Jackson Public School District

Superintendent

Dr. Freddrick Murray is the interim superintendent of Jackson Public Schools. The Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees announced Dr. Murray's appointment in the fall of 2016. A veteran educator of more than 20 years with an extensive leadership background, Dr. Murray most recently served as Chief Academic Officer of High Schools. Prior to joining the District's administrative in that capacity, Dr. Murray served as a building principal at several schools and was able to increase academic performance with each appointment.

Board of Trustees

The Jackson Public School District is governed by the Board of Trustees. Each member is appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the city council to represent the schools in each of the city's seven wards.

Facts

JPS serves nearly 28,000 students overall in grades pre-K-12. It is the second largest public school district in Mississippi. JPS is located in the state's capital, Jackson, Mississippi, which has a population of approximately 175,000 residents. The district has 38 elementary schools, 13 middle schools, 7 high schools, and 2 special schools. This is a total of 60 schools. There are nearly 5,000 employees in the district. The district offers a variety of special programs such as Academic and Performing Arts Complex, International Baccalaureate, and Montessori.

Thanks to a Bond Referendum in 2006, three new schools were established–Kirksey Middle School, serving families in north Jackson, and Bates Elementary and Cardozo Middle School, serving the south Jackson community. The new schools opened in 2010.

In March 2010, First Lady Michelle Obama visited Pecan Park Elementary and Brinkley Middle Schools as a part of her Let's Move program.

In 2012, Bradley Elementary School became the Bradley Complex and is used as a headquarters for the District's Campus Enforcement Office. Also that year, the former Bailey Magnet High School became Bailey APAC Middle School.

In 2012, the number of Advanced Placement scholars doubled from the previous year.

Jackson State University and Jackson Public Schools made a historic agreement on May 16, 2013, creating a partnership to enhance the quality of education offered at Blackburn Middle School. The school became a JSU laboratory school, where excellence in education theory and practice could be observed, studied and utilized. Through this construct, Blackburn provides clinical experience for JSU students and creates a living laboratory for research and applied practices to improve teaching. It was renamed Blackburn Laboratory Middle School.

Motto

Building Stronger Schools Together!

High Schools (Grades 9-12)

Middle Schools (Grades 6-8)

Special Programs

2006-07 school year

There were a total of 31,941 students enrolled in the Jackson Public School District during the 2006-2007 school year. The gender makeup of the district was 50% female and 50% male. The racial makeup of the district was 97.51% African American, 1.83% White, 0.45% Hispanic, 0.18% Asian, and 0.03% Native American. 76.6% of the district's students were eligible to receive free lunch.

2011 handcuffing litigation

On June 8, 2011, the Southern Poverty Law Center filed a federal class action lawsuit against the district over allegations that officials at Capital City Alternative School unlawfully shackled and handcuffed pupils.

School uniforms

In April 2005, the district adopted a policy requiring elementary and middle school pupils to wear uniforms.