Students across our area are returning to school this fall. Many Jacksonville area students have gone on to become famous! Here’s a list of notables from our area who have achieved fame in music, entertainment and athletics.
1. Ray Charles | This singer-songwriter was born in Albany, GA. He completely lost his sight by age seven, and attended the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in St. Augustine from 1937 to 1945.
2. Ashley Greene | Greene was born in Jacksonville, Florida and attended Wolfson High School. She left during her senior year and eventually landed the role of Alice Cullen in "Twilight" movie series.
3. Lil Duval | Roland Powell attended First Coast High School and rose to fame after winning a BET comedy competition. You can watch him on MTV2 shows like "Guy Code" and "Ain't That America."
4. Tim McGraw | Timothy McGraw was born in Louisiana, but his mother moved to Jacksonville in 1987. McGraw followed and attended Florida State College at Jacksonville.
5. Tim Tebow | Tebow was homeschooled, but he played football at Allen D. Nease High School, where he led the team to a state title.
6. Walter Orange | Orange grew up on the Northwest side of Jacksonville. He attended Northwestern High School, which is now known as William M. Raines High School. He went on to become a drummer for Grammy Award winning group, "The Commodores." He now does vocals and keyboards.
7. William Ryan Key | Key was born in Jacksonville, Florida and attended Episcopal High School, and then transferred to Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, where he met his future bandmates. "Yellow Card" is best known for the song "Ocean Avenue," which references a street in Atlantic Beach, FL.
8. Alicia Fox | Victoria Crawford is best known under her professional wrestling name, Alicia Fox. She grew up in Ponte Vedra Beach FL and as a teen, she worked at Al's Pizza.
9. RJ Cyler | RJ Cyler is an actor. He's been in "Power Rangers' "War Machine" with Brad Pitt and "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl." He attended Englewood High School.
10. Lynyrd Skynrd | This band is perhaps the best-known group of people who were educated in Jacksonville schools. Several Lynyrd Skynrd band members attended Robert E. Lee High School. They named the band after a strict gym teacher, Leonard Skinner.
Watch the Action News Jax Family Focus Back to School special on August 7.
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