Thomas Jefferson High School was a high school in the

East New York East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough li ...

section of

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. It was the alma mater of many people who grew up in the Great Depression and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and rose to prominence in the arts, literature, and other fields. In 2007, the

New York City Department of Education The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) is the department of the government of New York City that manages the city's public school system. The City School District of the City of New York (or the New York City Public Schools) is t ...

closed the school and broke it into several

small schools The small schools movement, also known as the Small Schools Initiative, in the United States of America holds that many high schools are too large and should be reorganized into smaller, autonomous schools of no more than 400 students, and optimally ...

because of low graduation rates.

History

Thomas Jefferson High School, located at 400 Pennsylvania Avenue, had its

groundbreaking Groundbreaking, also known as cutting, sod-cutting, turning the first sod, or a sod-turning ceremony, is a traditional ceremony in many cultures that celebrates the first day of construction for a building or other project. Such ceremonies are ...

in 1922 with

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

John Francis Hylan John Francis Hylan (April 20, 1868January 12, 1936) was the 96th Mayor of New York City (the seventh since the consolidation of the five boroughs), from 1918 to 1925. From rural beginnings in the Catskills, Hylan eventually obtained work in Broo ...

officiating. Elias Lieberman (1883-1969), American poet, writer and educator, known for the 1916 poem "I Am an American,” served as principal from 1924 to 1940. Alumni of his time include movie star and comedian Danny Kaye (who did not graduate) and songwriter Jack Lawrence. Additionally, Thomas Jefferson was one of seven public high schools in New York to receive a M. P. Moller pipe organ in 1926. The instrument was removed and discarded in the 1990s. A relatively prosperous

lower middle class In developed nations around the world, the lower middle class is a subdivision of the greater middle class. Universally, the term refers to the group of middle class households or individuals who have not attained the status of the upper middle ...

community throughout the interwar epoch, the surrounding neighborhood of East New York faced a host of socioeconomic problems in the mid-to-late 20th century, including widespread unemployment and crime stemming from a lack of private investment (exemplified by redlining,

mortgage discrimination Mortgage discrimination or ''mortgage lending discrimination'' is the practice of banks, governments or other lending institutions denying loans to one or more groups of people primarily on the basis of race, ethnic origin, sex or religion. Instan ...

and the gradual diminution of remunerative manufacturing jobs) amid the segregated wave of postwar suburbanization. In 1991, Darryl Sharpe, a ninth-grade student who was an innocent bystander, was shot to death in the school. Another youth was trying to help his brother in a fistfight, drew a gun, and opened fire in the crowded hallway. The three shots killed the 16-year-old student and critically wounded a teacher, Robert Anderson, who was approaching to intervene. At the time, education officials in New York called it "one of the school system's worst crimes" and noted that besides an accidental shooting in 1989, it was the first killing of a student in a school in more than a decade. The 14-year old shooter, Jason Bentley, was sentenced to three to nine years in prison. List of school shootings in the United States#CITEREFCrews2016 Bentley was on parole for this homicide on June 22, 1997, when Luis Cabral Corcino was murdered in a robbery. Bentley was convicted of murder and was sentenced to 35 years to life. In 1992, a 15-year-old student at the school shot two other students, who died thereafter, in the hallway an hour before then-

David Dinkins David Norman Dinkins (July 10, 1927 – November 23, 2020) was an American politician, lawyer, and author who served as the 106th mayor of New York City from 1990 to 1993. He was the first African American to hold the office. Before enteri ...

was supposed to tour the school. The shooter, 15-year-old Kahlil Sumpter, was sentenced to between 6 and twenty years in prison. He was released on parole in 1998. In 2007, the

closed the school and broke it into several

because of low graduation rates. In the photograph above, the main entrance of TJHS is clearly engraved with a quote from Abraham Lincoln, "May reverence for the laws become the political religion of the nation." For 90 years students, and perhaps faculty, have wondered why the authorities were unable to find an appropriate quotation from Thomas Jefferson himself to grace the entrance to his namesake school.

Today

Since 2007, the school building is known as the Thomas Jefferson Educational Campus, and is the home of: *The High School for Civil Rights *The FDNY High School for Fire and Life Safety *The Performing Arts and Technology High School *The World Academy for Total Community Health High School In 2015, two of the new schools were graduating about 70 percent of their students and the other two have graduation rates in the 50s. In New York City overall in 2015, just over 78 percent of

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

students who entered high school in 2011 graduated on time according to state officials. However, the percentage is 88 percent for white students and only 65 percent for black and Hispanic students during the same time period.

Notable alumni

* Harvey Averne, Grammy winner twice * Howard E. Babbush, lawyer and politician *

Ralph Bakshi Ralph Bakshi (born October 29, 1938) is an American animator and filmmaker. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatric ...

, animator *

Sandy Baron Sandy Baron (born Sanford Irving Beresofsky; May 5, 1936 – January 21, 2001) was an American actor and comedian who performed on stage, in films, and on television. Early life Sanford Beresofsky was born in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in th ...

, comedian and stage, film, and television actor * Roy C. Bennett, popular music composer * Lloyd Blankfein, former CEO of Goldman Sachs * Riddick Bowe, boxer * Dame Helen Rappel Bordman, Fondation Monet * Harry Boykoff, NBA basketball player *

John Brockington John Stanley Brockington (born September 7, 1948) is a former American football player, a running back in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs. He was a first round draft choice out of Ohio State ...

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tre ...

' 1968 undefeated national championship football team; running back for the NFL Green Bay Packers *

Henry Cohen Henry Cohen may refer to: * Henry Cohen (numismatist) (1806–1880), French numismatist, bibliographer and composer *Henry Cohen (rabbi) (1863–1952), Jewish Texan rabbi in Galveston, Texas, 1888–1952 *Henry Cohen (politician) (1872–1942), Aus ...

, director of Föhrenwald, Displaced Persons camp in post-World War II Germany * Hy Cohen (born 1931), Major League Baseball player * Dorian Daughtry, baseball player and criminal *

Hal David Harold Lane David (May 25, 1921 – September 1, 2012) was an American lyricist. He grew up in New York City. He was best known for his collaborations with composer Burt Bacharach and his association with Dionne Warwick. Early life David ...

, lyricist of pop songs, partnered with Burt Bacharach *

Shawon Dunston Shawon Donnell Dunston (born March 21, 1963) is an American retired professional baseball player. A shortstop, Dunston played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1985 through 2002. Dunston was the first overall pick in the 1982 MLB draft by the ...

, major league baseball player *

Leroy Ellis LeRoy Ellis (March 10, 1940 – June 2, 2012) was an American basketball player. Basketball career A 6'11" center from St. John's University, Ellis set the St. John's records for highest rebounding average in a season (16.5) and most rebou ...

, former NBA center, 1971–72 Los Angeles Lakers championship team * Sylvia Fine, lyricist * Mel Finkelstein, Pulitzer Prize nominated photographer *

Jack Garfinkel Jack "Dutch" Garfinkel (June 13, 1918 – August 14, 2013) was an American basketball player. Garfinkel attended Thomas Jefferson High School (Brooklyn, New York), Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn and then nearby St. John's University (N ...

, former Boston Celtics player *

Hy Gotkin Hyman "Hy" Gotkin (August 16, 1922 – April 11, 2004) was an American professional basketball player who played the guard position. He was Jewish, and attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn. He played basketball for St. John's Unive ...

, basketball player * Sidney Green, NBA player * Sharon Jones, soul singer * Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky), actor *

Ezra Jack Keats Ezra Jack Keats (né Jacob Ezra Katz; March 11, 1916 – May 6, 1983) was an American people, American writer and illustrator of children's books. He won the 1963 Caldecott Medal for illustrating ''The Snowy Day'', which he also wrote. Keats wr ...

(born Jacob Ezra Katz), illustrator and author of children's books *

Daniel Keyes Daniel Keyes (August 9, 1927 – June 15, 2014) was an American writer who wrote the novel ''Flowers for Algernon''. Keyes was given the Author Emeritus honor by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2000. Biography Early life ...

, author: Flowers For Algernon *

Harry Landers Harry Landers (born Harry Sorokin; September 3, 1921 – September 10, 2017) was an American character actor. He was born in New York City. Early life and career Landers's education came at Public School No. 202 and Thomas Jefferson High ...

, actor * Jack Lawrence, songwriter *

Steve Lawrence Steve Lawrence (born Sidney Liebowitz; July 8, 1935) is an American singer, comedian and actor, best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as " Steve and Eydie", and for his performance as Maury Sline, the manager and f ...

(born Sidney Leibowitz), popular music singer, and actor *

Bernard Lepkofker Bernard Lepkofker (d. March 17, 2014) was a competitive judoka from Brooklyn, New York, in the United States. He was a two-time gold medalist at the Maccabiah Games in Israel, won a New York Judo gold medal, and twice won silver medals in the US ...

, competitive judoka * Joel S. Levine, planetary scientist, author, and research professor in applied science at the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William I ...

* Al Lewis, actor, political activist * Lil' Fame, rapper and member of M.O.P. *

Irving Malin Irving Malin (March 18, 1934 – December 3, 2014) was an American literary critic. Malin attended Thomas Jefferson High School and Jamaica High School and graduated magna cum laude from Queens College in 1955 and received his PhD from Stanford ...

, literary critic *

Paul Mazursky Irwin Lawrence "Paul" Mazursky (April 25, 1930 – June 30, 2014) was an American film director, screenwriter, and actor. Known for his dramatic comedies that often dealt with modern social issues, he was nominated for five Academy Awards: three t ...

, Hollywood director *

Jim McMillian James M. McMillian (March 11, 1948 – May 16, 2016) was an American professional basketball player. After starring at Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn, McMillian played college basketball at Columbia University. He led Columbia to a three ...

, former NBA forward, 1971–72 Los Angeles Lakers championship team * Alan B. Miller, founder, chairman and CEO of Universal Health Services * Boris Nachamkin (born 1933), NBA basketball player * Linda November, singer *

Martin Pope Martin Pope (born Isidore Poppick; August 22, 1918March 27, 2022) was an American physical chemist and professor at New York University. His discoveries of ohmic contacts and research in the fields of organic insulators and semiconductors le ...

, physical chemist * Jack Rollins, film and television producer and talent manager of comedians and television personalities * Francine Shapiro, psychologist, founder of

EMDR Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a form of psychotherapy developed by Francine Shapiro in the 1980s that was originally designed to alleviate the distress associated with traumatic memories such as post-traumatic stress ...

Therapy * Willa Schneberg, poet * Phil Sellers, former NBA player *

Jimmy Smits Jimmy L. Smits (born July 9, 1955) is an American actor. He is best known for playing attorney Victor Sifuentes on the 1980s-1990s legal drama '' L.A. Law'', NYPD Detective Bobby Simone on the 1990s-2000s police drama ''NYPD Blue'', Matt Santos ...

, actor * Sid Tannenbaum (1925–1986), professional basketball player * Martin Tytell, expert in manual typewriters * Moses M. Weinstein, lawyer and politician * Allen Weisselberg, businessman * Saul Weprin, attorney and politician * Otis Wilson, linebacker for NFL Chicago Bears *

Shelley Winters Shelley Winters (born Shirley Schrift; August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was an American actress whose career spanned seven decades. She appeared in numerous films. She won Academy Awards for ''The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and ''A Patch o ...

, actress *

Max Zaslofsky Max "Slats" Zaslofsky (December 7, 1925 – October 15, 1985) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He was first-team All- NBA in the league's first four seasons. In the 1947–48 BAA season, at 21 years of age, he led the BAA ...

, NBA guard/forward, one-time FT% leader, one-time points leader, All-Star, ABA coach *

Howard Zinn Howard Zinn (August 24, 1922January 27, 2010) was an American historian, playwright, philosopher, socialist thinker and World War II veteran. He was chair of the history and social sciences department at Spelman College, and a politica ...

, historian, political activist

References

External links

Thomas Jefferson High School
Museum of Family History
Alumni website, ad-free
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jefferson, Thomas HS Defunct high schools in Brooklyn East New York, Brooklyn Public high schools in Brooklyn Educational institutions disestablished in 2007 Educational institutions established in 1922 1922 establishments in New York City