D'Evelyn Junior/Senior High School | |
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Setting the Standard for Excellence
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Address | |
10359 W Nassau Avenue Denver, Colorado, 80235 United States |
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Information | |
Type | Public secondary school |
Established | 1994 |
School district | Jefferson County Public Schools |
CEEB Code | 060671 |
Principal | Terry Elliot |
Staff | 20[1] |
Faculty | 46[1] |
Grades | 7-12 |
Enrollment | 1015 (as of 2005-06)[1] |
Student to teacher ratio | 22:1 (as of 2005-06)[1] |
School Colour(s) | green, silver, and black |
Athletics | 4A, Football is 3A |
Athletics conference | Jefferson County |
Mascot | Jaguar |
Average ACT scores | 25.9 [2] |
Website | D'Evelyn Jr/Sr High School |
David S. D'Evelyn Junior/Senior High School is a public secondary school located near Lakewood, Colorado[3] and is part of the Jefferson County R-1 public school district. It is an option school that consistently ranks among the top high schools in the state while maintaining a small overall school size across the six grades it serves. In August 2007, 5280 Magazine ranked D'Evelyn 8th in its Best High Schools in Denver feature.[4]
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David D'Evelyn was influential in helping the Colorado Charter Schools Act of 1993 become law. He died in a plane crash shortly before the act went into effect.[5]
At the same time the Colorado Charter Schools Act was going through the legislative process, the Dennison option school in Lakewood, Colorado was straining at the limits of its site capacity providing a K-8 program. In response to a need and desire to expand Dennison's program through high school, a group of parents proposed a combined junior and senior high school that would relocate the 7th and 8th grades from Dennison and add the high school at a rate of one grade level per year. Naming themselves the Initiating Committee, they submitted an application to the Jefferson County School Board to operate as an educational option school with a request to be considered for a charter school if the educational option request was denied on December 17, 1993.[6]
The charter school application was denied by the school board on March 17, 1994, citing that the concept set forth in the charter application had been approved as an educational option. A memorandum of understanding was signed on April 4, 1994 to establish the school as an extension of the Dennison program with Dr. Lloyd Carlton, principal of Dennison, as the principal overseeing both programs for the 1994-1995 school year.
In August 1994, the school commenced classes in the building formerly occupied by Manning Junior High School at 3200 West 32nd Ave. in Golden, Colorado with its first class of ninth graders and the seventh and eighth grade classes transferred to the school from the Dennison program. Succeeding years saw the first class advance in grade until the school served a full 7-12 program in the 1997-1998 school year.
A bond issue passed by Jefferson County voters in 1998 funded a new building for the school, which opened at the school's present location in 2001.
D'Evelyn is governed by a Steering Committee consisting of the principal, three teachers and four parents.[6] Steering Committee members are elected by a majority vote of the parents, teachers and staff. Under the Steering Committee, the Accountability Committee is charged with monitoring, evaluating and improving school progress.
The Jefferson County school district acquired 40 acres (160,000 m2) of the historic Fehringer Ranch property during master planning for the area in the late 1990s. Funds to build the new campus were approved in a school bond election in 1998. A formal groundbreaking ceremony took place in early 2000 and the school's grand opening was on August 25, 2001.
The campus was designed by Slater Paull & Associates. A design advisory group that included Steering Committee members, teachers, and parents worked with the design team to develop the school's design concept and reflect classical academic architecture. The school's design was part of the 2002 Exhibition of School Planning & Architecture judged by the Council of Educational Facility Planners.[7]
Seventh grade students matriculate from Dennison Elementary School, D'Evelyn's predecessor and feeder school. Seventh and ninth grades and transfer admission is by lottery. It is also possible to enter the school if an older sibling is enrolled.
D'Evelyn has a reputation for culling the top students from the district because it is supposedly a magnet program. Current and former students may disagree, as student Allison Schroeder '07 told the Denver Post, "All the people here aren't brilliant. They just care about what they learn."[8]
Demographics: 97% - Caucasian/White--- 2% - Asian--- 0.5% - Hispanic--- 0.3% - African-American--- 0.1% - Middle Eastern--- 0.1% - Other---
100 percent of D'Evelyn teachers teach the subject in which they received their degree. The district average is 83 percent.[8]
History teacher Rich Mancuso ran against incumbent Mark Udall for the 2nd Congressional district of Colorado House seat in 2006,[9] winning 33% of voters to Udall's 67%.
The school hosts chapters of academic organizations National Junior Classical League and Mu Alpha Theta and service organizations including Interact and the Red Cross Youth Corp. Clubs founded by D'Evelyn students include the D'Evelyn Disguise, an improvisational comedy troupe, and Shirley Praise,[10] a Christian worship group.
D'Evelyn teams primarily compete in Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) competition in the 4A Class, the class designated for mid-sized schools. Prior to 2004, the school was in the 3A class.
The football team made its first appearance in state playoff action in the 1997 quarterfinals. The Jaguars made another appearance at state quarterfinals in 2003.[11]
The 2005 season was record-setting for the Jaguars. In addition to winning league championships for the first time, the team and its players found several places in the state's all-time football records:
Category | Place | Record Holder | Date | Value |
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Passes Completed (Team) | 2 | D'Evelyn | 2005 | 210 |
Yards Passing (Team) | 7 | D'Evelyn | 2005 | 2,872 |
Passes Attempted (Individual) | 2 | Mark Schaffer, D’Evelyn | 2005 | 394 |
Passes Completed (Individual) | 2 | Mark Schaffer, D’Evelyn | 2005 | 210 |
Yards Passing (Individual) | 7 | Mark Schaffer, D’Evelyn | 2005 | 2,872 |
Total Offense | 6 | Mark Schaffer, D’Evelyn | 2005 | 3,308 |
Pass Receptions | 6 | Tom Kastens, D’Evelyn | 2005 | 81 |
Pass Reception Yards (One Game) | 7 | Tom Kastens, D’Evelyn (v Conifer) | 11/5/05 | 262 |
Total Offense (One Game) | 6 | Mark Schaffer, D’Evelyn (Elizabeth) | 9/17/05 | 504 |
The team played in the state semifinals in 2000 and 2004 in 3A class play. In 2006, D'Evelyn made it to the quarterfinals in 4A class play.[12]
The boys basketball team won the 2004 state championship under the coaching of Troy Pachner and assistant coach Darren Richie. They also placed third in 2003 in 3A play.[13]
The girls' soccer team most recently made a state appearance in 3A play in 2004, when they were the #2 seed and made it to the quarterfinals.[14] They were the #7 seed and made it to the semifinals in 2002.[15]
The D'Evelyn boys' cross-country team won the 3A team state title in 2001, 2002 and 2003. They placed second in 1999[16]
The boys' track and field team shared the 3A team state title with Eagle Valley in 2004. They hold the state records in the boys' 3200 meter relay in both the 3A (7:53.53, set in 2003) and 4A (7:48.60, set in 2006) categories.
Under the team name "Run Colorado", the 4 x 800 meter relay team of John McGuire, Derek Gilmore, Ross Blahnik, Kenny D'Evelyn and Will Nemirow placed fourth in the 2005 Nike Outdoor Nationals.[17]
The teams host the annual D'Evelyn Dash 5k race.
The boys' golf team won the 4A state title in 2008.[18]
D'Evelyn cheerleading was founded in 1994 when the school began, followed by the formation of the pom squad in 1998. D'Evelyn's spirit teams have taken multiple state championships. The D'Evelyn cheerleaders won the 3A state cheerleading championship in 2002 [19] and placed second in the Jeffco Spirit Invitational in 2003. The D'Evelyn pom squad won the Jeffco Spirit Invitational in 2004 and took the 3A state Pom Pon title in 2002[19] and 2003. The poms also placed second in the 4A state championship in 2004.[20] In 2005 the pom squad made their first appearance at the UDA national competition in Orlando Florida, placing 14th in the nation.
The marching band formed in the summer of 1996 under the direction of Alex Booth. The D'Evelyn marching band did not exist in the fall of 2004 due to low numbers, however the following fall the program continued and competed in Jeffco competitions. In the 2007 season, the D'Evelyn Jaguar Marching Regiment placed fourth place in 2A state finals;[21] in the 2008 season, the Regiment placed 3rd in 2A state finals.[22] In 2010, the D'Evelyn Marching Regiment placed 2nd in the 2A finals after missing state the year prior.
The first two Science Bowl teams fielded by D'Evelyn took second and third place in regional competition in spring 2006.[23]
D'Evelyn students competing in mathematics have comprised the first place team in the state for Mathcounts in 2001 and 2002,[24] held places on the state's American Regions Mathematics League team,[25][26] and been top individual winners at the state level on American Mathematics Competitions tests.[27]
D'Evelyn offers a liberal arts program with an emphasis on the classics. The district's Choice Enrollment: Option Schools publication states:
"D'Evelyn is committed to the premise that mastery of the skills and knowledge acquired through the study of the core academic subjects is the foundation for all subsequent learning. Independent, analytical reasoning, based on objective knowledge, is an essential skill and is encouraged throughout the program."
D'Evelyn graduates must complete more courses than the basic district requirement, namely:
D'Evelyn has the highest average ACT score at 25.9 in the state.[2] The school's top position with regard to CSAP scores ran for four years, but was knocked from the number-one position overall in December 2005 by Ridgeview Classical Charter Schools.[28]
A study released by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education revealed that D'Evelyn had the lowest percentage of graduates requiring remedial classes in state-funded colleges and universities in 2004 at 1.4%, compared to the district average of 31%.[29]
The school has been named a John Irwin School of Excellence annually since 2001 and was named a Blue Ribbon school in 2003 and 2004. D'Evelyn was named the high school state winner for Colorado in the 2006-07 Siemens Awards for Advanced Placement.[30]