The Newark City Schools has a long, proud history of serving the diverse needs of our diverse community.
Before 1848, the Newark community was fragmented into many small school districts. Each district was unique. Classes were spread through out the city in all types of school buildings. This changed under the Akron Law when the community elected one school board and organized into one district.
On March 27, 1848, a group of teachers and citizens met and adopted a set of fifteen resolutions to create a district they felt would be more efficient, better prepare teachers and allow for a wider range of courses. On July 11, a petition was circulated to the voters requesting the joining together of existing districts. With its passage, the first board of education was elected on September 18, 1849.
Central School
Newark City Schools began with its students still spread through out the city, housed in church basements and buildings of the former individual districts. In order to pull the system together, the board proposed at its first annual report (issued February 19, 1850) that a central-house be built to accommodate all secondary and high school students. With the construction of the old Central School, the district built the first of numerous buildings, some of which are still in use today.
The first Central School was constructed in 1851, added onto in 1854, and served the district until it was torn down and replaced in 1940. Then between 1860 and 1929, 21 additional facilities were added including a new high school, which in 1940, cost $200,340!
The new Central school contained laboratories that promoted industrial technology. At the request of the United States government, the district offered intensive training programs that were intended to assist in national defense. The shops were in operation 24 hours a day, six days a week. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the government furnished money and equipment to the shops that house 35 classes and spilled into a second building. Between 1940 and 1945, it is reported that 8,000 men and women were trained in courses essential to war production.
Early diversity
The Newark school district was home to a school for the community’s African American children. Between 1859 and 1888, a “Negro school” as it was called, provided a separate school for these children. The school was closed as a result of the Arnett Act which desegregated Ohio’s schools. The Newark Weekly Advocate of the time didn't report any uprising over the integration of the city's schools.
Managing growth in the 1900’s
In the early 1930’s, the district began to add extracurricular programs such as athletics and music. It is reported that many of the community members felt that these activities diminished the focus on academics. However, these programs flourished and remain strong points of pride for our school district.
By the 1950’s, the district’s population had increased, requiring the district to provide additional school buildings. Additions were made to eight existing buildings, one was replaced and four buildings were added. At the same time, the community began to consider replacing the aging high school facility on Main Street. It was determined the new high school should be located further west so that it would be more centrally located within the growing city. A unique plan for a campus-style high school was developed. The groundbreaking for the new Newark High School took place in spring, 1959. The first classes commenced on April 10, 1961. A dedication was later held on May 12, 1963. Although the original occupancy for the building was to be 1,800, by 1965 the enrollment at Newark High School had exceeded this number. In the years since then, the enrollment at the population has declined to about 1700 students.