Lighthouse School Awards Given
Miss. School Boards Association
Michael W. Waldrop, Ph.D, Executive Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, November 19, 2008
For more information or photos, Contact: Linda Buford-Burks, Director of Communications,
(601) 924-2001; lburks@msbaonline.org
CLINTON, MS — Fifteen Mississippi school districts were recognized in three categories Tuesday, November 18 in the MSBA Lighthouse School Leader Awards Program, sponsored by the Mississippi School Boards Association, in partnership with Watkins & Young and The Excellence Group. The districts were applauded at the MSBA Lighthouse School Leaders Awards Luncheon, held during MSBA’s Fall Leadership Conference in Jackson. More than 300 school board members and superintendents from across the state were in attendance as the 15 districts were spotlighted based on their students’ performance on the more rigorous MCT2 curriculum test administered last spring. Recognition also factored in how well districts met federal AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) standards.
“The work of boards and superintendents is painstaking, critical and many times highly unappreciated,” said MSBA executive director Michael Waldrop. “Despite how it sometimes appears, most school districts are doing a great job and continue to work hard at doing even better.”
The following criteria were used in determining the awards categories:
BEACON - ALL SCHOOLS IN DISTRICT:
• Met AYP in all areas tested
• Obtained an average scale score of 151 or above
• 50% or more students scored proficient or advanced in all 12 areas of the MCT2
SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT MET THE CRITERIA: Biloxi, Clinton, Enterprise, Long Beach, Ocean Springs, Pass Christian, Pontotoc City, Union City, Union County
LANTERN - ALL SCHOOLS IN DISTRICT:
• Met AYP in all but one area; met other criteria listed for Beacon Award.
SCHOOLS MEETING THIS CRITERIA: Gulfport, Jackson County, Madison County
TORCH - ONE OR MORE SCHOOLS:
• Met AYP in all areas
• High poverty district where 90 percent or more students qualify for free/reduced lunch
• Obtained an average scale score of 147 or above
SCHOOLS MEETING THIS CRITERIA: Clay County, Leland, South Delta, Yazoo County
Listing of Board Members and Superintendents of Districts Recognized at MSBA Lighthouse School Leader Awards Luncheon on November 18, 2008:
BEACON AWARD
Biloxi School District
Kenny Holloway, Board President
Keith Anderson
David Blaine
Allison Buchanan
Loyce Searight
Paul Tisdale, Superintendent
Clinton Public School District
Tommie Cardin, Board President
Dennis Dyse
Sheila Grogan
John McKee, Jr.
Ingrid Williams
Phillip Burchfield, Superintendent
Enterprise School District
Andrew Kersh, Board President
Michael Gunn
Lynn Irby
John McPhearson
Barbara Risher
Arthur McMillan, Superintendent
Long Beach School District
James Stubbs, Board President
Craig Carpenter
Angela Johnson
Claire Leatherwood
Timothy Pierce
Carrolyn Hamilton, Superintendent
Ocean Springs School District
Sharon Walker, Board President
John Brenke
Keith Crosby
Lena Melton
Karen Whitley
Robert Hirsch, Superintendent
Pass Christian School District
Rebecca Montgomery, Board President
Randall DeWitt, Sr.
Margie Foxworth
Walter King
Portia Stewart
Sue Matheson, Superintendent
Pontotoc City Schools
Rene Simon, Board President
Charlotte Bass
Thomas Chewe
Wally Henry
David Owen
Conwell Duke, Superintendent
Union County School District
George Dixon, Jr., Board President
James Bryson
Terry Cook
Gary Gray
Johnny Rakestraw
Ken Basil, Superintendent
Union Public Schools
David Winstead, Board President
Larry Driskell
John Henry
Jacquenette Poole
Georgia Thompson
Michael McInnis, Superintendent
LANTERN AWARD
Gulfport School District
Nancy Holderer, Board President
Ruthy Dixon
David Mauffray
Nathan Walker
Bridget Weatherly
Glen East, Superintendent
Jackson County School District
Kenneth Fountain, Board President
Glenn Dickerson
David Anthony Sims
Thomas Tootle
Randal Turner
Barry Amacker, Superintendent
Madison County School District
William Grissett, Jr., Board President
Wayne Jimenez
Ken McCoy
Rosemary McInnis
Shirley Simmons
Michael Kent, Superintendent
TORCH AWARD
Clay County School District
Annie Johnson, Board President
Sandra Davenport
Julie Harpole
J. C. Lyons
Priscilla Mosley
Mae Brewer, Superintendent
Leland School District
Evelyn Murray, Board President
Edward Holmes
Lester Walker
George Walker
Joe Ann Williams
Arthur Cartlidge, Interim Superintendent
South Delta
Melvin Young, Board President
King Evans
Dorsey Johnson
Margaret Marshall
Lee Martin
Katherine Tankson, Superintendent
Yazoo County School District
Larry Walls, Board President
Ralph May
Gregory Moseley
Freddie Sligh
Glenn Warrington
Jack Nicholson, Superintendent