| Jefferson County Public Schools | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| West Pleasant View, Colorado | |
| Information | |
| Motto | Building Bright Futures |
| Founded | 1950 |
| Superintendent | Dr. Cindy Stevenson |
| School number | R-1 |
| Enrollment | 85,000 (May 2006) |
| Area | Jefferson County and portions of the City and County of Broomfield |
| Website | http://jeffco.k12.co.us/ |
Jefferson County School District R-1 (aka Jefferson County Public Schools or Jeffco Public Schools) is a school district in Jefferson County, Colorado. It is the largest school district in Colorado and was the 32nd largest school district in the United States in 2001-2002. Jeffco Public Schools serves more than 84,000 students in 148 schools, including eight option schools and eleven charter schools. It has its headquarters, the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center, in West Pleasant View, an unincorporated area in the county, near Golden.[1][2]
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2005-06 spending per pupil: $5,736
Graduation rate as of 2003-2004: 76.3%
High school drop-out rate as of 2003-2004: 4.5% [3]
The first school in Jefferson County and the second school in Colorado opened in Golden on January 9, 1860. It stood at around today's 1304 Washington Avenue and was a rented log cabin, with school taught by Thomas Daughterty, with 18 students, financed through tuition and subscription. Its second term was taught by Miss M.F. Manly. When Jefferson County was organized by the Territorial government in 1861, the capability of organizing public schools became reality, and George West became the first superintendent of Jefferson County schools. After a mill levy was created in 1862, the first two school districts, Golden and Vasquez (roughly today's Wheat Ridge/Arvada area), were organized in 1863. That September the first public school in the county opened in Golden.[4]
Over time, as the population grew and spread across the county, more and more school districts were organized, each with its own elected board to govern them. They were a diverse variety of schools, from the stately brick edifices of urban Golden which operated through the traditional school year to the rural one-room wooden schoolhouses that operated during the summer months because winter in the mountains made it difficult for students to attend. Some school districts only rented buildings for class; others shared into neighboring counties. The first building constructed as a Jefferson County public school, around the area of 14th and Arapahoe Streets in Golden, was never completed and eventually sold in 1866 to Colorado Territorial Governor Alexander Cummings for $2,700 for use as the Territorial Executive Building. Its replacement, the first completed public school building in Jefferson County, still stands today at 1420 Washington Avenue in Golden. After the completion of its successor at today's 1314 Cheyenne Street in 1873, later known as the South School, Jefferson County's first senior high school, Golden High School, was organized. The first public school graduations in Jefferson County were held in the 1880s.
By 1894 Jefferson County school enrollment was around 1,500 students, with 54 high school students. By 1939 Jeffco had blossomed to 3,883 students with 1,426 high schoolers. In the early 20th century, however, population shifts and other factors began to spur consolidation. The Lorraine School District of Jefferson County merged with the Mandalay School District of Boulder County (Broomfield) in 1917. In 1920 the Montana, Lakeview, Midway and Mt. Carbon districts merged to become Bear Creek District C-1. In 1923 several mountain districts merged into Evergreen District C-2, while in 1945 Washington Heights and Bancroft merged to form School District 52. However, some school districts went by the wayside including South Platte in 1944, Pleasant Park in 1946, and Pine Grove. By 1950 only 39 of the 54 individually organized school districts remained.
Note: several districts have different identities over time
In 1950, the 39 school districts in Jefferson County were consolidated and reorganized into a single district, Jefferson County R-1 Schools.[5] It was so named as the Reorganized School District 1, and ushered in a modern age in a county where some still sent to school in the original one-room rural schoolhouses. Through the course of time several landmark school buildings had been built across Jefferson County, including Golden's North, South, Central and High schools; the stone Morrison school; and Lakewood's 3-school campus. With renewed energy a new generation would be built, and state-of-the-art schools sprouted across Jefferson County as old schools were phased out. By 1999 Jefferson County had an enrollment of 88,793 students.
Today the next wave of school buildings is being created, as Jefferson County schools move forward into the 21st century. However, a good collection of schools from throughout Jeffco's educational history remain. These include Golden's 1866 school and 1924 High School; Stober Elementary; the Arvada School; Arvada High School; Denver View School; Soda Creek School; Buffalo Creek School; Pine Grove School; Pine & Estabrook School; Conifer Junction School; Coal Creek School; Columbine School (Coal Creek); Sampson School; Lamb School; Daniels School; Edgewater Elementary School; Medlen School; Buffalo Park School; Evergreen School; Guy Hill School; Belcher Hill School; Robinson Hill School; Idledale School; Kittredge School; Lakewood Schools campus; Washington Heights School; Mt. Carbon School; Bancroft School; Morrison School; Rockland School; Mountain View School; Mountain View Elementary School; Fruitdale School; Pleasant Park School; Elk Creek School; Hodgson School; Mandalay School, Ralston School, Leyden School, and possibly more. They serve many uses from private homes to museums, and several are designated Jefferson County, Colorado and National Historic Register landmarks.
Through Jeffco schools history there have been several tragic events which have not been forgotten. In 1887 the original Lamb School, which had just been built the year before, burned down and had to be replaced. In 1905 Golden's South School, including Golden High School, was saved from explosion by janitor Oscar Nolin when its overheating boiler was minutes away from claiming possibly over 100 lives. In 1916 the original Fruitdale School burned as its students marched to safety. In 1919 an attempt to burn down the South School was made by a parent frantic to keep the school from reopening in the wake of the Great Flu Epidemic, but the fire smothered itself out. In 1938 the recently built Buffalo Creek School burned while school was in session from an overheated furnace, and teacher Wilma Barnes successfully got all 15 students to safety. Best known is the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, when two students killed 12 students and a teacher. However, that teacher Dave Sanders proved another hero, having helped many students to safety before losing his own life. Recently Bear Creek High School has caught fire 3 times. On February 23, 2010, Two people were shot but not killed at Deer Creek Middle School. The shooting ended when a math teacher tackled the perpetrator, Bruco Eastwood.
Many Jefferson County schools make use of constructed wetlands for managing stormwater and contributing to the health of local watersheds. The wetland project at Oberon Middle School has been lauded by the National Resources Defense Council for setting "an example for local governments seeking new ways to manage stormwater on municipal grounds with some value added."[6]
Oberon Middle School was the setting for the novel Define 'Normal' by Julie Anne Peters.[7]
There are currently 94 elementary schools in Jefferson County. Some of the elementary schools are gifted/talented schools. Kendrick Lakes Elementary school is just one of many GT centers throughout the district. The school currently offers a 1/2 multi-grade GT class, a 3rd GT class, a 4th GT class, and a 5/6 multi-grade class. For further information about the programs at Kendrick Lakes, please call the school at 303-982-8334.
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Private schools that serve Jefferson County Public School families include Broomfield Academy, which provides individualized education for children ages 3-14.