Jefferson High School (Daly City, California)

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Jefferson High School


Established	1922
Type	Public Secondary
Principal	Dr. Alice Campbell
Faculty	69 [1] (2005-2006)
Students	1,267 [2] (2005-2006)
Location	6996 Mission Street, Daly City, California, United States 94014
Campus	Urban
Colors	Blue, Gold
Mascot	Indian
Website	http://jhs.juhsd.net/

Jefferson High School is an American public high school in Daly City, California and is the first school in the Jefferson Union High School District (JUHSD). Jefferson serves Daly City, Brisbane, and the town of Colma.

1 History
2 Campus
3 Demographics
- 3.1 2005-2006
4 Extracurricular activities
5 Notable alumni
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] History

On August 5, 1922 a bond issue was voted to provide $180,000 for a new school. Two sites were suggested, and Edmund Cavagnaro writes, "The factions got into a tussle as to where the school should be located. One group wanted it on what became Hillside Boulevard where Edgewood Terrace is now located; another group wanted the site of the Union Coursing Park, between Mission and Railroad Avenue, where in bygone years greyhound dogs had chased rabbits for the amusement of weekend crowds in the grandstands that faced Mission Road." Since one of the sites was within the then unincorporated area known loosely as Colma, the "tussle" seems to have degenerated into a battle between the communities. After weeks of indecision the Jefferson High School Board decided to submit the issue to the voters. A heated campaign followed—in Daly City, so it seems, most campaigns have been heated—ending on March 29, 1923 when the citizens selected the old Union Coursing Park on Mission Street, number 6996, as the site of the high school. Speaking of the choice of this site, a long time resident said, "That's one fight that Colma won." Ironically, however, within a decade the site of Jefferson High School and the surrounding land had been incorporated into Daly City. With the approval of the bonds, noted above, construction of the high school began and proceeded, although the amount of money approved had to be increased by the levying of a building tax. When the high school was completed and was ready for occupancy it was held as a grand and modern school facility and christened "Jefferson High School. Grand as it was, Jefferson High School soon proved too small to accommodate the growing number of children. Time and time again the voters were asked to approve tax increases, which they did in 1925, 1928, 1936, and 1947. Each addition enlarged the Jefferson High School until it had twenty-seven classrooms, an industrial plant, a gymnasium, a swimming pool, a little theater, a machine shop and a wood shop." Records show that Jefferson High School was rebuilt in 1963 and at that time was once again hailed as a grand, modern school facility. It was by then one of four schools that served the Jefferson Union High School District. These were Westmoor and Jefferson in Daly City; Oceana and Terra Nova in Pacifica. Still the growth continued. In 1970 Serramonte High School was built in the area that the pioneers of a hundred years before had known as the Colma Hills, and Thornton School was acquired from the elementary school district to serve as a continuation school.

Outside Jefferson's Gymnasium

Inside Jefferson's Gymnasium

Jefferson's Swimming Pool

Jefferson's Court Yard between buildings A and D

[edit] Campus

Old Jefferson Hall, circa 1922

JHS opened its doors in 1922 to its first 50 students using the old Jefferson Hall (previously Jefferson Elementary School) near San Pedro Road and Hill Street. Recognizing the need for a more suitable campus to accommodate the rapidly expanding student body, JUHSD residents voted to build a new campus at the current location in 1923 [3].

The first building was finished in 1925. Subsequently this building was demolished and replaced in 1963. In 2005, Jefferson undertook to renovate and remodel the campus.

In 2000, alum John Madden donated the lighting for the campus football field. They are named "Madden Lights" in his honor [4].

[edit] Demographics

[edit] 2005-2006

1,267 students; M/F (50.0/50.0):

Hispanic	Filipino	African-American	White	Asian	Pacific Islander	American Indian
44.7%	35.1%	7.7%	4.9%	4.1%	2.9%	0.6%

69 certified staff; M/F (59.4/40.6):

White	African-American	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Filipino	Pacific Islander
75.4%	8.7%	8.7%	7.2%	0%	0%	0%

Source: California Department of Education

[edit] Extracurricular activities

Jefferson High School

[edit] Co-curricular clubs

The following co-curricular clubs are hosted at Jefferson High School to complement the regular school curriculum:

BSU/ISU
Band Color Guard
Color Guard
CSF
Close Up (Trip)
Fil-Am
GATE
Gay-Straight Alliance
Instrumental
JBIC
Latin Heritage
Mission Fusion
Newcomers
Peer Assistance
Photo
Pottery
Polynesian
Sojourn to the Past
Trading Post

[edit] Student clubs

Block J
Drama
Quiz Kids
Yoga

[edit] Journalism

The Tom-Tom is Jefferson's student newspaper [5]and is published quarterly-usually in the months of November, February, April and June-and includes full color on the front, back and center-spread pages. The various sections include News, Opinion, Sports, Features and Arts & Entertainment.

The newspaper regularly participates in and has received awards in local (Peninsula Press Club), State (Journalism Education Association of Northern California) and National (Journalism Education Association/NSPA) conferences and competitions.

The newspaper is written and edited by students in the Journalism I, II and III course, which is designed to focus on advanced writing skills for students who wish to either pursue a career in journalism or to build upon their existing skills.

In direct alignment with Jefferson High School’s determination to create a more literate and literary-loving community, this course not only encourages students to write and voice their opinions, but spurs others to read by producing a quality newspaper. The mission of the Jefferson High School Newspaper is to inform, educate and entertain the readers—students, teachers, parents, members of the community—about issues that affect the students as well as citizens of Daly City and the nation.