History of Jhongshan Junior High School

School History

Tainan Municipal Jhong-shan Junior High School is located in the heart of the historic downtown area of Tainan City. During the Ming-Zheng period, the site belonged to Ningnan Ward of Chengtian Prefecture, and during the Japanese administrative period, it was the location of Tainan Provincial Tainan Second Girls' High School—the predecessor of Tainan Girls' Senior High School. Founded in September 1957 (the 46th year of the Republic Era), the school has a history spanning over six decades. Through the dedicated leadership of successive principals and the continuous hard work of all faculty and students, Jhong-shan Junior High School has developed a distinct identity and achieved an ever-rising reputation. Today, aligned with educational policies and modern trends, the school is taking confident strides toward forging itself into an outstanding institution fit for the new century.

At its founding, the school was originally named "Tainan Municipal Junior Girls' High School." The school entrusted the Tainan Municipal Home Economics Vocational School to recruit students on its behalf and temporarily borrowed its classrooms to operate under a two-shift system, with all administrative duties managed by the host school. In October of the same year, the Provincial Department of Education appointed Mr. Chang Chi-long as the first principal. Regarding the school grounds, approval was granted to transfer and reassign the student dormitories of the branch campus of Provincial Tainan Normal School (originally the Tainan Second Girls' High School during the Japanese period) to the school. In March 1958, after Tainan Normal School handed over the first row of dormitories, the school officially moved to its current location to conduct classes. In those early days, personnel, equipment, and funds were severely lacking, and the facilities were dilapidated; however, the school managed to adapt to the simple conditions, carrying out minimal repairs to meet urgent needs.

In 1961, the Ministry of Education selected the school as one of the four Science Experimentation Center Schools in Taiwan, providing special subsidies to furnish scientific instruments, books, and equipment. The school actively promoted scientific research and group experiments with great success, earning widespread acclaim and support from higher authorities, which laid a solid foundation for the long-term growth of science education at the school.

The policy of admitting female students exclusively was established at the school's inception. Following the government's implementation of nine-year compulsory education in 1968, the school maintained this tradition. Up until the 2008 academic year, when male students were first admitted, the school was the only single-sex girls' junior high school in the city, standing out as a unique institution. Consequently, the school's early administrative development focused on equipping students with fundamental knowledge and skills for home management and daily living. Between 1968 and March 1970, the school was successively designated by the Department of Education as a demonstration school for home economics, life education, and vocational guidance, establishing cooking and sewing classrooms and related facilities, which contributed significantly to fulfilling its educational goals.

In accordance with national education policy, the school was officially renamed "Tainan Municipal Jhong-shan Junior High School" in 1968. To accommodate local demand for higher education admission, the number of classes expanded rapidly, leading to the swift reconstruction and addition of school buildings.

In August 1974, Principal Chang was reassigned, and Principal Lu Ming-hsing took office. Principal Lu focused on improving student quality, beautifying the campus environment, and fostering a strong academic culture.

In December 1980, Mr. Yeh Ruey-shan, then Director of the Tainan City Education Bureau, assumed the principalship. He placed particular emphasis on character education and life education. Guidance in both academic and skill-based subjects yielded excellent results. During the 1984 academic year, the school established a gifted dance class and constructed the Jhong-shan Gymnasium, Library, and Science Building, alongside adding rest facilities and language laboratories.

In February 1990, Principal Chang Hsin-song (formerly of Jhong-xiao Junior High School) assumed office. Under his leadership, the school was recognized as an Outstanding School for Campus Beautification and Greening in Taiwan Province. Moreover, due to his strong emphasis on traffic safety education, the school received the prestigious "Golden Safety Award" from the Ministry of Education.

In February 1999, Principal Chen Hai-hsiung (formerly of Minde Junior High School) took the helm. He provided modern teaching environments for teachers and students. The school achieved outstanding results in recommendation and screening tests for mathematics/science-gifted classes, general academic tracks, and dance classes. In athletic development, the basketball team secured a spot among the top six nationwide and embarked on overseas trips to compete internationally, earning honors abroad.

In February 2002, Principal Chen Ruey-chiao (formerly Academic Affairs Director at Wenxian Junior High School) was appointed as the school's head, leading Jhong-shan toward a warm, refined, excellent, and open educational environment. In 2002, an experimental English class was established; in 2003, the hair-length restriction was lifted campus-wide; in 2004, a traditional Chinese music class was founded; and in 2005, a gifted language class was created alongside multi-functional language laboratories, earning certification as a Health Promoting School. In 2007, the unique "Treehouse" was inaugurated, providing a charming corner for ecological learning, leisure, and creative reflection on campus. In the same year, the school received an Excellence Award in the preliminary round (junior high division) of the Ministry of Education's Teaching Excellence Awards.

In August 2007, Principal Kuo Hui-ying (formerly of Heshun Junior High School) assumed the principalship. In 2009, the school earned top honors in the Tainan City Traffic Safety Evaluation. In 2010, the school became a Anti-Bullying Safe School promoted by the Ministry of Education, providing Jhong-shan students with a secure and high-quality learning environment. In response to gender equality trends and declining birthrates, the school began co-educational admissions by enrolling male students starting in the 2008 academic year, injecting energetic vitality into a dignified all-girls campus culture of over fifty years.

In August 2010, Principal Hou Chih-wei (formerly Academic Affairs Director at Chongming Junior High School) took office. Starting in the 2014 academic year, the school became an open-enrollment district school for incoming freshmen, waiving household registration transfer requirements and facilitating convenient enrollment. The school actively cultivated students' reading habits, English listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, as well as innovative thinking and problem-solving capabilities, winning the Ministry of Education’s Read Rock Award in 2017.

In August 2017, Principal Lin Guo-bin (formerly of Jingliao Junior High School) took office. The teaching faculty actively participated in various initiatives to improve student learning outcomes. The school achieved remarkable success in both the Ministry of Education's Digital-Assisted Subject Reading Program and the 3rd Phase of the Ministry of Science and Technology's High-Scope Program in collaboration with National Cheng Kung University and Tainan Girls' Senior High School. The school was also awarded an Excellence rating as a Spatial Aesthetics Featured School by the Ministry of Education.

In 2019, based on the three core pillars of "Humanistic Depth," "Technological Creation," and "Aesthetic Vitality," the school developed the curriculum theme "Soaring Over Phoenix City: Humanistic, Scientific, and Artistic Wings for Jhong-shan." This program earned the Ministry of Education's Silver Award for Teaching Excellence.

In August 2025, Principal Chen Wei-chieh (formerly of Chongming Junior High School) assumed leadership. He envisioned Jhong-shan not merely as a school, but as the launching pad for students' dreams, establishing the student profile vision: "Outstanding Jhong-shan Citizens, Soaring into the New Century." By rooting character, learning, and collaboration skills, the school empowers students to step into the world with confidence and become new-generation global citizens possessing core competencies, innovation, responsibility, and an international perspective. Working together to cultivate "Outstanding Jhong-shan Citizens," the school community joins hands to witness children spread their wings toward a bright future.

In the face of changes in the educational landscape, Jhong-shan remains committed to creating a distinct future. We express our gratitude to everyone who has accompanied us along our journey. We will continue to focus on student development and student-centered learning, helping every child find their rightful place and realize their full potential. Furthermore, we remain eager to innovate, preserve our institutional highlights, inspire teacher enthusiasm and professional refinement, and ground training, professional learning communities, and instruction directly in student learning achievements—nurturing our students into competitive global citizens.

Chronology of Major Events

• September 1957: The school was established under the name Tainan Municipal Junior Girls' High School.

• October 1957: The Provincial Department of Education appointed Mr. Chang Chi-long as the founding principal. Approval was granted to transfer the student dormitories of the branch campus of Tainan Normal School (originally Tainan Second Girls' High School during the Japanese period) to the school.

• November 1, 1957: The school became officially independent; November 1st was submitted and approved as the official Anniversary Date.

• March 1958: Tainan Normal School formally handed over the dormitory grounds, allowing the school to move into its present campus location.

• 1961: Selected by the Ministry of Education as one of Taiwan's four Science Experimentation Center Schools, laying a solid foundation for the development of science education.

• 1967: Selected as a Demonstration School for Science Education among municipal and county junior high schools in Taiwan Province.

• 1968: Following the nationwide implementation of nine-year compulsory education, the school was renamed Tainan Municipal Jhong-shan Junior High School, continuing as an all-girls school.

• 1969: Designated by the Provincial Department of Education as a Demonstration School for Life Education.

• 1972: Selected by the National Science Council of the Executive Yuan as an Experimental School for Science Education.

• August 1974: Principal Lu Ming-hsing took office.

• 1974 Academic Year: Ranked first in Taiwan Province in the Junior High Academic Achievement Examination.

• March 1980: Principal Lu was promoted and reassigned; Academic Affairs Director Chen Ching-shin served as acting principal.

• December 1980: Mr. Yeh Ruey-shan, former Director of the Tainan City Education Bureau, took office as Principal.

• 1984 Academic Year: Established a Gifted Dance Class.

• 1989: Designated by the Ministry of Education as a Key Development School for Basketball, a Guidance School for English Instruction, and an Outstanding School for Traffic Safety Education.

• February 1990: Principal Chang Hsin-song took office.

• 1992 Academic Year: Honored with the "Golden Safety Award" for traffic safety from the Ministry of Education.

• 1992: Held the inaugural joint graduation performance for the Dance Class.

• 1992: The basketball team competed abroad at the Sweden World Youth Basketball Championship, winning 2nd place.

• February 1999: Principal Chang retired, and Principal Chen Hai-hsiung assumed leadership of school affairs.

• August 2001: Principal Chen was reassigned to Tainan National Marine College; Academic Affairs Director Yang Yong-hua served as acting principal.

• 2001: The Tainan Municipal Jhong-shan Junior High School Education Foundation was officially established.

• February 2002: Principal Chen Ruey-chiao was selected as the school's first female head, serving as the 6th principal.

• 2006 Academic Year: Received Special Excellence in Tainan City's Outstanding Schools for Promoting Character Education, and was commended by the Ministry of Education in July 2007.

• March 8, 2007: Unveiled the self-constructed "Treehouse" on campus.

• August 2007: Principal Chen retired; Principal Kuo Hui-ying was selected to assume leadership.

• May 2008: The Dance Class visited Sendai City, Japan for an exchange program.

• 2008 Academic Year: Admitted male students for the first time (23 boys enrolled).

• May 2008: Reconfigured the former Principal's Residence into the School History Museum and Old City Cultural Museum.

• December 2008: Hosted an international exchange delegation from the Sendai City PTA, Japan.

• June 6, 2009: Unveiled the Taiwan Poetry Road Viewpoint ("Good Hope Cape").

• August 2010: Principal Kuo retired; Principal Hou Chih-wei took office following selection.

• 2011: Awarded Special Excellence in Tainan City and Merit Distinction by the Ministry of Education as an Outstanding School for Character Education.

• November 2011: Inaugurated the School History Room.

• December 2011: Renovated and inaugurated the Arts and Humanities & English Immersion Classrooms.

• 2012: Established a Sports Specialty Class.

• 2012–2013: Recognized as a Three Goodness Campus Practice School.

• Spring 2013: Completed the landscape engineering project for the "Heart Pond."

• Winter 2013: Completed the Character Education Trail.

• 2014: Named one of Parenting Magazine's Top 100 Reading Schools nationwide; rated "Special Distinction" in the school evaluation.

• 2014 Academic Year: Officially designated as an open-enrollment district school for incoming freshmen.

• 2015 Academic Year: The school science team swept the top three places and merit awards in the Bionic Robot Technological Creation Competition.

• 2016 Academic Year: Awarded Outstanding School in the Ministry of Education's Read Rock Awards and highlighted as a Spotlight School in the junior high division.

• 2017: Principal Hou Chih-wei was reassigned to another school; Principal Lin Guo-bin took office.

• 2019: The instructional team won the Ministry of Education's Silver Award for Teaching Excellence.

• 2020: Won 2nd place and 3rd place in Precision Engineering, as well as 3rd place in the Female Power Division, at the 2020 National Youth Technological Creation Competition.

• 2020: Won 1st place and Excellence Awards at the 10th National Hand-Thrown Glider Competition.

• 2021: Earned Special Distinction and First Class Awards at the National Hand-Thrown Glider Competition, as well as multiple top-three finishes at the PowerTech Youth Technology Creation Competition.

• 2022: Won multiple top-three awards at the PowerTech Youth Technology Creation Competition, alongside 2nd place, 3rd place, and merit honors at the Tainan Hand-Thrown Glider Competition.

• 2023: Won 1st place in the Tainan Regional Division and the Gold Award at the National Living Technology Competition (Junior High Division).

• August 2025: Principal Lin Guo-bin was reassigned; Principal Chen Wei-chieh took office.

• 2026: The construction project for the new Administrative & Instructional Building (Fengxiang Hall) received the 2026 National Association of Real Estate Estate / FIABCI-Taiwan Excellence in Construction Award. Designed and supervised by Yang Shih-Cheng Architects and constructed by Weiji Construction Co., Ltd., the building is situated at the front courtyard on the former site of the administrative building demolished around 2007. The new facility reshapes the campus entrance, adds a central foyer and an eastern performing arts square, and enhances overall safety and functionality. Featuring a refined architectural aesthetic with vibrant color accents, it complements the school motto monument ("Benevolence, Forgiveness, Sincerity, and Simplicity"), seamlessly blending historical memory with modern design to create a vibrant new landmark for the school.