NEWSJenna Bush Hager Admits She Acted Out in Class While Growing up in Texas: 'I Was Totally a Class Clown'
Jenna Bush Hager referred to herself as the 'class clown' on 'TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle.'
July 1 2026, Published 2:39 p.m. ET
Jenna Bush Hager described being the "class clown" while growing up in Texas.
The anchor reflected on how she behaved in class with Sheinelle Jones on the July 1 episode of TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle.
"I brought my same personality to school that I had at home," she explained. "And I've always been like this, I'm pretty much the same anywhere."
"I was totally a class clown," she added.
Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones reminisced on their younger selves.
Sheinelle Jones and Jenna Bush Hager discussed what they were like as kids in the classroom.
Bush Hager went to an all-girls' school after attending public school while growing up in Texas.
She explained to Jones that she would "break pens" on her face to get a laugh as she was kicked out of the classroom with ink spilling all over the place.
"I would sit next to my friend Sarah B., who was also the class clown," she recalled. "And I would break pens on my face to get ink all over it just to leave the class and make people laugh."
Jones, on the other hand, revealed that she was the quiet type in school and only came out of her shell when she came home.
Sheinelle Jones and Jenna Bush Hager Recall Acting Out as Kids
Jenna Bush Hager admitted to trying to get a laugh by breaking pens on purpose and covering herself in ink.
Jones went on to tell a story about her mother's frustration when she refused to stop talking while her mother was trying to get chores done in the kitchen.
When her mother told her to stop talking, she instead started making noise.
"I was trying to be a smart alec," she explained. "And she goes and [whacks me.]"
Jones recalled that her mother "accidentally popped" her hard.
"She had really long nails," Jones remembered crying after the unintentional weapon scratched her face.
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Jenna Bush Hager previously revealed a fight with George W. Bush and Laura Bush while she was in high school.
Bush Hager has frequently shared stories of her childhood escapades while growing up with her presidential parents, George W. Bush and Laura Bush.
Last week, Jenna revealed that she once plotted to throw a party while George and Laura were out of town, but her plans were foiled when her grandmother came to stay with her.
"I had a huge fight with my parents and I told them I am spending Friday night with someone anyway," Jenna said, reading a letter to a friend from her 17-year-old self.
Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Bush's White House Reputation
Jenna Bush Hager and her twin sister, Barbara Bush, had a reputation for being party girls while living at the White House.
"House parties were so fun and I think I thought my parents were going out of town and I was going to get one," Jenna added. "And they were like, 'No, grandma is coming to town.'"
Jenna grew up in Texas before she moved to the White House when her father was elected president in 2001, when she was 19 years old.
She and her twin sister, Barbara, got a reputation as wild, party girls during their father's eight years as president. Now, Jenna isn't shy about sharing anecdotes about misbehavior with her father long out of the White House.
