This document provides a summary of Junction City High School and the surrounding community of Junction City, Kansas. It details that the school population is diverse, with 51% of students being non-white. Many students face low socioeconomic status, with 61% qualifying for free or reduced lunch. The town population fluctuates around 20,000 residents and is influenced by the nearby Fort Riley military base. Recreational and religious programs are available in the community. The school library needs to serve this diverse population and provide support for transient military students.

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Community Analysis of Junction City High School
Staci Novak
Emporia State University

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Community Analysis of Junction City High School
Teaching and residing in the Junction City area the past six years has given me amazing
insight to perhaps one of the most unique communities in the state of Kansas. I have taught at
Junction City High School in the Freshman Success Academy (FSA) for six years. Though the
FSA is now in a separate building, when I refer to Junction City High School (JCHS) I refer to
both the FSA campus and Career Academy Campus (CAC).
School Population Demographics
The school population demographics of JCHS are similar to that of an inner city school.
Our ethnic makeup is 49% White and 51% other which includes Black (20%), Hispanic (18%),
American Indian/Alaskan Native (1.5%), Asian or Pacific Islander (2.1%), and Multi-Ethnic
(9%). Many of the students that attend our school are classified as having a low socio-economic
status with 61% of them receives free and reduced lunch. The ages of the over 1700 students that
attend JCHS range from 13-20. If a student is labeled as receiving special education services, he
or she can attend school past the age of 18. We also have a number of students who are
classified as English Language Learners (ELL).
School Staff
There are approximately 120 teachers at JCHS whose teaching degrees range from
bachelor degrees to doctorate degrees. We also employ first year teachers as well as several
teachers who have nearly 30 years of teaching under their belt. Our staff is fairly transient as
there is usually a turnover between 10-15 teachers each year. Since we serve both a military
community as well as being close to Kansas State University, many of our staff leave due to
military orders or transitions from K-State.

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School Administration
JCHS is also a unique school because of the number of administration within the
building. As a career academy high school, we have a building principal and then one principal
for each of the four academies. Our building principal has been teaching since 1971 and a
principal since 1993. Our Business Information Technology (BIT) principal has 7 years teaching
experience and is in her first year as principal. The Fine Arts and Human Services (FAHS)
principal had fifteen years teaching experience before becoming an administrator two years ago.
The FSA principal taught for ten years before becoming and administrator in 2002. The Science
Engineering and Technology (SET) principal has been an administrator for four years with six
years teaching experience beforehand.
School Board
Our district Board of Education consists of seven voting members who are elected by a
non-partisan ballot. There is also one representative who is appointed and advises, but does not
hold voting rights. This person represents the military base of Fort Riley which is served by our
high school. Most of the members are established. Our school board president, however, has
only been a member for two years. Seldom is their dissention among board members at Board of
Education meetings.
My City: Junction City, Kansas
Junction City, Kansas is a fairly stable town. I would not describe it as thriving;
however, there have been several new businesses (Cox Bros BBQ, Freddy’s, several hotels) that
have been built in the past year. I would not describe it as economically depressed either, but
perhaps the best word would be stable. What keeps Junction stable and stand apart from other
cities in Kansas is the military base. Many of the approximately 40,000 soldiers stationed at Fort

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Riley reside in Junction City. JCHS is also the only secondary school that serves the post. The
town is also located off of I-70 making it a stopping point for travelers looking for food and
lodging.
Junction City, Kansas Population
The population of Junction City, Kansas can vary greatly from year to year. Overall it is
growing with the 2000 census showing a population of 18,886 and the 2009 population estimate
is 20,932 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2009). The military base can have a huge impact on the
population of our town. When the number of soldiers increases at Fort Riley, the population of
Junction City will also see an increase. Similarly, when the number at Fort Riley decreases, the
city sees the same decrease. The number of residents within a specific age range is fairly similar
across the board. The largest number of residents falls into the 25-44 age ranges, which again, in
my opinion, could be attributed to the military installment.
Recreational Programs
Junction City does have several recreational programs for youth and according to
Junction City, Kansas Official Website, “From softball to line dancing, the Junction City
Recreation Department has programs for all ages and all interests” (n.d.). Current programs
include a walking club, basketball teams, baseball and softball teams, and even a bike tour.
Area Churches
Despite being a small town, Junction City has a variety of religious denominations and
places of worship. Services at many churches are held in English, Spanish, and Korean.
Denominations represented in our city include Apostolic, Assemblies of God, Baptist, Christian,
Catholic, Church of Christ, Church of God, Church of Latter-Day Saints, Episcopal, Lutheran,
Methodist, Nazarene, Non-Denominational, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, Seventh Day Adventist,

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and United Church of Christ (Jones, Bauer, Robinson, Edie, & Jorgensen, 2010). Unless they
are a member of the school board, the area church personnel do not have any influence on
decision making that affects JCHS.
Government
My community is located near both a university and a military base. Junction City,
Kansas is only twenty miles from Kansas State University and is the town that services the
military post of Fort Riley, Kansas. Both the university and base have a large impact on the
community in terms of business, population, etc.
Analysis
Based on the details of this community, the school library would need to function (and
does) as a learning center that provides a lot more than just books. Our school library has a
section of materials in Spanish for our ELL population and also provides computer access
before, during, and after school. There is also an afterschool program for our students who need
to work on assignments or access computers. Our collection must also take the diversity of our
population into consideration and provide materials that appeal to all ethnic backgrounds.
Another huge factor is that 61% of our school population has ties to the military and Fort Riley.
This means that many of these students are transient and have probably moved several times. It
would be helpful to have materials for students who need support in terms of moving, being a
new student, and the deployment of a parent.

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References
Jones, R., Bauer, J., Robinson, L., Edie, A., & Jorgensen, C. (2010). The community information
directory: A directory of resources and services in the Junction City area [PDF]. Junction
City.
Junction City, Kansas Official Website. (n.d.). Retrieved May 29, 2011, from
http://www.junctioncity-ks.gov/
U.S. Census Bureau. American fact finder. (2009). Retrieved May 29, 2011, from
http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFPopulation?_event=Search&_name=junction+ci
ty&_state=04000US20&_county=junction+city&_cityTown=junction+city&_zip=&_sse
=on&_lang=en&pctxt=fph