District News

The GJCS Staff Member of the Month Award honors staff members that show exemplary leadership, unwavering dedication, utmost professionalism, excellence in their roles, and their consistent willingness to exceed expectations for the betterment of GJCS.

The November Staff Member of the Month is Mr. Jarrod Land, teacher at Jasper High School. 

A fellow GJCS employee commented, "We are proud to nominate Mr. Jarrod Land as the Greater Jasper Staff Member of the Month. Mr. Land is the consummate professional who has dedicated his life to creating and leading educational experiences that are both meaningful and impactful. Mr. Land exhibits the rare qualities that enable him to be both liked and respected by his students. His knowledge and passion regarding the subject he instructs is clearly outstanding. More importantly, Mr. Land has cultivated a classroom atmosphere where students feel safe and comfortable. They are given a voice and they confidently participate rather than passively listen. Several years ago Mr. Land took on the challenge of teaching and coaching a competition government class called We the People. His success was immediate and unparalleled. This was due in large part to his leadership abilities and a lot of extra time and hard work. Mr. Land has established Jasper High School as a perennial power in the We the People program at both the district and State competitions. He helps mold champions because after all, he is one."

Thank you, Mr. Land, for all you do to make Jasper GREAT! 

The GJCS Staff Member of the Month Award honors staff members that show exemplary leadership, unwavering dedication, utmost professionalism, excellence in their roles, and their consistent willingness to exceed expectations for the betterment of GJCS.

The October Staff Member of the Month is Mrs. Jan Flynn, teacher at Jasper Middle School. 

A fellow GJCS employee commented, "We are thrilled to nominate Mrs. Jan Flynn as the GJCS Staff Member of the Month for October. This recognition is a testament to her exceptional commitment to education, innovative lesson plans, and her students' outstanding performance in state testing. Mrs. Flynn is always one of the first teachers to school and one of the last to leave. She spends that time creating lesson plans that ensure all of her students can learn and grow towards mastery of the standards. Her students’ iLearn scores are always impressive and well above the state averages. Her commitment to JMS and our students, her consistency in planning and instructing, and her professionalism in the field of education has never wavered. She is an invaluable asset to our school community."

Thank you, Mrs. Flynn, for all you do to make #JasperGREAT! 

Jasper High School has achieved all criteria to be listed on the 2024 AP School Honor Roll as a Silver school! To qualify for the 2024 AP School Honor Roll, schools must meet or exceed the criteria for a given recognition level for three metrics, including College Culture, College Credit and College Optimization.

College Culture is the percentage of students in the graduating class who took an AP exam at any point in high school, regardless of score. To avoid pressure on students to take large numbers of APs, only 1 AP exam per student contributes to this indicator. JHS ranked in the Silver Criteria for College Culture.

College Credit is the percent of students in the graduating class who scored 3+ on an AP exam at any point in high school. To avoid pressure on students to take large numbers of APs, only 1 AP exam score of 3 or higher, per student, contributes to this indicator. JHS ranked in the Silver Criteria for College Credit.

College Optimization is the percent of students in the graduating class who took 5 or more AP exams in high school, where at least 1 exam was taken in 9^th or 10^th grade. Because research finds that 6 or more APs do not improve college graduation rates beyond the optimal total of 5 such courses in high school, no exams beyond 5 per student contribute to this indicator. The Honor Roll also recognizes schools that encourage students earlier on their AP journeys so as not to overload them with AP courses their junior and senior years. JHS ranked in the Platinum Criteria for College Optimization.

Geoff Mauck, JHS principal, said “Jasper High School is proud of our 2024 Silver Recognition in the AP Honor Roll. Our students and staff work very hard across a broad selection of course offerings to obtain high scores and earn college credits as early as their sophomore year. The staff sets high expectations, and our talented students work to meet those expectations. This recognition is a reflection of their efforts.”