Secret doors, thousands of books, hundreds of windows, and a rich history of tradition. Lesser-known facts about JB that might surprise you!

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

If school buildings could talk, imagine all of the knowledge they could share - decades of teachers, students, and information constantly passing through. Here are some interesting facts about our JB Campuses that you might not know!

JB Lyndhurst

JB Lyndhurst, Julie Billiart Schools’ flagship campus, first opened in 1954. It served as one of the first catholic schools for children with learning differences. What you might not know about the building itself will surprise you!

• The Arter family built what is now JB Lyndhurst as their personal home in the 1920s. After many years of enjoying the family home, the two Arter sons wanted it to be used for humanitarian purposes instead of being turned into a Golf Pro Shop for a nearby course. The sons were playing golf with the Bishop and the Bishop knew the Sisters of Notre Dame (SND) were looking for a building for their new school. After speaking with the Sisters, the Arters sold the house to them for $1. The sons wanted only to take the chandeliers for their homes. When they moved them, they realized the chandeliers were too heavy for their ceilings, so they moved them back and they are now in our school library.

• The office of Jodi Johnston, Principal of JB Lyndhurst, has two bookshelves that open up - one of which is a now sealed secret passageway to the JBL Makerspace. Mr. Arter was an international lawyer and this was where he kept his amateur radios to speak with people overseas.

• JBL’s third-grade classroom was previously the master bedroom. You can still see Mrs. Arter's safe in the closet.

JB Akron

Though our Akron Campus only opened in 2017, the building itself was constructed in two phases and has been around for decades. Here are some interesting and fun facts about our Akron campus!

• The original bell from the steeple sits on the property. The official name is The Hanan Memorial Bell.

• The entire school building has 111 windows! That’s a lot of natural light.

• The church structure, where JBA offers mass, was originally built in 1951 - 14 years before the school portion in 1965.

• Since the school only opened its doors in 2017, the first student enrolled is still enrolled today. We can’t wait to see what great things all of our students achieve once they leave JB.

JB Westlake

JB Westlake is the newest campus in the pack, but still full of fun facts all its own. The only one of our campuses previously occupied by a school, JB Westlake is really making this building their own. Here are some interesting facts about how they are making some big changes to this new space!

• The previous school had a really large multipurpose room that we have since split into two floors to create six new classrooms!

• The staff is so excited about the library they will have for their students! They already have more than 1,000 books to choose from. Every book has been donated by generous families.

• It is an art teacher's dream to have access to a sink. Well, at JBW, their art therapy room has not one, but three sinks! That room used to be a cafeteria/kitchen for the previous occupants.

• When they pulled up the carpet tiles in the multi-purpose room during construction they discovered handwritten dreams and goals on the concrete.

Armed with all of this knowledge, the next time you’re passing through our halls you might take a second look! No matter what JB campus you’re at, you’ll be surrounded by the love, acceptance, and belonging that unites and drives our school community.

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