Thomas Jefferson High School is a public high school located in the heart of the Westshore Business District of

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

, United States. It is an Area 1 school under the

Hillsborough County Public Schools Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) is a school district that runs the public school system of Hillsborough County in west central Florida and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, United States. It is frequently referred to as the School D ...

system.

History

In 1939, due to the increasing high school population in the Tampa area, Thomas Jefferson High School was founded in the Old Hillsborough County High School building at 2704 N. Highland Avenue in the city's Tampa Heights neighborhood. Named after the third president of the United States,

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

, its first principal was D.W. Waters and its first class graduated in 1942. By 1967, the school board decided that its location no longer met modern educational requirements and the first Jefferson High School was closed. Upon closure of the school, students were sent to neighboring schools to complete their education. The original Thomas Jefferson High School building still exists today as the D.W. Waters Career Center. On August 27, 1973, the new Jefferson High School building was opened at its current location on West Cypress Street.

Demographics

Jefferson HS is 53% Hispanic, 34% Black, 9% White, and 4% Other

Magnet Program

In 2001, Thomas Jefferson High instituted a magnet program with courses focusing on international studies. *International Business & Global Finance Honors *International Culinary Arts Honors *International Law & Criminal Justice Honors *Maritime academy The courses have since changed names and have slowly moved on from focusing on international studies to being college preparatory leadership academies for students. Thomas Jefferson High School offers the following College Preparatory Leadership Academies to magnet students who apply: *Business Ownership and Finance Academy *Maritime and Marine Exploration Academy *Law and Criminal Justice Leadership Academy *Culinary Arts & Baking and Pastry Academy

Athletics

Football

In 2010, the Dragons won the Class 3A State Championship. They finished the year 15-0 and ranked #8 nationally

Music

The Music programs offered at Jefferson High School are: *Marching Band *Winter Guard *Jazz Band *Symphonic Band *Percussion Ensemble *Orchestra

Extracurricular activities

Jefferson High students participate in clubs, groups, and organizations. * Honors clubs

Beta Beta (, ; uppercase , lowercase , or cursive ; or ) is the second letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 2. In Ancient Greek, beta represented the voiced bilabial plosive . In Modern Greek, it represe ...

Mu Alpha Theta Mu Alpha Theta () is an International mathematics honor society for high school and two-year college students. As of June 2015, it served over 108,000 student members in over 2,200 chapters in the United States and 20 foreign countries. Its main ...

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is one of the oldest, largest, and most widely recognized cocurricular student organizations in American high schools, with 1.4 million members. The purpose of the NHS is to create enthusiasm for scholarship, to ...

National Technical Honor Society The National Technical Honor Society (NTHS) is an international honor society for outstanding career and technical students of workforce vocational education institutions. It was established in 1984. Its initiates attend secondary and post-secon ...

, French Honor Society,

Spanish Honor Society Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine ** Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

German Honor Society Delta Phi Alpha National German Honor Society () () is an American collegiate honorary society for German studies. Delta Phi Alpha was founded on May 27, 1929, at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The society has chartered over thr ...

, Thespians Tri-M National Music Honor Society. * Magnet clubs DECA,

FBLA The Future Business Leaders of America, or FBLA, is an American career and technical student organization (CTSO) headquartered in Reston, Virginia. Established in 1940, FBLA is a non-profit organization of high school ("FBLA High School"), mi ...

FCCLA The Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA, formerly known as the Future Homemakers of America, FHA) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit career and technical student organization for young men and women in family and consumer scie ...

, FPSA (Florida Public Service Association), Tri-M Music Honor Society, Mock Trial Team * Service clubs Junior Civitan,

Key Club Key Club International, also called Key Club, is an international service organization for high school students. Key Club International is the high school branch of the Kiwanis International family, classified as a Service Leadership Program ...

, SAC (student advisory council), SADD, Shanti. * Interest clubs Arriba,

Ballroom Dancing Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and te ...

, FCA, True Love Does Wait, Nubian Queens, Science Brain Bowl, YO,

Model United Nations Model United Nations, also known as Model UN (MUN), is an educational simulation of the United Nations, which teaches students about diplomacy, international relations, global issues, and how the United Nations is run. During a model UN confe ...

, Human Rights, Step, Male/Female

Weightlifting Weightlifting or weight lifting generally refers to physical exercises and sports in which people lift weights, often in the form of dumbbells, barbells or machines. People engage in weightlifting for a variety of different reasons. These can ...

, Hip-Hop, Crew, Best Buddies, Drama, Health Club. * Additional School newspaper, literary magazine, yearbook.

Notable alumni

Coleman Bell Coleman Bernard Bell, II (born April 22, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins in 1995. He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes ...

, NFL football player *

Ventell Bryant Ventell Jamal Bryant (born August 24, 1996) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Temple University. Early years Bryant was born to Luz Lebron and Oscar Bryant. He attended Thomas Jefferson High School. As ...

, NFL wide receiver * Andre Caldwell, NFL football player * Reche Caldwell, NFL football player *

Rick Casares Richard Jose Casares (July 4, 1931 – September 13, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for twelve seasons during the 1950s and 1960s. ...

, NFL football player * Kirby Dar Dar, NFL football player *

André Davis André N. Davis (born June 12, 1979) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and kick returner in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Virginia Tech, earning first-team All- ...

, NFL wide receiver * Lenny Faedo, Major League Baseball player *

Luis Gonzalez Luis Gonzalez or González may refer to: Academics *Luis González y González (1925–2003), Mexican historian *Luis A. Gonzalez (judge) (fl. 1978–2015), American judge Arts and Entertainment * Luis "Checho" González (born 1928), Chilean folkl ...

, Major League Baseball player *

Jimmy Herget Jimmy Matthew Herget ( ; born September 9, 1993) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Cincinnati Reds, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels, an ...

, Major League Baseball player *

Tarence Kinsey Tarence Anthony Kinsey (born March 21, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He played for the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. He also played for several teams in Europe. ...

, NBA Basketball player, continued playing 2016 to 2020 in Israel and Europe. *

Joe Lala Joseph Anthony Lala (November 3, 1947 – March 18, 2014) was an American musician and actor. In 1966, he co-founded the rock band Blues Image. Life and career Lala was born in Ybor City, Tampa, Florida, into a family of Italian-American bac ...

, musician and actor *

Tony La Russa Anthony La Russa Jr. (; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager (baseball), manager. His MLB career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis C ...

, Major League Baseball player/manager. Member

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

. *

Fred McGriff Frederick Stanley McGriff (born October 31, 1963) is an American former first baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for six teams from 1986 through 2004. Nicknamed "Crime Dog", a word play on McGruff the Crime Dog, he was one of the ...

Major League Baseball player. Member

. * Chris Moore, NFL wide receiver *

Bob Martinez Robert Martinez (born December 25, 1934) is an American retired politician who served as the 40th governor of Florida from 1987 to 1991. A member of the Republican Party, Martinez was the first Hispanic American governor since colonial Flori ...

, former Tampa mayor and Florida governor *

Tino Martinez Constantino "Tino" Martinez (born December 7, 1967) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardinals, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays from 199 ...

, Major League Baseball player *

Sam Militello Sam Salvatore Militello Jr. (born November 26, 1969) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Yankees in and . In 12 career games, he had a 4–4 record with a 3.89 ERA. He batted and threw right-handed. Amateur car ...

, Major League Baseball player *

Keith Newman Keith Anthony Newman (born January 19, 1977) is an American former professional football linebacker. He played college football at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Chapel Hill) and was selecte ...

, NFL football player *

Ferdie Pacheco Fernando Pacheco Jimenez (December 8, 1927 – November 16, 2017) known publicly as Ferdie Pacheco, was the personal physician and cornerman for world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali as well as numerous other boxing champions. Pachec ...

, Physician for

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

* Al Pardo, Major League Baseball player * Prechae Rodriguez, NFL football player * Fred Rath, Jr., Major League Baseball player *

Torrance Small Torrance Ramon Small (born September 4, 1970) is an American former professional football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons for the New Orleans Saints, St. Louis Rams, Indianapolis Colts, Philadelphia Eagles, an ...

, NFL football player * Oscar Smith, NFL football player *

K. D. Williams Kevin Dewayne Williams Sr. (born April 22, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the Canadian Football League (CFL), National Football League (NFL), and NFL Europe. He played college football for the H ...

, NFL football player *

Ramik Wilson Ramik Wilson (born August 19, 1992) is an American former professional football linebacker. He played college football at Georgia. Early life Wilson attended Jefferson High School in Tampa, Florida, where he played football and ran track. In ...

, NFL Linebacker * Tony Zappone, author, photojournalist, broadcaster

References

External links

Official websiteHillsborough County Public School informationJefferson High School baseballJefferson High SportsJefferson sportsSchool Accountability report
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jefferson High School High schools in Tampa, Florida Public high schools in Florida 1939 establishments in Florida Educational institutions established in 1939