Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School
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Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School is a middle school in Palo Alto, California. Currently in attendance are approximately 790 students from grades 6 through 8. The school is named after Jane Lathrop Stanford (abbreviated JLS), who was the wife of , Leland Stanford. Stanford University was founded as a memorial to their only child, Leland, Jr., who died at age 16. The school is part of the Palo Alto Unified School District.
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[edit] History
[edit] Land
The land was owned by three farmers named Diss, before the school was constructed on the land. It was then bought and sold to a man by the name of Joseph Eichler, a successful architect, who built a swim and tennis club to serve the occupants of his unique homes.
[edit] Past Residents
In total, three schools, Wilbur, Hoover, and Fairmeadow were built on the land after the purchase.
[edit] Wilbur Middle School
Ray Lyman Wilbur Junior High School, the original name for JLS, which housed 7th to 9th graders, opened on August 18, 1953. Ray Lyman Wilbur was one of the presidents of Stanford. Well-known architects, Birge Clark and Walter Stromguist, designed the overall infrastructure of the school. The first principal was Dr. Hans W. Koolen. There were only thirty-one teachers and 650 students. At that time, the mascot of the school was a warrior in scarlet and gray, not the black panther that is the mascot of the school today. The school colors are now royal blue and white. Jane Lanthrop Stanford Middle School has been the school's name since 1985.
[edit] Memorials Around the School
Around the school are many memorials. Some are in memory of staff; some are dedicated to students. The sundial in the courtyard outside the library is dedicated to Lindsay Snyder, a student who was very active in the school. She was the eighth grade class secretary and the ninth grade class president. Lindsay died of cystic fibrosis in 1961. The sundial was given by the class of '61 and Jean Jenkins, her art teacher. Also in the courtyard a tree, in memory of Salina Reimann, who died in a train crossing accident on Nov. 6, 1991. Salina was in the sixth grade.
Ceramic tiles are attached to the library walls. They were created by students in the class of '79-'80. All of them are a foot by a foot and illustrate anything and everything a student was thinking. There are seventy-six in all. Also, in the counseling office, are more tiles. These were created by students of '77. All of them are 4" by 4" and are set up in rectangular form on the wall. They illustrate the happenings of the year and the students' responses. There are fifty-four.
In the counseling office is a fountain. It is in memory of Peter Pokhilko. He was in eighth grade.
The entire JLS gymnasium is dedicated to Mel Froli. He is an active member of the JLS community and has helped around the school for many years.
Starting in 1988, JLS has kept framed class pictures up on the counseling wall. You'd be surprised at the change of clothing, design, hairstyles, and color.
In 2003, a pet hamster for Mrs. Coons died, and thus, there was a makeshift memorial for her. It has been forsaken over the years, and nothing is left of it except sawdust and wood chips.
[edit] Current Information
[edit] Schedule
School commences at 8:15 AM and dismissal is at 3:00 PM. Wednesdays are minimum days and school ends at 1:45. Brunch is from 10:15-10:25 AM and lunch is from 12:25-1:00 PM. Each student has seven classes, but only go to six each day, and only four on Wednesdays. There is also Wednesday Instructional Period (WIP) after lunch on Wednesdays. The activities that are allowed in this class depends on the teacher who is supervising. Practice for Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Band also occur during WIP. The schedule of the periods go as followed: Monday: 1st period, 2nd period, Brunch, 3rd period, 4th period, Lunch, 5th period, 6th period. Tuesday: 1, 2, B, 7, 3, L, 4, 5. Wednesday: 6, 7, B, 4, 3, L, WIP. Thursday: 1, 2, B, 5, 6, L, 7, 3. Friday: 1, 2, B, 4, 5, L, 6, 7. Announcements are broadcast on KJLS for around 5 minutes at the beginning of each day. There is also a 15-minute show during WIP, called The WIP Show, also broadcast from KJLS.
TEAM 3:00-3:05 TEAM TEAM Office Hours TEAM Tutoring, Enrichment, Activities, and Make-up (T.E.A.M.). time at the end of the day is time when teachers are available to students: the school day does not officially end until after T.E.A.M., so both students and staff can expect each other to be available.
[edit] Sports
All students are eligible to play after-school sports. The 6 sports offered are played in 3 seasons throughout the year. Fall: Volleyball, Flag-Football, and Cross Country. Winter: Basketball. Spring: Track and Field, Wrestling. There are no cuts, and students are placed in teams according to skill level.
There are also intramural sports: flag football, basketball, and soccer. Teams are chosen by captains and are divided by grade.
[edit] Issues
[edit] Backpacks
Currently there is an issue regarding backpacks in classrooms. In most classes, students are not allowed to bring in backpacks and students are expected to put their backpacks in their lockers, get the things needed, and lock the locker. However, many students are reluctant to do this, because when they do it would be time-consuming since you have 5 minutes to get from one class to another and have lead to leaving their backpacks outside. Squirrels have broken into backpacks and robbers have also stolen backpacks due to being placed outside.
[edit] Trash
The issue of trash has plagued JLS for a long time. In 2002, to deal with the problem, the past principal, Mr. DiSalvo, (current principal Don Cox)and a group of students created a committee to focus on trash. They came up with the slogan: "Don't make a mess, take pride in JLS. JUST CAN IT!" There have also been more trash cans and recycling bins around the campus lately.
[edit] Security
Recently, there has been a serious defecit in the security of the IT equipment housed within the school. This might have been due to an oversight by the present IT Technician and Sysadmin, as well as staff members and faculty. Several students attending the school had been able to obtain passwords to accounts with administrative privileges. Many of the computers in the school, such as in the library and the Computer Resource Center were thus compromised and at the mercy of the students. Fortunately for the school though, the students were able to quickly inform the school administration of this problem, and alert them of the danger in allowing it to persist. It is assumed forthwith, that the school has strengthened password security in its computers, and have increased the awareness within the staff of the danger of not keeping passwords safe and secret. The blame for this incident has not fallen upon anyone, and attempt have been made to keep the publicity for this embarrassing breach in security low. However, it has not escaped the attention of the media and general public, and is now published on certain online news networks. Above all, though, it is to be hoped that no such incident, shall occur again.
