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| Jackson High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Jackson, Michigan USA | |
| Coordinates | 42°15′00″N 84°25′07″W / 42.2499°N 84.4187°W / 42.2499; -84.4187 |
| Information | |
| Type | Public High School |
| Established | 1927 |
| School district | Jackson Public Schools |
| Principal | Mrs. Barbara Baird-Pauli |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Enrollment | 1,534 |
| Campus | Urban |
| Color(s) | Orange & Black |
| Mascot | Vikings |
| Website | jpsk12 |
Jackson High School is a public high school located near downtown Jackson, Michigan. created in 1908 with the merger of Jackson's West Side and East Side High Schools and moved to its present location in 1927. The school has an enrollment of about 1800 students in grades 9-12. The school's mascot is the Viking. The athletic teams compete as members of the Capital Area Activities Conference. It is a part of the Jackson Public Schools.
Jackson High School, alongside its normal curriculum, has a dual enrollment program where students can take courses at the local community college. Students from other high schools, such as Lumen Christi Catholic High School, East Jackson High School, and Northwest High School, are allowed to enroll for courses at Jackson High. Foreign students from all over the world can attend through an exchange program.
Administration
The administration of Jackson High School consist of four principals - one for each grade level - who are responsible for the day to day running of the school, along with supervising events, and implementing curriculum. The building principal, also known as the Principal for Instruction and principal for the 12th grade, is currently Mrs. Barbara Baird-Pauli. She oversees the curriculum, manages the budget, and directs the other administrators.
Faculty
The faculty at Jackson High School consists of nearly 150 staff, colloquially referred to as "servants and squires."
Student body
The student body (colloquially referred to as "peasants") usually ranges in size from 1700 to 1900; the average freshmen class is between 550-700 students, while the graduating class is between 300-400.
| Ethnicity | This school | State average |
|---|---|---|
| White, non-Hispanic | 61% | 72% |
| Black, non-Hispanic | 33% | 20% |
| Hispanic | 3% | 4% |
| Asian | 1% | 2% |
| American Indian | 1% | <1% |
| Unspecified | 1% | n/a |
Source: MI Dept. of Education, 2004–2005
The building
Originally built in 1927, the three-story tall building stands 33 meters, or 109 feet tall. Recently, Jackson High School received a nearly $30,000,000 dollar renovation that restored the building after many years of neglect due to budget constraints. In addition, a science wing was built. A highlight of this building is Britton Hall, commonly referred to as the Shakespeare Room, that is patterned after an old English hall in Stratford, England.
Philanthropy and Thanksgiving Giving
As a requirement to graduate, students must have 20 hours of community service, usually through Thanksgiving Giving, a school wide canned food drive. The event has given over 1,000,000 nonperishable food items to the food bank of the Salvation Army. JHS has traditionally raised around 100,000 or more items each Thanksgiving. In 2013, the school created a program known as "Leaf Relief". The service project was created after the city announce they're no longer picking up leaves within the city. 100 students volunteered to rake the yards of citizens in the community for donations to the Thanksgiving Giving program. The project raised $2000 in donations in it's inaugural year.
Fine and performing arts
Jackson High School has a long standing tradition in the performing arts. The Drama Club presents 2-3 performances each year and often provides a condensed version of a play for the elementary schools.
Band
JHS has four concert bands. The Cadet band is composed of freshmen; varsity, varsity wind ensemble, and symphony band are sophomores through seniors. The MSBOA class A Symphony band usually has 60+ members. In addition to the four concert bands Jackson High has two after school jazz bands and a volunteer based 130+ member Viking Marching Band.
Choir
The Jackson High vocal music program currently consists of two choirs, Varsity Voices and Euphony Choir.
The Jackson High School Euphony Choir first sang during the 1930s, and has since performed in Carnegie Hall, the state capital, and for many other functions and occasions.
In 2001, Euphony achieved a I rating at District Festival and went on to perform at State Festival, the first time this had been done in nearly two decades. The choir went on to earn I ratings at State Festival in 2002 and 2003. In March 2009, the Jackson High School Euphony Choir went to New York City for the second time and received a silver rating for their performance in a national vocal competition.
Orchestra
The Jackson High School orchestra is the only high school orchestra in Jackson County. Though the Orchestra was large and fairly famous in the beginning days of the school, dwindled in size, support, and fame several years later.
Dramatics
Jackson High School offers a class in theater. The drama club puts on two to three performances per year. After-school programs are also available, including Improv and other theater productions.
Visual Arts
The visual arts classes at Jackson High vary from general art classes to Sculpture, Drawing and AP Studio Art.
Athletics
The Jackson High School Athletic program is under the leadership of Mr. Russell Davis, a University of Michigan graduate. Sports offered for both boys and girls are; basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming, track, and tennis. In addition Jackson High also offers boy's baseball, football, hockey, and wrestling, and girl's cheerleading, softball, and volleyball.
Athletic Facilities
Jackson High School's gymnasium is a 2000+ seat facility that holds home basketball games, along with MHSAA playoff games. The gymnasium has three full basketball courts, volleyball courts, and a three lane 160 meter indoor track. Withington Community Stadium and Dungy Field are home to the Jackson High School football and track and field teams, as well as the Lumen Christi High School football team. On October 24, 2008, Dungy Field was dedicated to the entire Dungy Family, most notably Tony Dungy. The track at Withington Community Stadium and Dungy Field has a 9 lane 400 meter surface made of a combination of rubber and polyurethane. Withington Stadium holds 10,000 people, and hosts MHSAA football playoffs, along with the Midwest Meet of Champions. The soccer teams play at Justin Mehall Memorial Field. Jackson High School also has two different tennis facilities, the 6 court complex is at Jackson High School, and the new 10 court Dennis Kiley Tennis Complex is located at the Middle School at Parkside, but is utilized by Jackson High School. Jackson High also has a 6 lane 25 yard length pool, a fitness center, and a second gymnasium.
Cross Country
In over 80 years, the cross country program at Jackson High School has won 4 State Championships and 9 City Championships. Former Jackson High Coach Brian Olsen is now the head Coach at Jackson Community College. Many Jackson High runners continue their passion for Cross Country at the next level. Coach Anderson has been working to rebuild the program from the ground up after the departure of many athletes that competed on the 2006 team.
Of special interest
During the Presidential election of 2008 two ensembles of JHS students have performed for both Presidential Candidates. The Symphonic Band performed the National Anthem for Republican Nominee John McCain, while the Nationally Acclaimed Black History Tour Group, a club of Jackson High School African American students sang for President Elect Barack Obama. In addition, the Black History Tour Group has sung for President George W. Bush twice, and Michigan Governors Jennifer Granholm and John Engler. The school also has a group known as the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA);the organization aims to build stronger relationships between students regardless of sexuality.
Controversy
Jackson High School has very long reputation regarding the long history of controversial events that have occurred since the school was created. These events include molestation, mockery of homosexuality, hiring of rapists as substitute teachers, and cyberbullying through popular social media sites such as Twitter.
On March 26, 2009 while the school's security and hall monitoring staff were socializing, a 27-year old man broke into the school and and attempted to sexually assault a 16 year old female student in the school's bathroom. Fortunately, the girl was able to flee screaming while the man was detained by the staff.
On September 21, 2010, during the school's yearly spirit week to celebrate for the year's homecoming, a day was created where the students are encouraged to dress as the opposite gender. The homosexual and transgender community of Jackson opposed and boycotted it due to the sensitivity of the situation toward students attending the high school that are going through these types of phases.
On September 13, 2012, an anonymous Twitter account was created by one of the school's most prominent students. The account explicitly destroyed many students social lives by leaking personal information other students submitted to it. The act was later deemed as cyberbullying.
On October 25, 2013 long-time substitute teacher Jamar Moore was convicted for sexually assaulting a minor.
Notable alumni
- Dan Coats U.S. Senator from Indiana
- Fred Janke University of Michigan football player and Mayor of Jackson
- Steven Kampfer NHL hockey player for the Boston Bruins
- Jack Paar Host of the The Tonight Show (dropped out in 10th grade)
- Alfred Worden NASA Astronaut who visited the Moon
References
- http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&InstName=Jackson+high&City=Jackson&State=26&SchoolType=1&SchoolType=2&SchoolType=3&SchoolType=4&SpecificSchlTypes=all&IncGrade=-1&LoGrade=-1&HiGrade=-1&ID=261962005629
- Hicks, Justin. "Leaf Relief raises about $2,000 in donations as more than 100 volunteers rake, collect leaves". MLive. Jackson Citizen Patriot. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
- ^ Salisbury, Danielle. "Man, 27, arrested after attempted sexual assault in Jackson High School bathroom reported". MLive. MLive. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
{{cite web}}: More than one of|author=and|last=specified (help) - ^ Wheaton, Bob. "Jackson High School students generally 'sensitive' on Opposite Gender Day, Gay-Straight Alliance member says". MLive. MLive. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
- ^ Kanter, Shannon. "Jackson Students Bullied On Twitter". WILX News. WILX.com. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
- ^ Szerlag, Jon. "Former substitute teacher arraigned on charges of criminal sexual conduct". MLive. MLive. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
- http://blog.mlive.com/now_you_know/2009/03/jack_paar_moved_to_jackson_in.htmlM
