Graham Expeditionary Middle School

The school building in June 2007

Graham Expeditionary Middle School is a public charter school in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally the Indianola Junior High School, the first junior high school in the United States.[1] The building is currently owned by the Columbus City Schools, though it is now operated by the Graham Family of Schools. 2009 was the middle school's centennial year. Shortly thereafter, the school board closed that building for the 2010 school year and merged the school with the former Indianola Alternative School (see below).[2]

History

The Columbus Board of Education formally approved the creation of junior high schools in Columbus, Ohio on July 6, 1909, with Indianola Junior High School being the first. Its school building, located at 140 East 16th Avenue in Columbus, still stands. In 1929, the school moved to a new building on 19th Avenue.[3]

Until spring of 2007 the building housed the Indianola Alternative Elementary School, which utilizes innovative and nontraditional approaches in the classroom to educate students in kindergarten through the eighth grade. The school was popular with the staff of nearby Ohio State University, who regularly enrolled their children in its progressive program. Educational programs at Indianola were conducted in consultation with education professors and students at Ohio State University.

Largely because of increasing enrollment demands, in 2007 Indianola students moved to the old Everett Jr. High, which had been occupied by the Arts Impact Middle School. The Indianola building was left vacant. In 2009 the school moved to the former Crestview Middle School in Clintonville, which was renovated in preparation for Indianola Alternative to move there. The move to this much larger building allowed Indianola Alternative to significantly increase its enrollment and become a K-8. The building remained vancant until the Graham Expeditionary Middle School opened in 2010.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Ohio History Central
  2. ↑ Board votes to close 9 city schools
  3. ↑ Tebben, Gerald (September 7, 2012). "Columbus Mileposts | Sept. 7, 1909: Indianola Junior High first of its kind in U.S.". Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Number of charter academies jumps with effort to lure dropouts". The Columbus Dispatch. September 13, 2010. Retrieved November 12, 2016.

Coordinates: 40°00′06″N 83°00′16″W / 40.0016°N 83.0044°W / 40.0016; -83.0044

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