Thomas Jefferson High School
Thomas Jefferson High School in 2012
Address
723 Donaldson Avenue

San Antonio
,
Texas
78201

United States
Information
School typePublic, High School
MottoIn omni uno
Founded1932
School districtSan Antonio ISD
PrincipalRalf Halderman
Teaching staff103.80 (FTE)
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,664 (2014-15)[1]
Student to teacher ratio16.03
Color(s)Red, White and Blue
     
NicknameMustangs
NewspaperThe Declaration
Websitewww.saisd.net/schools/jefferson007/
[2]
Thomas Jefferson High School
Thomas Jefferson High School (San Antonio) is located in Texas
Thomas Jefferson High School (San Antonio)
Location in Texas
Thomas Jefferson High School (San Antonio) is located in the United States
Thomas Jefferson High School (San Antonio)
Thomas Jefferson High School (San Antonio) (the United States)
Coordinates29°27′55″N 98°32′17″W / 29.46528°N 98.53806°W / 29.46528; -98.53806
Built1932
Architectural styleMission/Spanish Revival
NRHP reference No.83003093
RTHL No.5470
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 22, 1983[3]
Designated June 29, 1983
Designated RTHL1983

Thomas Jefferson High School is a public high school in San Antonio, Texas, United States, and is one of ten high schools in the San Antonio Independent School District. Completed in 1932 at a cost of $1,250,000, it was the third high school built in the city.[4] In 2015, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.[5]

History

The SAISD school board paid $94,588.75 to buy "Spanish Acres," a 32-acre (13 ha) property, to develop the third high school in San Antonio. Construction began in the fall of 1930 and ended in January 1932.[6] It was built for over $1.25 million.[7]

In 1983 it became a part of the National Register of Historic Places. It was also designated a Texas historic landmark.[7]

Campus and architecture

The school was designed by the company Adams and Adams. The entrance has two towers of different heights and is designed in the Baroque style.[8] The towers are topped with silver. The school uses wrought-iron balconies and Spanish-tiled roofing. The school has two courtyards,[7] both landscaped, bordered by portales.[9] One courtyard has a hexagonal pond with decorative tiling.[7] Hannibal and Eugene Pianta, an Italian immigrant and his son,[6] decorated the main entrance columns and balconies with cast-stone ornamentation.[7] Jay C. Henry, the author of Architecture in Texas: 1895-1945, stated that the architecture is similar to that of Lubbock High School.[9]

In 1938 the school had an armory, a cafeteria, a drill ground, two gymnasiums, and a theater.[10]

A music facility and the East Wing, a three-story addition, were built at a later time.[7]

Its Moorish/Spanish architecture make it a visually distinct element in what was the old Woodlawn district.[11]

Recognition

In 1983 Jefferson was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[12] In 1995, it was included in the Local Historic District by the City of San Antonio.[13] In 2010, Jefferson was selected as Grammy Signature Award Winner.[14]

Demographics

The demographic breakdown of the 1,829 students enrolled in 2012-2013 was:

  • Male - 52.7%
  • Female - 47.3%
  • Native American/Alaskan - 0.1%
  • Asian/Pacific islanders - 0.2%
  • Black - 2.1%
  • Hispanic - 95.4%
  • White - 2.1%
  • Multiracial - 0.1%

86.6% of the students were eligible for free or reduced lunch.[2]

In 1938 the school had 2,394 students. At the time over 60% of the students were scheduled to matriculate to universities and colleges.[10] In addition there were 89 teachers, including 56 female teachers. The student-teacher ratio at the time was 25 to 1.[15]

Student life

In 1938 the school had an ROTC unit, multiple school-recognized clubs including the girls' pep squad "Lassos", and fraternities and sororities unrecognized by the school.[10] As of 1938 the "Lassos" were made up of 150 female students.[16]

In 1938 the ROTC had 33 student officers, all male; each were allowed to choose a female student to accompany him.[17]

The 1940 Twentieth Century Fox film High School used exteriors and back-projection footage shot at TJHS.[18]

Athletics

The Jefferson Mustangs compete in the following sports:[19]

Notable alumni

Athletics

Arts and entertainment

Communications

Education

Government

Military

Physical science

References

  1. ↑ "JEFFERSON H S". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for Jefferson H S". ed.gov. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  3. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  4. ↑ "History of Thomas Jefferson High School". Thomas Jefferson High School Historical Preservation Society.
  5. ↑ "2015 Accountability Rating System". Texas Education Agency.
  6. 1 2 "School History Archived 2016-09-09 at the Wayback Machine." Thomas Jefferson High School. Retrieved on September 13, 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Guzman, René A. (2012-06-23). "Cityscape: Thomas Jefferson High School". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved 2016-09-13.
  8. ↑ Henry, p. 178.
  9. 1 2 Henry, p. 177.
  10. 1 2 3 "One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." Life. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p. 22. CITED: p. 22.
  11. ↑ "TJHS HPS: Thomas Jefferson High School Historical Preservation Society - History of TJHS". tjhshps.org. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  12. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places - State Listing". National Park Service.
  13. ↑ "List of Local Landmarks" (PDF). City of San Antonio.
  14. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). www.grammy.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. ↑ "One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." Life. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p. 22. CITED: p. 26.
  16. ↑ "One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." Life. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p. 22. CITED: p. 25.
  17. ↑ "One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." Life. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p. 22. CITED: p. 23.
  18. ↑ "School Film Planned." The Longview (TX) Daily News, 13 March 1938.
  19. ↑ The Athletics Department
  20. ↑ "TJHS HPS: Thomas Jefferson High School Historical Preservation Society - Home". tjhshps.org. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  21. ↑ "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2014 - Press Release". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 2 September 2015.

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