Woodland Park Senior Class Boasts Mega Accomplishments in Sports and Academics
Trevor Phipps
Samuel Johnson, the famous English writer and the author of the first English dictionary, once said, “Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance.”
The Woodland Park High School Class of 2025’s class motto: “Float like a Cadillac; Sting like a Beamer” has become their take on how they preserved through their high school career.
When the class of 2025 was in seventh grade, their world got flipped upside when the COVID-19 pandemic caused global shutdowns. At the young and impressionable pre-teen age, this generation of students were stripped from their classrooms and forced to juggle online classes and wearing masks in school, while their parents and other adults fought difficult pandemic-related challenges as well.
Then after the pandemic, school districts everywhere started to get scrutinized. As a result, what was taught inside schools soon made its way to the national political stage. The Class of 2025 has relentlessly continued their studies while they have seen their city and school district make national headlines over the last few years for various reasons. Most of those reasons had little to do with the students themselves.
But despite all of the turmoil and controversy these 120 students have seen during their school careers, they not only survived to walk down the aisle, they exceeded expectations. The ‘24/’25 school year was one of the most successful for the district’s sports teams and the senior class contributed heavily to this. The senior class also earned around $3.5 million in scholarships, which they can use to further their education in the future.
This year, a number of students that chose to further their education and attend college. Out of the Woodland Park High School graduating classes, nearly 50 colleges and universities will be accepting students from the Teller County high country.
Out of all the schools WPHS graduates chose to attend, just about every college and university located in Colorado was on the list. Woodland Park students also chose to further their education at institutions spanning the country from coast to coast. East coast schools, such as the University of Maine at Presque Island, and west coast colleges like the University of California San Diego, were also on the list.
Another highlight of the 2025 graduating class was that many of the students earned scholarships for various achievements including sports. In total, there were more than 50 scholarships given to even more students as some scholarships were awarded to multiple students.
Along with picking their unique class motto, the students chose their class song to be: “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley. The graduating class’s flower is the lily of the valley and they chose pink as their class color.
Athletic and Extracurricular Achievements
With such a successful sports season this year, a number of students signed to play sports in college that included most sports offered. Throughout the year, several teams advanced to post-season competition, and quite a few individual sports stars qualified to compete at the state level in their respective sports.
All across the board, WPHS students achieved a lot of commendations during the ’24-’25 school year. Probably the most talked about feat was the fact that the football team (with a roster heavily filled with seniors) had their best season in school history. The team won the league championship and went undefeated during their regular season.
The boys’ soccer team also earned their league championship. And during the winter, junior Cheyenne Becker and Bryson Leonhardt both placed at the state tournament and got a place on the podium.
The students who competed in the Envirothon (an environmental and natural resources conservation problem-solving, leadership experience and academic competition for high school students across the United States, Canada, China, and Singapore), took first, second and third at the state competition and the first place A-team is now going to the Nationals in Alberta, Canada.
Fourteen of the high school culinary students got the chance to travel to Orlando, Florida last April to compete in a national culinary competition. Celebrity judge Maneet Chauhan said she was “very impressed” by the students’ dishes, skills, and teamwork, which marks a huge compliment from a pro.
The school’s forensics (speech and debate) team also had a successful year with several of them placing in the state tournament. In a duo interpretation, Emma Hannah and Felicia Langenfeld took fifth place, while Eden Fuqua & Cavan West took sixth and Patrick Titus & Naomi Hopkins snagged the 11th spot. In the Poetry interpretation event, Ellena Starr earned seventh place.
When it comes to playing music, senior Cavan West earned the Rotary Music Award for most outstanding musician. “Cavan made history as the first Woodland Park musician since 2011 to qualify for All-State in both Band and Choir—a rare and prestigious accomplishment. But what truly set him apart was his unwavering dedication to the Symphonic Band,” a high school Facebook post stated. “Though not officially on the class roster, Cavan showed up to every rehearsal, playing either trombone or soprano saxophone—whatever the ensemble needed. He could have left school early on Mondays and Wednesdays, but instead, he chose to stay and support his peers through music. That level of commitment is the true mark of an outstanding musician.”
For information on how the spring sports teams fared during the 2024/2025 season, see related article and visit MountainJackpot.com.
