Education

Last-Minute Decisions on Sex Ed

School districts across the state have only a few weeks left to decide on sex-education policies and curricula for next year, but many have yet to make their decisions, including Jackson Public Schools.

[Kamikaze] Hold the School Board Accountable

I'm a proud product of Jackson Public Schools. I attended Boyd Elementary and Chastain Middle schools up until the 9th grade. I then went to St. Joseph Catholic School because my mother wanted me to attend Murrah High School instead of my neighborhood school, Callaway.

Vol. 10, No. 38

Make Charter Improvements Now

In a recent column, ("Why Charter Schools Died," Vol. 10, Issue 34, May 2-8, 2012) state Rep. Cecil Brown laid out the many flaws with the charter-school bill proposed this past legislative session. Indeed, he made it sound like it would have been an act of irresponsible deregulation verging on corporatism. But before adopting a better charter system, Mississippi should take a deeper look at the value charter schools provide. First, they are testing grounds for new pedagogical approaches. Charter schools can, and typically do, use a strong culture to implement more creative approaches to curriculum, rigid systems of discipline, and extensive parent and community involvement than traditional public schools. Second, they replace low-performing public schools, often (but not always) producing superior results.

JPS to Keep Accreditation for Now

Jackson Public Schools officially hired a new superintendent May 21 and got some good news on its accreditation status.

[Kamikaze] Rich in Life

My oldest daughter graduated from high school this past Friday. It was a proud moment indeed, as she also finished as her class valedictorian. This fall, she'll be attending Jackson State University on a full academic scholarship.

[Atkins] Modern-Day Servitude

I was a lowly intern at a major newspaper up north, sitting at my desk in a corner plotting my day when a small, elderly, bespectacled man walked past me to a nearby telephone. Notebook in hand, he picked up the receiver and dialed.

JPS Accreditation Hearing Underway

Less than an hour after signing the contract to become Jackson Public Schools' next superintendent, Cedrick Gray was sitting in a hearing to determine whether or not the district will lose its accreditation.

Charter Schools Rock?

Long a political lightning rod, are charter schools the key to solving the state's education woes?

Students Learn Fiscal Literacy

Students at Forest Hill High School got a leg up on some of their peers for a skill that seems to grow more important every day--understanding financial stability and how to achieve it.

Students Learn Financial Literacy

Students at Forest Hill High School got a leg up on some of their peers for a skill that seems to grow more important every day--understanding financial stability and how to achieve it.

Don't Just Complain; Engage!

The Jackson Public Schools board meeting May 1 was packed. Parents and students who had recently learned about the district's rezoning plan lined the walls and stood in the halls to protest the plan, which will close schools and shift students around in the district.

Bailey Students Walk out of Class over Rezoning

About 30 students walked out of class this morning at Bailey Magnet High School to protest a rezoning plan that will divide and send them to different schools next year.

JPS Tries to Present Rationale for Rezoning

After voting last week to close one school and reorganize others, the Jackson Public Schools district is trying to explain the rationale for its decision.

Jackson Kicks Off Youth Fishing Initiative

Pecan Park Elementary student Kynedi Nichols stole the show with the first catch of the day at the kickoff of a new youth fishing initiative in Livingston Park at the Jackson Zoo Wednesday.

[Brown] Why Charter Schools Died

It appears that all of the charter-school proposals are dead for this legislative session. These bills were defeated by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans in the House with the support of hundreds of school-board members, administrators, teachers, parents and civic leaders across the state.

Make Charter Improvements Now

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