Thomas Jefferson High School is a

public high school A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-f ...

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

and is one of ten high schools in the

San Antonio Independent School District San Antonio Independent School District is a school district based in San Antonio, Texas, United States. San Antonio ISD ranks as the 13th largest of Texas' 1,057 school districts. The District encompasses 79 square miles with a total populati ...

. Completed in 1932 at a cost of $1,250,000, it was the third high school built in the city. During 20222023, Jefferson High School had an enrollment of 1,686 students and a student to teacher ratio of 14.40. The school received an overall rating of "B" from the

Texas Education Agency The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is the branch of the government of Texas responsible for public education in Texas in the United States.

for the 20212022 school year.

History

The SAISD school board paid $94,588.75 to buy "Spanish Acres," a property, to develop the third high school in San Antonio. Construction began in the fall of 1930 and ended in January 1932.School History
." Thomas Jefferson High School. Retrieved on September 13, 2016. It was built for over $1.25 million. In 1983 it became a part of the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. It was also designated a Texas historic landmark.

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.Henry, p
178
The towers are topped with silver. The school uses wrought-iron balconies and Spanish-tiled roofing. The school has two courtyards, both landscaped, bordered by ''portales''.Henry, p
177
One courtyard has a hexagonal pond with decorative tiling. Hannibal and Eugene Pianta, an Italian immigrant and his son, decorated the main entrance columns and balconies with cast-stone ornamentation. Jay C. Henry, the author of ''Architecture in Texas: 1895-1945'', stated that the architecture is similar to that of

Lubbock High School Lubbock High School is a 5A high school serving grades nine to twelve in Lubbock, Texas, as part of the Lubbock Independent School District. The school was founded in 1891 as the first high school in Lubbock County. Lubbock High School predat ...

. In 1938 the school had an armory, a cafeteria, a drill ground, two gymnasiums, and a theater."One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

''. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p
22
CITED: p
22
A music facility and the East Wing, a three-story addition, were built at a later time. Its Moorish/Spanish architecture make it a visually distinct element in what was the old Woodlawn district.

Recognition

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

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. In 1938 the school had 2,394 students. At the time over 60% of the students were scheduled to matriculate to universities and colleges. In addition there were 89 teachers, including 56 female teachers. The student-teacher ratio at the time was 25 to 1."One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." ''

''. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p
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CITED: p
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Student life

In 1938 the school had an

ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...

unit, multiple school-recognized clubs including the girls' pep squad "Lassos", and fraternities and sororities unrecognized by the school. As of 1938 the "Lassos" were made up of 150 female students."One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." ''

''. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p
22
CITED: p
25
In 1938 the ROTC had 33 student officers, all male; each were allowed to choose a female student to accompany him."One American High School: The Thomas Jefferson of San Antonio." ''

''. Time, Inc., March 7, 1938. Vol. 4, No. 10. ISSN 0024-3019. Start: p
22
CITED: p
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The 1940

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

film ''

High School A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

'' used exteriors and back-projection footage shot at TJHS.

Athletics

The Jefferson Mustangs compete in the following sports: *

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

* Cross Country *

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

Softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

* Swimming and Diving *

Tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

Track and Field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

Notable alumni

Athletics

* Rick Bullock, All-American basketball player, Texas Tech University *

Ruth Lessing Ruth Elizabeth "Tex" Lessing (August 15, 1925 – October 26, 2000) was an American female catcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 128 lb., she batted and threw right-handed. Ruth ...

, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League *

Corky Nelson Corky Nelson (February 25, 1939 – November 17, 2014) was an American football player and coach. He is known for his coaching stint at the University of North Texas, but was more successful on the high school level. Nelson was an all-confere ...

, football coach,

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public university, public research university located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its main campus is in Denton, Texas, Denton, with a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas, Frisco. It serves as the ...

Tommy Nobis Thomas Henry Nobis Jr. (September 20, 1943 – December 13, 2017), nicknamed "Mr. Falcon", was an American professional football linebacker who played for 11 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played coll ...

, All American football player, University of Texas; 5-time Pro Bowl selection for

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

* Gabriel Rivera, All American football player, Texas Tech University *

Kyle Rote William Kyle Rote Sr. (October 27, 1928 – August 15, 2002) was an American professional football player who was a running back and wide receiver for eleven years in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants. He was an All-A ...

, All American football player, Southern Methodist University; 4-time Pro Bowl selection for

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

Arts and entertainment

* Ben Dorcy (1925–2017), first roadie to be inducted into the Roadies Hall of Fame in 2009 *

Holly Dunn Holly Suzette Dunn (August 22, 1957 – November 14, 2016) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Dunn recorded for MTM Records between 1985 and 1988, Warner Bros. Records between 1988 and 1993, and River North Records between 199 ...

, country music artist *

Philip Krumm Philip Krumm (born April 7, 1941 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American composer who was "a pioneer of modal, repetitive pattern music".88 Keys to Freedom: Segues Through the History of American Piano Music(Accessed June 13, 2006) Krumm studied ...

, composer and pioneer of modal, repetitive pattern music *

Chris Pérez Christopher Gilbert Pérez (born August 14, 1969) is an American guitarist, best known as lead guitarist for the Tejano band Selena y Los Dinos. He married the frontwoman of the group, Selena, on April 2, 1992. Pérez grew up in San Antonio, T ...

, Grammy Award-winning artist * "Blue" Gene Tyranny,

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

composer and pianist

Communications

Jim Lehrer James Charles Lehrer ( ; May 19, 1934 – January 23, 2020) was an American journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and playwright. He was the executive editor and a news anchor for the ''PBS News Hour'' on PBS and was known for his role as a debate ...

, television journalist, MacNeil/Lehrer Report, PBS *

Allen Ludden Allen Ellsworth Ludden (born Allen Packard Ellsworth; October 5, 1917 – June 9, 1981) was an American television personality, actor, singer, emcee, and game show host. He hosted various incarnations of the game show ''Password'' between 1 ...

, television personality

Education

John Silber John Robert Silber (August 15, 1926 – September 27, 2012) was an American academician and candidate for public office. From 1971 to 1996, he was President of Boston University (BU) and, from 1996 to 2002, Chancellor. From 2002 to 2003, he again ...

, President, Boston University

Government

John H. Wood, Jr. John Howland Wood Jr. (March 31, 1916 – May 29, 1979) was an American lawyer and judge from Texas. He served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas before being assassinated by c ...

(deceased), Federal Judge * Ed Garza, former mayor of the City of San Antonio *

Julian Castro Julián Castro ( , ; born September 16, 1974) is an American lawyer and politician from San Antonio, Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the youngest member of President Obama's cabinet, serving as the 16th United States secretar ...

United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and thirteenth in the presidential line of succession. T ...

, former mayor of the City of San Antonio *

Joaquin Castro Joaquin Castro (born September 16, 1974) is an American lawyer and Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician who has represented Texas's 20th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2013. The distr ...

, United States House of Representatives and represented Texas's 20th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2013 and currently sits on the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. * Henry B. Gonzalez (deceased) Class of 1935, former United States congressman. The San Antonio Convention Center is named after him. * John W. Goode (deceased) (Class of 1939), lawyer and Republican political figure of the 1950s and 1960s *

Leticia Van de Putte Leticia Rosa Magdalena Aguilar Van de Putte ( San Miguel; born December 6, 1954) is an American politician from San Antonio, Texas. She represented the 26th District in the Texas Senate from 1999–2015. From 1991 to 1999, Van de Putte was a me ...

, former Texas state senator *

George C. Windrow George Clyde Windrow, Jr. (November 16, 1931 – March 23, 2019) was an American politician and soldier. Biography Windrow was born in Hondo, Texas. His parents were George C. Windrow, Sr. and Rhoda Mae Taylor Windrow. Windrow graduated from ...

, member of the

Wisconsin Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican Pa ...

Military

* Lt. Col. Robert G. Cole (deceased), a Commander in the

Invasion of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 ( D-Day) with the ...

, World War II,

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient; Cole High School is named for him * Major Gen. Alfred Valenzuela, commanded the U.S. Army South (USARSO) at Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico.

Philanthropy

Edith McAllister Edith McAllister (née Scott) (February 18, 1918 – July 1, 2018) was a San Antonio civic leader, philanthropist, and a founder of the Southwest School of Art in San Antonio, Texas. She was also the first woman in the United States to be a campaign ...

, San Antonio civic leader and philanthropist

Physical science

* Aaron Cohen, former NASA Deputy Director * Robert Floyd Curl, Jr., Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1996 *

William E. Moerner William Esco Moerner, also known as W. E. Moerner, (born June 24, 1953) is an American physical chemist and chemical physicist with current work in the biophysics and imaging of single molecules. He is credited with achieving the first optical ...

, Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2014

References

General references * Henry, Jay C. '' Architecture in Texas: 1895-1945''.

University of Texas Press The University of Texas Press (or UT Press) is the university press of the University of Texas at Austin. Established in 1950, the Press publishes scholarly and trade books in several areas, including Latin American studies, Caribbean, Caribbea ...

, 1993. , 9780292730724.

External links

Official School Website

Jefferson Architecture
*
Historic Marker Application: Thomas Jefferson High School
- at the

Thomas Jefferson High School Historical Preservation Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jefferson, Thomas High School (San Antonio, Tx) High schools in San Antonio School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas National Register of Historic Places in San Antonio San Antonio Independent School District high schools Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks 1932 establishments in Texas