Ashley Marie Juergens is one of the main characters on The Secret Life of the American Teenager. She is the daughter of George Juergens and Anne Scott, the younger sister of Amy Juergens and the older half-sister of Robbie Johnson. She has a paralysing fear of gerbils. She is often portrayed as sarcastic with a cynical outlook on life, but is known to show her softer side, especially to her father, to whom she is especially close with. She also sometimes gets along with her Sister Amy.
She is portrayed by India Eisley.
Season 2 and 3
On her first day of her sophomore year, Ashley announces to her new counselor Katelyn O'Malley that she wants to be home-schooled. A while before she gets home-schooled, she meets Griffin (Gay) and the two become best friends. While being home-schooled, she gets a study buddy named Toby and the two become closer and closer.
Ashley is the one who tells her parents that Adrian is having her baby. She is the only one from the main cast who does not go to the hospital. She also passes the GED with Toby and tells George about it, though he may not be to happy about it, Ashley feels strong about the GED with Toby.
Toby announces that they want to travel across America together even though George objects. Ashley tells him that she wants emancipation status, but George refuses. He gets Anne in on the subject. Anne is annoyed, but not angry about this & wishes that she had been in the loop.
Toby and Ashley eventually get what they want in regards to America by telling George that it would be better for them to learn about their country by traveling and not by reading.
Season 4
In the Season 4 premiere, Ashley leaves to travel the U.S. with Toby.
It is revealed in the spring premiere Smokin' Like a Virgin that Ashley returns home with Toby, although we do not see him (it is presumed that he went to see his parents) and we don't know if they're still a couple.
She goes to see Amy, Anne, and John, although she doesn't interact much with John and goes to hug Anne.
Amy gets excited and tells Ashley that Ricky proposed to her and that she said yes and that she is slightly disappointed that Ashley wasn't there to see it. Ashley tells Amy that she thinks that how Ricky proposed to her is embarrassing which clearly irritates Amy.
Ashley turns the conversation onto herself when she tells Anne and Amy that she got into college with Toby in Florida. Amy meanly points out that, based on the location, Ashley and Toby have gotten into a school in Italy, whereupon Ashley and Amy get into a heated discussion about marriage and their future lives. Ricky then enters the room and tells Ashley that it's good to see her. It is awkward between them and Ashley doesn't talk to Ricky or even look at him.
The conversation ends with Amy telling Ashley that their dad rented out her room to Nora, Ricky's mother. Ashley walks out of the room and later is seen talking to Nora, telling her that she doesn't mind that Nora is living in her room. Amy comes to tell Ashley that Nora can take her room and Ashley can have her old room back. Ashley claims that Nora wouldn't want Amy's bedroom because it's full of bad luck.
During this conversation, Amy becomes angry at Ashley for not being happy about her engagement to Ricky. In an attempt to hurt her feelings, Amy tells Ashley that she should not have come back and that no one missed her.
Season 5
Ashley and Toby have sex, and Nora and George find out. Ashley doesn't care, but Toby is upset and tries to talk things through with George about the wedding
Soon, Ashley finds out through Anne that she was accepted into a culinary school in Italy, but when she expects Toby to come, they get in a fight. Toby claims that he cannot leave again and he tells her to stop running away which Ashley refuses to do. She ends up leaving for Italy without Toby.
She writes letters to George, Anne and Toby. Ashley tells them that she hates goodbyes and that she's decided to go to the school that she was accepted into. She is able to leave with the help of a $10,000 gift from her Grandmother Mimsy. This causes a scene of jealousy from Amy who only received $1,000 from her grandmother.
Amy comments that it was unfair of Ashley to get so much considering she has a child and is married (or, in reality, "fake married") to Ricky. She also expresses that she is pleased that Ashley may not be home for the Christmas photo and says she would be happy if she didn't come back for Christmas at all.
Trivia
- Ashley appears in every episode of the first 3 seasons, but was absent for most episodes of Seasons 4 and 5.
- Ashley is one of the main characters for Seasons 1 to 4, but only shows up in 3 episodes of Season 5.
- Ashley's fate is unknown after her last appearance in I Do and I Don't, as she never reappeared in the following episodes of Season 5, nor the series finale. India Eisley left the show for unknown reason's. It may be in regard to ill treatment she received from a relatively popular and malicious fan base. This fan based ridiculed her and other actors and actresses because of their fanatical views of their character's and could not discern the difference between a fake tv show and reality. India Eisley left to do other projects and at the urging of her mother and other's who didn't want her career stifled by the fans of The Secret Life of the American Teenager.
- Hopelessly in love with Ricky. Hates Ricky for not loving her back. Young and Reckless.
Wants to have sex to know the big deal about it and why so many people put themselves at risk just to do it.
She is definitely misunderstood in the show. Many people see her as "Oh, she's stealing Ricky away from Amy," which is completely wrong. Ricky has flirted with her and led her on to the point where she feels like there is a serious thing between the two.
She really wants to get through high school without turning up like her sister.
She also had a gay best friend Griffin.
had a somewhat thing with Griffin's cousin Grant.
Quotes
- Ashley: I know everything and I have condoms.
- Ashley: Okay, now I see how this happened. ("Absent")
- Amy: Mom's been waiting for you. You're gonna be late for school.
- Ashley: Yeah well at least I'm not gonna be late for my period. ("Absent")
- [Ashley and George are in Amy's room, and Ashley is reading Amy's journal]
- Ashley: [reads aloud] You were the full moon at midnight, sending the sweetness of light into my cup of tea. [pause]
- Ashley: Uh, she's not having sex.
- George: Are you sure?
- Ashley: Well, not *good* sex.
- George: What do you know about that? Good sex?
- Ashley: Dad, I know poetry and I know a cup of tea doesn't represent good sex. I don't think they're even hugging.
- George: I think it's time you and me have a talk.
- Ashley: Oh, Dad, please, this isn't the sex talk, right?
- George: Of course it's the sex talk. I figure if I have the sex talk with you, maybe you won't want to have sex.
- Ashley: Probably not.
- George: Okay, this is all you need to know...
- Ashley: [interrupts] Dad, I have internet access and a pregnant sister. I know where babies come from. ("Just Say No")