Johnson High School

Johnson High School began in 1897, but it has changed names and locations twice. Now, it lies between 35E and White Bear Avenue, in the area of St. Paul known as the East Side, close to Lake Phalen. In previous years, the area focused on manufacturing, with 3M's plants within blocks of the school. It has always been an area with immigrant families. You can see several old Italian restaurants in the neighborhood, and you'll teach students with last names like Baregi or Costello, although the majority of our students are not Italian. The neighborhood fluctuates depending on lots of political, personal, and economic reasons. For instance, the Polish American Club recently moved locations, although it had been at 1003 Arcade St. for a long time. I'm sure the reasons for the change are complex.

 See the whole report card for Johnson here.

Now, the school's population has shifted. The highest percentage of students are Asian, at 38.5%. Most of these students are Hmong, although Asian students from several countries, clans, and languages are represented. I would recommend learning the Hmong clan names before assuming students identify as Hmong.

JHS from 1911 to 1963, when the building burned

 Johnson's many languages and dialects thrive in the hallways and during work time in your classes. This helps make Johnson truly multi-cultural and diverse. Most of our students hail from the neighborhoods around school. Often our students have been to more than one high school because they've moved, they like a sport program, they want to be closer to/further from siblings or cousins, or a myriad of other reasons. St. Paul as a district worries about more students leaving the district than joining the district.

In 2009-2010, Johnson won the state championship in badminton and basketball, and took wrestlers to the highest level of competition in MN as well. Both AP (Advanced Placement) and CIS (College In the Schools) challenge students in most content areas. Link Crew, a mentoring program, connects freshmen with upperclassmen. Clubs with national ties (SADD) or local ties (JACC) give everybody a place to leave their mark.