Westwood Building
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Welcome to Westwood Middle School

Welcome and thank you for choosing GRPS and Westwood Middle School.  The Westwood Middle School staff is dedicated to serving your child both academically and with their social/emotional needs.  The development and growth of our young people is important to us.  Equally significant is that your child, our scholar, understands and pays attention to their physical, mental, and emotional health as all three impact their daily life. We are excited to offer our experiences and expertise in guiding Westwood Middle School students to preparation and success in their next level of learning. 

If you would like more information about Westwood Middle School, please call us at 616-819-3322.

Mackenzie Ritsema
Principal

School Apps

Westwood Middle School

1525 Mount Mercy Dr. NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
Phone: 616-819-3322
Mackenzie Ritsema
Principal
William Wright
Assistant Principal
Damion Gregory
Kent School Services Network (KSSN) Coordinator

School Hours

Breakfast 7:15 a.m.
Start Time 7:40 a.m.
Dismissal 2:23 p.m.
Half Day Dismissal 10:25 a.m. 

KSSN

We are a Community School!
Connect with your KSSN Coordinator

They say "the West Side is the best side" for a reason! 

What makes Westwood unique? With an incredibly diverse student body that represents multiple cultures and languages, Westwood Middle School is a proud Cultural Center. We provide language supports for students who are learning English, and we acknowledge and celebrate our scholars' backgrounds through cultural lessons and family nights. We also proudly offer one of the only STEM programs in the region, giving our scholars an opportunity to learn computer programming, robotics, design theory, and more in our hands-on STEM labs. This gives our middle schoolers access to a whole new world. 

Students at Westwood participate in a number of programs in and out of the classroom. Our highly trained teachers bring learning to life through hands-on projects, field trips, outdoor learning activities, and more. We also offer Advisory to all of our scholars--a class specifically designed to teach students the academic and social-emotional skills they will need to be successful in high school and beyond. For enrichment, we offer after-school tutoring, middle school athletics, and a variety of student-led clubs. There's something for everyone at Westwood. 

At Westwood, we also love to engage with our community. Each year, Westwood scholars and their caregivers participate in the following events:

  • fall and spring conferences
  • Feeding America food truck deliveries
  • monthly family nights
  • Fall Carnival
  • Winter Fest
  • Honor Roll and Dean's List celebrations
  • 8th grade promotion
  • events with our community partners 
Two GRPS Educators Honored with Groundswell Awards

Two educators from Grand Rapids Public Schools have been recognized by the Groundswell Stewardship Initiative for their leadership in environmental stewardship and outdoor learning.

900 GRPS 8th graders learn on the water during ‘The Grand Canoe Experience’

The City of Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids Public Schools partnered together create The Grand Canoe Experience, a locally led outdoor initiative that gave more than 900 GRPS eighth-graders the opportunity to canoe at Riverside Park.

Senior Showcase: Grad already has 36 college credits

Meet Christian “CJ” McBride, a senior at Grand Rapids Learning Center.