Jack Duckworth, Jr., Raytown High School, Class of 1974
Jackie “Jack” Duckworth, Jr. graduated from Raytown High in 1974. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Administration of Justice and Sociology in 1984 from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. In 1991, he received a Masters of Human Development and Family Life from the University of Kansas.
His passion for working with youth began by working at the Ozanam Home for Boys in his early years. In 1989, he moved to Alaska to begin a long-term treatment program for youth. Currently, he is the Director of Residential Youth Care in Ketchikan, Alaska and has raised over 50 million dollars in financial support for youth treatment. He has provided over 10,000 foster care days in his own home.
Jack has authored four books to promote families, teaching them to navigate the mental health system. He has taught over 800 parents through his parenting class and thousands of youth through his goal-setting program. He has dedicated his life to the betterment of others and is empathic to youth and adults that are in his care.
In 2004, the city of Ketchikan presented Jack with a resolution for his years of service to the community and in 2008, he received the Red Apple Award from the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society in Ketchikan, Alaska for helping and teaching youth. In 2014, he refurbished a school building and opened a recovery program with room for 20 students and in 2007, he built a home for therapeutic foster care and transitional living.
In his spare time, Jack is an accomplished Taekwondo artist and instructor. He also has earned several national and state honors in the sport, ranking in the top eight in the nation, earning the title of the Missouri State Champion for two years and the Iowa State Champion for three years, and as the Grand Champion in Kansas City for three years. Jack still serves as an instructor and has taught boxing classes for 20 years and Taekwondo classes for 30 years.
