A message from Principal Casperson



Ending our school year before the Memorial Day weekend, and on a Wednesday the third week of May, really has led to shock and awe that we are wrapping things up.  Students, families and staff are all commenting on how quickly the end of the 2025-2026 school year has arrived.  Sunday May 24th we will gather in the George Houston Gymnasium to celebrate an estimated 280 JDHS and HomeBridge graduates.  And Tuesday May 26th a small group of our staff will be back here to roll up their sleeves in preparation for the new school year.  Just like that. 



 Looking back on this school year we have a number of celebrations, including the mostly successful transition to our classrooms and schools being phone free.  I want to reiterate our appreciation for the vast majority of our school community following the expectation and leaning into more engaged classroom environments as a result.  While we know many of you made an extra trip to school to pick up a confiscated device the number of misuse was far below what we all feared.  And what a joy it has been to hear academic banter and face-to-face conversation in our classes, in the hallways and in the commons at lunch. 



Another big celebration is the data that our School Climate and Connectedness Survey yielded.  JDHS gained in all areas of the survey with the exception of the category related to the district level.  Of significance are the large gains we saw in student and family perception of school safety & peer climate (13% - 15% gain), staff perception of family school partnerships (15% gain), and staff perception of school leadership and involvement (17% gain).  Reviewing our data and looking at areas of growth as well as areas of gain has been enlightening as we wrap up another school year.  We have lots of room for improvement but we are on a great trajectory.  



As we head into the summer months we want to thank you for your partnership in support of Juneau’s students.  There are so many ways for families and community to be involved and most of them are “behind the scenes” such as donating classroom snacks or buying ANOTHER raffle ticket for a student-athlete.  The reality of our school is that we benefit tremendously from all the efforts, large and small.  Without you we could not be the school that we aspire to be!



I hope that the time away for your student is restful and rejuvenating.  Before we know it you will be receiving a welcome letter, so enjoy the time off while you have it.