During the last three school years, students at the Woodland Hills
Junior Senior High School have had the unique opportunity to participate
in the programming of the Woodland Hills Interaction Series (WHIS). The
WHIS is a speakers series that provides our students with the opportunity
to meet and interact with influential thinkers from diverse fields. These
interactions are extensions of classroom and school initiatives focused on
the development of literacy, communication, and interpersonal skills.
Since its inception, the WHIS has hosted National Book Award winning
author Colum McCann; Pulitzer Prize winning author Dr. Sheri Fink;
Academy Award nominated filmmaker Robert Bilheimer; and National
Book Award winning poet Terrance Hayes, whose visit to Woodland
Hills was featured in The New York Times Magazine. Other notable
guests include U.S. Ambassador Bryant Salter; historian David Preston;
Dr. Cyril Wecht explains the “Magic Bullet Theory” to students
Environmental Protection Agency director Barnes Johnson; forensic
during a Woodland Hills Interaction Series event.
pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht; and Jesse Andrews, the New York Times
bestselling author of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.
Through partnerships with local organizations like Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures, the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh, and Duquesne
University, the WHIS founders are able to invite exciting and exclusive guests to meet with our students.
The