# A. Y. Jackson Secondary School (Ottawa)

A. Y. Jackson Secondary School is a community high school in the Glen Cairn neighbourhood of the Kanata suburb of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and was first opened in 1976. The school was named after A. Y. Jackson, the famed Canadian painter and one of the founders of the Group of Seven. The majority of students are from W.O. Mitchell Elementary School, Glen Cairn Public School, and Katimavik Elementary School, its three associate schools.

## International Program

The school runs two major international exchanges each year with partner schools in Zaragoza, Spain and Suzhou, China. In 2006, AYJ became the first school internationally to be recognized as a Global Learning Centre by the International School Connection.
From May 14 to May 15, 2010, A.Y. Jackson's HUG Club organized a fundraiser sponsored by Running Room to provide sponsoring for the students' tuition at the Lwak Girls' High School in Kenya. The fundraiser was a success, sponsoring the tuition of 73 students.

## Science and technology

AYJ had an in-house closed-circuit television station known as JTV that produced a daily news and information program, replacing the traditional audio announcements via the public address system. It began being offered as a technology credit course in 2004 and the station earned several students the 2005 OCRI High School IT Entrepreneur of The Year Award. In 2015, JTV was replaced with a YouTube channel.
AYJ was the first school in Ottawa to participate in the Engineers in Schools program, allowing students to talk with local engineers.

## Arts
### Drama

On the evening of Oct. 20, 2009, AYJ drama teacher Illona Henkelman and the cast of "A Few Good Men" were received awards at the Arts Advisory Committee Awards Ceremony. Mrs. Henkelman won the Secondary School Drama Teacher of the Year (2008–2009) award and the AYJ play "A Few Good Men" won an award for "Outstanding Event of the Year". In 2010, their production of "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" won in the Critic's Favourite Musical category at the annual Cappies Gala and, in 2011, they won the Critic's Favourite Play category with the Canada's Capital Cappies for their production of Neil Simon's "Plaza Suite".
The Drama and Music Department co-produced "The Addams Family Musical". This production was directed by drama teacher Illona Henkleman with the music teacher Jessica Sullivan conducting the pit band. They won multiple awards at the Cappies in June, including the award for Best Musical.

### Music

In February 2015, the AYJ Senior Band competed in the Capital Region Music Festival, a regional qualifying competition for MusicFest Canada. For the first time in the school's history, the band was awarded the Gold Standard for their performance.

## Math and literacy achievements
### Grade 9 math

The percentage of A.Y Jackson Secondary School students that met the provincial grade 9 math standards in 2023–2024 was 59%, compared to 55% for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, and to 54% for Ontario's English schools and 61% for Ontario's French schools.

### Grade 10 literacy

The percentage of A.Y Jackson Secondary School students that met the provincial grade 10 literacy standards in 2023–2024 was 94%, compared to 87% for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, and to 85% for Ontario's English schools and 92% for Ontario's French schools.

## Athletics

The school has achieved city National Capital Secondary School Athletic Association championships for the Varsity lacrosse (2015, 2016, 2018 & 2019) and junior boys rugby program. Senior Boys Volleyball won city championships in 1986, 1988, 1995, 2001, and 2002 as well as three Western Conference Championships in 2003, 2004, and 2020. The Junior Boys Basketball won three Western Conference titles (2003, 2005, 2006). The Blue Jays also won city championships for boys baseball in 2005, 2011, and 2014.
The AYJ Badminton Club won championships in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1997, 1998, 2005, and 2010. In 2008, the senior boys' basketball team won the provincial Boys' OFSAA AA championship, becoming the first Ottawa high school to win a provincial basketball championship in 59 years. In 2020, AYJ won a Tier 2 Girls Hockey Championship.
In 2009, the varsity boys non-contact hockey team won the city championship. The Snowboard & Ski Club is the largest club at the school with regular multi-day excursions during the winter months to Le Massif and Mont-Sainte-Anne, as well as single-day trips to Mont-Tremblant.

## Suicide of Jamie Hubley

On 15 October 2011, A. Y. Jackson student Jamie Hubley (son of Ottawa City Councillor Allan Hubley) died by suicide. According to a news report at the time, Hubley was the “only openly gay student at the school,” and was bullied as a result. Hubley described in his final blog post being called "fag" in the hallways. His father stated that posters promoting the "anti-discrimination Rainbow Club" at school were torn down by students. Calls for stronger programs led to the establishment of an anti-bullying initiative, announced at A. Y. Jackson, and launched by the Canadian Red Cross in the wake of his suicide.

## Notable alumni

* Esther Akinsulie - sprinter
* Jim Bryson - musician