Running Head: COMMUNITY ANALYSIS OF JUNCTION CITY HIGH SCHOOL 1

Community Analysis of Junction City High School

Staci Novak

Emporia State University

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Community Analysis of Junction City High School

Teaching and residing in the Junction City area the past six years has given me amazing

insight to perhaps one of the most unique communities in the state of Kansas. I have taught at

Junction City High School in the Freshman Success Academy (FSA) for six years. Though the

FSA is now in a separate building, when I refer to Junction City High School (JCHS) I refer to

both the FSA campus and Career Academy Campus (CAC).

School Population Demographics

The school population demographics of JCHS are similar to that of an inner city school.

Our ethnic makeup is 49% White and 51% other which includes Black (20%), Hispanic (18%),

American Indian/Alaskan Native (1.5%), Asian or Pacific Islander (2.1%), and Multi-Ethnic

(9%). Many of the students that attend our school are classified as having a low socio-economic

status with 61% of them receives free and reduced lunch. The ages of the over 1700 students that

attend JCHS range from 13-20. If a student is labeled as receiving special education services, he

or she can attend school past the age of 18. We also have a number of students who are

classified as English Language Learners (ELL).

School Staff

There are approximately 120 teachers at JCHS whose teaching degrees range from

bachelor degrees to doctorate degrees. We also employ first year teachers as well as several

teachers who have nearly 30 years of teaching under their belt. Our staff is fairly transient as

there is usually a turnover between 10-15 teachers each year. Since we serve both a military

community as well as being close to Kansas State University, many of our staff leave due to

military orders or transitions from K-State.

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School Administration

JCHS is also a unique school because of the number of administration within the

building. As a career academy high school, we have a building principal and then one principal

for each of the four academies. Our building principal has been teaching since 1971 and a

principal since 1993. Our Business Information Technology (BIT) principal has 7 years teaching

experience and is in her first year as principal. The Fine Arts and Human Services (FAHS)

principal had fifteen years teaching experience before becoming an administrator two years ago.

The FSA principal taught for ten years before becoming and administrator in 2002. The Science

Engineering and Technology (SET) principal has been an administrator for four years with six

years teaching experience beforehand.

School Board

Our district Board of Education consists of seven voting members who are elected by a

non-partisan ballot. There is also one representative who is appointed and advises, but does not

hold voting rights. This person represents the military base of Fort Riley which is served by our

high school. Most of the members are established. Our school board president, however, has

only been a member for two years. Seldom is their dissention among board members at Board of

Education meetings.

My City: Junction City, Kansas

Junction City, Kansas is a fairly stable town. I would not describe it as thriving;

however, there have been several new businesses (Cox Bros BBQ, Freddy’s, several hotels) that

have been built in the past year. I would not describe it as economically depressed either, but

perhaps the best word would be stable. What keeps Junction stable and stand apart from other

cities in Kansas is the military base. Many of the approximately 40,000 soldiers stationed at Fort

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Riley reside in Junction City. JCHS is also the only secondary school that serves the post. The

town is also located off of I-70 making it a stopping point for travelers looking for food and

lodging.

Junction City, Kansas Population

The population of Junction City, Kansas can vary greatly from year to year. Overall it is

growing with the 2000 census showing a population of 18,886 and the 2009 population estimate

is 20,932 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2009). The military base can have a huge impact on the

population of our town. When the number of soldiers increases at Fort Riley, the population of

Junction City will also see an increase. Similarly, when the number at Fort Riley decreases, the

city sees the same decrease. The number of residents within a specific age range is fairly similar

across the board. The largest number of residents falls into the 25-44 age ranges, which again, in

my opinion, could be attributed to the military installment.

Recreational Programs

Junction City does have several recreational programs for youth and according to

Junction City, Kansas Official Website, “From softball to line dancing, the Junction City

Recreation Department has programs for all ages and all interests” (n.d.). Current programs

include a walking club, basketball teams, baseball and softball teams, and even a bike tour.

Area Churches

Despite being a small town, Junction City has a variety of religious denominations and

places of worship. Services at many churches are held in English, Spanish, and Korean.

Denominations represented in our city include Apostolic, Assemblies of God, Baptist, Christian,

Catholic, Church of Christ, Church of God, Church of Latter-Day Saints, Episcopal, Lutheran,

Methodist, Nazarene, Non-Denominational, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, Seventh Day Adventist,

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and United Church of Christ (Jones, Bauer, Robinson, Edie, & Jorgensen, 2010). Unless they

are a member of the school board, the area church personnel do not have any influence on

decision making that affects JCHS.

Government

My community is located near both a university and a military base. Junction City,

Kansas is only twenty miles from Kansas State University and is the town that services the

military post of Fort Riley, Kansas. Both the university and base have a large impact on the

community in terms of business, population, etc.

Analysis

Based on the details of this community, the school library would need to function (and

does) as a learning center that provides a lot more than just books. Our school library has a

section of materials in Spanish for our ELL population and also provides computer access

before, during, and after school. There is also an afterschool program for our students who need

to work on assignments or access computers. Our collection must also take the diversity of our

population into consideration and provide materials that appeal to all ethnic backgrounds.

Another huge factor is that 61% of our school population has ties to the military and Fort Riley.

This means that many of these students are transient and have probably moved several times. It

would be helpful to have materials for students who need support in terms of moving, being a

new student, and the deployment of a parent.

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References

Jones, R., Bauer, J., Robinson, L., Edie, A., & Jorgensen, C. (2010). The community information

directory: A directory of resources and services in the Junction City area [PDF]. Junction

City.

Junction City, Kansas Official Website. (n.d.). Retrieved May 29, 2011, from

http://www.junctioncity-ks.gov/

U.S. Census Bureau. American fact finder. (2009). Retrieved May 29, 2011, from

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFPopulation?

_event=Search&_name=junction+city&_state=04000US20&_county=junction+city&_cit

yTown=junction+city&_zip=&_sse=on&_lang=en&pctxt=fph