John Endecott Memorial Academy Information

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Attention, handlers: the following post contains information about the programs and administration of John Endecott Memorial (JEM) Academy. Please consult it when drafting characters. If you have any questions or concerns about any of the information presented here, please PM SOTF_Help with your query.

John Endecott Memorial handles students from grades nine through twelve, typically spanning ages between thirteen and eighteen. Students submitted for V8 may be seniors (grade twelve, usually seventeen or eighteen years old) only.

Founded in the mid-nineteenth century as a private school funded by several wealthy Salem and Boston benefactors, John Endecott Memorial gains its namesake from John Endecott the longest serving governor of the colony of Massachusetts. While the school has a tradition of longevity, what it lacks definitively is a tradition of academic or athletic success. In the aftermath of The Great Recession in the early 2010’s the school has shifted from middling private school to upstart public school—still awaiting an opportunity to definitively make their mark.

Featuring traditional colonial and New England architecture the school is largely one building with several annexed and added on wings expanded upon throughout the years. With the switch over to a public school there has been an expansion of interest and enthusiasm in the donor and alumni base and this has seen a large amount of renovations and additions to the school. This large amount of investment has seen little pay off and has had unexpected consequences in that a once thriving Fine Arts department has seen a lot of its own funding diverted for the hope of raising the profile of the STEM fields which still remain struggling.

The classes at JEM are arranged on a block schedule, meaning that classes meet in longer periods on alternating days, rather than in short periods every day of the week. A typical student's daily schedule consists of four 90-minute class periods, a 30 to 45-minute lunch period, and a free period at the end of the day which can be dedicated to club meetings, study hall, or simply taking a break.

Students at John Endecott Memorial are required to take four years of math and English classes, three years of science and social studies classes, two years of a foreign language and physical education, and one year of fine arts (art, music, or theater). Three elective credits are also required for graduation; students may choose which electives they prefer to take based on their interests and personal schedule. John Endecott offers film, finance, sewing, shop, and peer aide courses as yearly electives, as well as a rotating selection of specialized electives tied to the core subjects. AP classes in most subjects are offered, taught by the same teachers as the usual subjects or by professors from the local university who either teach on JEM's campus for a few class periods a week or connect the high school students to their usual classes through ITV.

Discipline at John Endecott Memorial is strict and often (according to students) arbitrary and harsh. Possession and use of tobacco on school grounds is prohibited, even for students eighteen and older. Possession of illegal drugs or alcohol is punishable by in-school-suspension at a minimum, and possession of weapons will result in suspension at a minimum, up to placement in an alternative education facility or even expulsion depending on the circumstances. John Endecott Memorial has a zero-tolerance policy for fighting, but in practice this has meant that fights are likely to escalate due to the victim being in equal trouble to the aggressor no matter what. Students caught engaging in illegal activities outside of school hours and off campus may face additional repercussions in their school lives, but this is handled on a case by case basis.

As John Endecott is an old school, security is inconsistent in terms of technology. Security cameras are located in the hallways, cafeteria, and high-population areas of the school grounds but not in most classrooms. Due suspicion is required to search lockers but there are periodical random in-classroom searches of backpacks and persons. John Endecott Memorial practices lockdown drills twice per year, and fire and inclement weather drills twice per semester. To compensate for the lack of technological presence there are a large amount of unarmed security guards on campus. The discipline divvied about by those security guards often is inconsistent and reactionary to the whims of the administration dancing between sometimes lax and sometimes militant.

John Endecott Memorial also has a dress code and most forms of student discipline are resulting from dress code violations. Students may not wear clothing that exposes their undergarments or is unduly revealing. If a student's general attire or appearance presents a danger to health or welfare or attracts undue attention such that it becomes disruptive, the student will be asked to make necessary changes, with multiple infractions subject to disciplinary action.

Students are specifically forbidden from wearing clothing featuring profanity, sexually explicit images or messages, derogatory language, endorsements or depictions of drugs/alcohol/tobacco, or endorsements or depictions of any gang or organization that espouses violence. Revealing clothing is defined as any clothing that exposes the chest, midriff, or undergarments, including boys allowing their pants to sag. All shirts must have straps at least two inches in thickness, with halter tops allowed only if they adhere to this rule. Strapless tops are prohibited. Skirts and shorts must reach at least five inches above the knee with a “finger test” being the usual method on the fly for determining length. In practice, students who skirt the dress code tend to bring jackets or other clothes that adhere to it, then change after school or when off-campus.

Due to limited amount of field and building space athletics do not get much attention at John Endecott Memorial and the school does not have enough interest, funding, or space to field football, hockey, or baseball/softball teams. Students seeking to participate in those sports are usually referred to local clubs not sponsored by the school itself. Track, soccer, volleyball, and basketball teams are offered but have experienced little success with the basketball team in specific being a perennial bottom feeder in the district with a quarter century absence from the playoffs and not even a single district title to their name. The only team with a modicum of success in recent years has been the Lacrosse team which has made a few deep tournament runs in the last ten years and is a significant fundraising arm for the school.

John Endecott Memorial’s school colors are royal blue with gold and white accents. Their mascot is the terriers and they are represented by both the costumed mascot Johnny the Boston and an actual Boston Terrier named Diamond. Diamond’s pedigree goes back to the 1960s and has had several champions at dog shows within her bloodline. The current Diamond is Diamond VIII, a fourteen pound, five year old energetic and charismatic dog that performs basic tricks with the cheerleading team along with posing for pictures with alumni and students at games and fundraising events. Diamond and her predecessors have all been owned by the elderly Mr. Robert Thomsen who has been the groundskeeper at John Endecott Memorial for the better half of four decades. Mr. Thomsen takes great pride in his caring for and providing of the live mascot and plans to carry this role after he officially retires from being groundskeeper at a hereby unannounced date.