Jefferson County Schools -

JHS Families:

This morning at approximately 10:12 a.m., the fire alarm and sprinkler system at Jefferson High School were activated after a ball struck a light fixture in the gymnasium ceiling.

All students and staff immediately evacuated the building and remained outside while emergency personnel responded. Fire officials conducted a thorough assessment and cleared the building for re-entry at approximately 10:40 a.m., allowing students and staff to safely return to class.

The gymnasium and adjacent areas are temporarily off limits while crews clean up water from the activated sprinkler system. The remainder of the school is operating as normal.

We want to assure families that students and staff were never in immediate danger and that all safety procedures were followed as designed.

Jefferson County Schools is grateful to our local fire departments for their swift response and assistance in ensuring the safety of our students and staff. Their quick action allowed everyone to return to the building in a timely manner and the school day to continue.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support.

JHS/WHS Families: On Tuesday, Oct. 20, all sophomores and registered juniors will take the PSAT/NMSQT. Students taking the test should bring a fully charged device, get a good night’s sleep, and eat breakfast that morning.

All other students (freshmen, non-registered juniors, and seniors) will stay home for online learning through Canvas. James Rumsey, BRCTC/Jump Start, MedEd, and EmComm are canceled for the day.

JCS Families: All JCS schools will operate on a 2-hour early dismissal tomorrow, Friday, October 9, for faculty senate meetings. Find the full JCS calendar online at jcswv.org/calendar.

All Jefferson County Schools and offices are closed on Monday, Sept. 7, in observation of Labor Day. Classes will resume on Sept. 8. Have a safe and relaxing weekend!

JCS Families: There is one day left in our first week of school! If you haven't completed your student information update yet, now's the time. Accurate contact info means we can reach you when it matters. Update here: jcswv.org/update

We want your feedback! Please take a moment to complete our JCS Communications and Engagement Survey to help us plan and improve: https://forms.office.com/r/a7sZnG0uuR

JCS Families: All JCS schools and offices will be closed tomorrow, Tuesday, May 12, for Election Day. Find the full JCS calendar online at jcswv.org/calendar.

CANVAS UPDATE: 5/8/2026

Canvas was down the evening of Thursday, May 7, 2026, due to a reported data breach. Early reports indicate this impacts over 8,000+ public schools, colleges, and institutions across the country. JCS is an impacted organization.

Indications so far are that the information involved includes student/staff names, JCS/WVDE-issued student/staff ID numbers (not social security numbers), email addresses, and messages between users on the platform.

JCS has no evidence of a compromise to internal district systems. Our Technology Team is actively assessing impact and implementing precautionary safeguards.

We will continue to monitor the situation and share updates as needed. For more information, visit the Instructure Incident Updates & FAQs: https://www.instructure.com/incident_update

Dear JCS Families,

I want to start by saying that all students and staff are safe.

Jefferson County Schools will operate on an NTID tomorrow, Friday, May 1. At the recommendation of law enforcement, our school buildings will be closed tomorrow, Friday, May 1. All evening activities and use of our facilities are also canceled.

This has been a difficult week that has caused a lot of shared stress and fear. We take the physical and mental well-being of our students and staff seriously. Please speak with your student about this week's events and reach out to your building admin team if you need additional resources to support your student. We will be sharing more mental health resources in the coming days.

Full update on the threat at Charles Town Middle School: https://www.jcswv.org/article/2856278

JCS Families: We can't wait to see our students' smiling faces tomorrow morning, Monday, April 13, as they return from Spring Break! We've missed our students and look forward to welcoming everyone back to finish the year strong!