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First Junior High School

September 8, 2012

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Profile America -- Saturday, September 8th. Of the millions of students going to class in the new school year, many are attending junior high schools, or middle schools. The first such school in the U.S. opened its doors this week in 1909 -- the Indianola Junction Junior High School in Columbus, Ohio, with seventh, eighth and ninth grades. Ninth grade students were offered courses in English, German, algebra, science and geography, as well as manual training, domestic science, history, and the government of Ohio. Today, most middle schools are composed of grades six to eight, some even five to eight, with a much broader curriculum. Across the nation, there are more than 3.5 million students in each of grades six to eight. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.

Sources: Kane's Famous First Facts, 3087
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2012, t. 243
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012edition.html