Jasper Place High School

Programs of study

Jasper Place High School offers a wide variety of programs and courses. The most notable of these are the full and partial International Baccalaureate (IB) and Advanced Placement (AP) programs, as well as general Alberta curriculum studies. Jasper Place is the only Edmonton Public High School to offer both IB and AP. Jasper Place is also the only Edmonton school to offer Film Studies IB in addition to its many other IB courses. The school also has the largest offering of CTS courses in Edmonton and has developed a major focus on computers, having teamed up with NAIT, the University of Alberta, and Grant MacEwan in order to allow students to complete their high school courses and receive credit for introductory courses at these institutions.

Beginning in the 2008/2009 school year, students were able to take an additional daily class known as "Block Zero" beginning before school begins, from 8:05 to 8:50. This makes it a shorter block then regular classes (45 minutes compared to 1.5 hours). Courses offered include extra AP or IB science classes needed to get the full number of hours needed for the AP/IB Science courses, as well as extra physical education.

Beginning in the 2013–2014 school year, the school began offering Alternative Learning Opportunity (ALO) Days. The format of the days has varied depending on the year, as well as the semester. In the first semester that it was offered in, students could pick from a variety of courses that either lasted 1, 2 or 3 days (or a combination of courses so that they had 3 days worth of activities) that were spread out over the semester. This was changed in semester two of the same year to instead have two continuous days where the blocks were each 3 hours (all morning or all afternoon), in which students would go to their first and third block classes on the first day, and their second and fourth block classes on the second. In the 2014–2015 school year, the number of ALO days was increased to 5 a semester, and the format was again changed, to having students pick either one block, two blocks or all day sessions. The ALO Days have had controversy however, including from an Edmonton Journal columnist (who later had to apologize to the school), and have been marked with low attendance throughout.

Art

Art and Honours Art courses are also offered at Jasper Place High School. Student artwork is displayed throughout the school.

Drama

Jasper Place High School offers regular Drama courses, but also offers Advanced Acting and Technical Theatre extracurricular classes. It is recommended that these extracurricular courses are taken in conjunction with Drama. The students also participate in the One Act Play Festival, direct one act plays, and participate in Improv.

School productions

Jasper Place High School's Masquerade Theatre sees two mainstage productions every year. However, 2008 was the school's first year performing a collective, Shadowed, a play written and performed by the entire cast and crew in addition to one main stage production.

Music

The music program at Jasper Place High School is particularly well known for its wide variety of options. Students are offered Choir, Band, and Guitar, and introduced a Music Technology course during the 2008/2009 school year in which song-writing, composition, and technical music development is taught. Optional music clubs include Jazz Band, Glee Club and Drumline.

Permaculture

In February 2010, Jasper Place High School introduced a permaculture initiative. Since this time, the program has focused it efforts on transforming one of the schools courtyards into a self-sufficient food forest. Using principles found in ecology, the permaculture initiative at Jasper Place High School aims to more closely tie students to the natural processes that sustain life while at the same time acting as a cross-curricular resource for teachers, providing hands on experience for students, and regenerating ecology while simultaneously providing for human needs. Food produced in the permaculture program will be used by the schools culinary program.

As of June 2012, the Jasper Place permaculture program continues to grow in acceptance and scope. In the Fall of 2012, teacher and permaculture designer, Dustin Bajer, will be brought back to JP to continue his work, in addition to co-running JP's new InSight Education program.

Indigenous Permaculture Class (Aboriginal Studies)

As of February 2011, Jasper Place will be offering the first ever 'Indigenous Permaculture class. Equal parts Science, design, and cultural studies, this new class aims to teach the Alberta Aboriginal Studies curriculum though permaculture.

Course synopsis:

Over tens of thousands of years, many indigenous cultures from around the world have developed belief systems, world-views, and a cosmology that has allowed them to provide for their own needs in ways that honour the living world that sustains them. Based in Science, guided by ethics, and steeped in Indigenous knowledge, students will learn the ecological principles behind permaculture design. Through an exploration of hand-on, project based discovery, students will draw from Science and the richness of the world’s Indigenous Cultures to create designs that care for people and Earth.

JP Permaculture and Social Media

As a means of introducing permaculture concepts to the larger community, documenting progress for program granters, and encouraging similar initiatives, program coordinator Dustin Bajer has advocated for the use of blogs and social networks. As a result, a complete record of the JP Permaculture program can be found on the program's Blog. More recently, however, the JP Program has built a followings on the Jasper Place Permaculture Facebook Page and as JP_Permaculture on Twitter.

Trades

Jasper Place High School offers a wide range of trades, including culinary, cosmetology, welding, carpentry and more.

Culinary Arts and Baking and Pastry Arts

The Culinary Arts Program at Jasper Place High School is designed to prepare students for the challenges of a demanding industry by providing students with an accredited and the essential foundation required to pursue a cooking career through our Cook Apprenticeship Program. This program is designed to deliver comprehensive knowledge of cooking and baking methods, establish leadership skills and ultimately prepare students for a range of career options including hotels, restaurants, institutions, trains and ships.

Awards and achievements

Camryn Schmuland, Chaylynn Petherbridge

Athletics

The Athletics program at Jasper Place has a multitude of options, including:

Rebels Early Bird Basketball Tournament

Jasper Place holds an annual tournament called the REB International Basketball Tournament, regularly hosting high-school level teams from across the globe, such as China, Australia, and the US. The REB tournament began in 1982 with only sixteen teams competing. Now one of the largest international high school basketball tournaments in North America, the 2007 REB tournament saw 38 teams.

In 2015, the REB Basketball Tournament had its 34th tournament.

Fitness center

The Jasper Place Fitness Center is located near the automotive wing of the school, and is open from 9:00 am – 12:10 pm, and 1:15 pm – 5:00 pm. It is also available to female students before school as a part of a special women's fitness group. The Fitness Center is fully stocked with exercise equipment for virtually all needs.

Clubs

Jasper Place clubs change every year, depending on student's interests. But some of the most common choices include:

Computer technology

Jasper Place High School places a great deal of focus on computer technology. The school offers a variety of courses such as Business Technology, Computer Science, Design Studies, and Hypermedia Technology. One ever-popular aspect of the Computer Technology courses is the instruction in Robotics design and creation.

Jasper Place's Computer Technology courses are designed to help a student's transition into post-secondary schooling, and the school has entered into partnerships with NAIT, the University of Alberta, and Grant MacEwan College to allow students to gain credit for high-school coursework.

They also have a TV show and Radio Station, JPTV and JPR (Jasper Place Radio) respectively. The TV show runs during the first block Friday (though has of late been running only sporadically), and the radio station runs at various times throughout the day.

Statistics

In 2005, Jasper Place High School was chosen as the top overall high school in all of Canada by Maclean's Magazine.

Jasper Place has a 98.7% course completion rate, 93.2% of students meet the acceptable standard in diploma courses, and 1 in 4 students meet the standard of excellence in diploma courses.

Notable alumni