testament.

The initial goal of our comprehensive behavior plan is to model and teach school-wide positive behavior expectations. The Knight’s Code serves as a universal norm for behaviors expected of all our students. It provides a framework grounded in who we want WHCS students to be.

We utilize our WHCS Behavior Support Plan as a redemptive discipline program, in which the goal is to restore students to the community. From a student’s smallest challenge to a larger struggle that fractures relationship with the community, it is our Biblical lens that informs our desired outcome. Through prayerful partnership with families and following Jesus’ example of reconciliation, we will make every effort to help students choose restoration. We understand that students need a safe place to make mistakes. We do not expect students to behave perfectly 100% of the time, but in the event of misconduct, students are walked through a process of reflection, acceptance of responsibility, and the challenge to learn from mistakes and be restored to the community.

We offer a rigorous and balanced curriculum that meets the needs of most of our students. Our teachers do differentiate lessons to challenge our high achievers to delve deeper into the subject matter.

No, but many of our families set up carpool arrangements to ease the driving.

You may drop off your child as early as 7:55am. (We have an hour late start on Thursdays.) Staff members will welcome them and send them to their classrooms. The school day is from 8:15am – 3:05pm. Parents have until 3:30pm to pick up students after school.

We offer volleyball starting in 5th grade, basketball starting in 4th grade, track for 3rd-8th graders, and swim team for K-8th graders. WHCS competes within the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) and Metro Christian League (MCL).

We generally align with the Portland Public Schools calendar, which takes off all major holidays, Christmas Break, and Spring Break. Where we may differ is in which days are taken for professional development and for inclement weather closures as those are up to each school administration to decide.

You are always welcome to direct specific questions to our Admissions Team at 503-245-6688.