Thomas Jefferson High School (Rockford, Illinois)

Thomas Jefferson High School
Address
4145 Samuelson Road Rockford , Illinois 61109 United States
Coordinates	42.2071°N 89.0378°W / 42.2071; -89.0378
Information
School type	Public Secondary
Motto	Strive to be Respectful, Responsible, and Safe.
Established	1969
School district	Rockford Public School District 205[1]
Superintendent	Ehren Robert Jarrett[2]
CEEB code	143712[4]
Principal	Donald Lee Rundall[3]
Staff	92.17 (FTE)[9]
Teaching staff	101[1]
Grades	9–12[1]
Gender	Coed[6]
Enrollment	2,114 (2022-2023)[9]
Average class size	18[1]
Student to teacher ratio	22.94[9]
Campus type	Mid-size City[1]
Color(s)	Red   White   Gold[8]
Fight song	Notre Dame Victory March
Athletics conference	Northern Illinois Conference (NIC-10)[7]
Mascot	J-Hawk
Nickname	J-Hawks
Newspaper	The Times
Yearbook	Flight
Website	Official School Website

Thomas Jefferson High School (commonly referred to as Jefferson High School, Rockford Jefferson, or JHS) is a public coed four-year high school, in Rockford, Illinois, United States. The school serves the city of Rockford and the neighboring villages of Cherry Valley, Illinois and New Milford, Illinois. The school is named after the third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson.

Athletics

Jefferson High School's mascot is the J-Hawk. The official school colors are red, white, and gold.[10]

Jefferson High School is a member of the Northern Illinois Conference (NIC-10) and participates in state championship tournaments sanctioned by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA).[11]

The following competitive teams won their respective IHSA sanctioned state championship tournament:

• Bowling (Boys): State Champion (2002–03)[12]
• Bowling (Girls): State Champion (2007–08)[13]

Activities

The following competitive teams won their respective IHSA sanctioned state championship tournament:

• Chess: State Champion (1990–91)[14]^[citation needed]
• Journalism: State Champion (2006–07)[15]

Notable alumni

• Leonard Bell (1982) - defensive back, Cincinnati Bengals[16]
• Chad Knaus (1989) - crew chief, Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion[17]
• Kathryn Layng (1978) - actress, Doogie Howser, M.D.[18]

References

1. "Jefferson High School Overview". U.S. News & World Report LP. 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2013.
2. "Rockford Public Schools District 205 Administration". RPS205. October 30, 2012. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
3. "Jefferson High School Principal Wins Outstanding Principal Award". WorldNow and WKOW. March 19, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
4. "SAT Code Search". The College Board. July 29, 2013. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
5. "2012 Illinois School Report Cards". Illinois State Board of Education. 2012. Archived from the original on July 18, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2013.
6. "Jefferson High School Student Body". U.S. News & World Report LP. 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2013.
7. "IHSA School Directory". Illinois High School Association. August 2, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2013.
8. "Jefferson High School Basketball". CBS Interactive. January 11, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
9. "Jefferson High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
10. "IHSA School Directory". Illinois High School Association. July 29, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
11. "IHSA School Directory Rockford (Jefferson)". Illinois High School Association. August 1, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2013.
12. "Top 10 State Championship Efforts". Northern Illinois Sports Beat. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
13. "Girls Bowling Champions & Runners-Up". Illinois High School Association. June 10, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2013.
14. "Chess in Rockford". Rockford Chess. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
15. "Tools for Grammarphobes and Grammarphiles". The Spectrum Theme. March 30, 2012. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
16. "NFL Player Profile". National Football League. 2001. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
17. "Knaus in a Happy Place These Days". ESPN. February 28, 2013. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
18. "Kathryn Layng". IMDb. Retrieved July 31, 2013.

External links

• Official Thomas Jefferson High School Website
• Official Thomas Jefferson High School Alumni Association Website
• Thomas Jefferson High School Class of 1974 Alumni Website