Graham Elementary and Middle School (formerly Graham Expeditionary Middle School and Graham Primary School) is a public K-8

charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...

in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally the Indianola Junior High School, the first junior high school in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The building was owned by the

Columbus City Schools Columbus City Schools, formerly known as Columbus Public Schools, is the official school district for the city of Columbus, Ohio, and serves most of the city (portions of the city are served by suburban school districts). The district has 46,6 ...

, though it became operated by the Graham Family of Schools, and was sold to the organization in 2017. 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).

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. Until spring 2007 the building housed the Indianola Alternative Elementary School, which utilizes innovative and nontraditional approaches in the classroom to educate students in

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th ce ...

through the eighth grade. The school was popular with the staff of nearby

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

, 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 vacant until the Graham Expeditionary Middle School opened in 2010.

References

External links

* {{Education in Franklin County, Ohio Schools in Columbus, Ohio Public middle schools in Ohio Charter schools in the United States Columbus Register properties