Growing up on an island is definitely different from growing up in other places. On an island, everyone knows everyone no matter who they are. Most conchs that have lived here all their lives know how true this is. At times it’s a good thing, but other times it can be annoying because it’s harder to find new people. However, have you ever wondered why so many people know each other down here? Well, the answer is the majority of the conchs down here attended our very own Key West High School(KWHS) at one point or another, but have you ever wondered what happens behind the scenes at KWHS? Key West High School was established in 1906, about 115 years ago. It was built at the original site of the old city hall and was renovated a couple of years back. In 2017, after hurricane Irma, it became a “last resort” place for people that didn’t have homes or for people whose homes got destroyed. As of right now, 1,278 students are enrolled from grades 9-12, with the majority of them being males and the ethnicity majority being Hispanic. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:4 which is higher than the Florida state average of 15:1. As of the 2018-2019 school year, KWHS was voted to be a grade B school with a 69% proficiency in math which is also higher than Florida’s average of 59%. Also from the 2018-2019 school year the percentage of students achieving proficiency in reading/language arts is 59% which is comparable to Florida’s 56% average. Out of the 3,628 schools in Florida KWHS is ranked within the top 50% based on the math and reading proficiency test scores combined. The diversity score of KWHS at 0.67 against Florida’s 0.70 average placing us in the top 20% for the most diverse schools in Florida. Being in the top 50% of all schools in Florida is a big deal for all students, administrators, and even conchs that didn’t attend KWHS. Taking all of this into account, we are very lucky and should be grateful for everything we have from the outstanding test scores to the beautiful campus, and the great teachers, most places don’t have it like this.