History

Jesse Remington was a Revolutionary era pastor to the town of Candia. Pastor, statesman, husband, father and teacher, Pastor Remington served the Lord on the hilltop over 200 years ago. At the dawn of the 19th century, America needed leaders of Christian integrity; Remington met that call. Riding from town to town preaching the Gospel and building a nation, did he ever imagine a school would bear his name?

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Pastor Remington is buried behind the Candia Congregational Church where he served for so many years, and today is the sponsoring church for our high school. In the middle of the 19th century, historian Ephraim Eaton concluded his section on Pastor Remington this way: “It is to be hoped that the people who owe so much of their character to the influence of his instruction will erect some more suitable monument over his final resting place to tell those who shall come after of his virtues.” Jesse Remington High School is this Living Monument to the character and greatness of our namesake. The life and work of Pastor Remington have inspired our mission.

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“Jesse Remington High School is a Christian community of faculty and students pursuing wisdom, knowledge and understanding, and is committed to raising this generation of youth to be effective leaders for Jesus Christ.”

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Jesse Remington High School began as a vision in the hearts and minds of a handful of Candia Church members. The team, led by Headmaster Jeff Philbrick, Pastor David Runnion-Bareford and Chairman Jon Stanley, incorporated the school as a ministry of the Candia Congregational Church 1n 1990, and opened the door in September 1992.  Development of Christian character with an emphasis on Leadership has been the taproot of a JRHS education from day one. Activities as diverse as Bible class, daily devotions, chapel services, mission outreaches, Koinonia groups and faculty mentoring have been our foundation of spiritual formation.

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Originally, the school existed in the one room below the sanctuary, and the office was a former storage closet. From these humble beginnings, the Lord has called and blessed the school mightily. First expanding to include the 1809 Schoolhouse to eventually owning the properties on Stevens Lane and all of its wonderful and unique buildings, campus development has been an ongoing part of a student’s education. Most recently, the Smyth Memorial Building has been added to the campus, creating yet another inspiring learning space.

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Jesse Remington High School has pioneered an educational program called Project Based Learning, where students are regularly involved in 6-8 week group projects across the disciplines that demand teamwork and excellence. Projects such as the Humanities Faire, the Sugar Shack or the Maker Space Lab bring students towards the frontier of new skills, experiences and adventures.

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Woven into the fabric of our emphasis on teaching the mission life has been the development of our Spring Mission Program, where JRHS students have enjoyed journeys to places as diverse as Washington DC, Philadelphia, NYC, Montreal, Haiti, Hungary, Japan, Switzerland, Appalachia, Detroit and Uganda , andmore.  Students have partnered with some of the best mission organizations available, to give them life-changing experiences.

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JPart of our legacy is the growing body of alumni that carry the mission of JRHS beyond our campus. We’d like to think that JRHS is producing Christian leaders fully capable of carrying on the work begun by Pastor Jesse Remington over 200 years ago.​