Murrah High School

Demographics

There are a total of 1,600 students enrolled at Murrah High School. The racial makeup of the school is 93.52% African American, 0.59% Asian, 0.44% Hispanic, 0.15% Native American, and 5.30% White.

History

William Belton Murrah (1852 - 1925) was an American bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church South elected in 1910. Born in Pickensville, Alabama, he was educated at Southern University (now Birmingham-Southern College) in Greensboro, Alabama, and at Centenary College in Jackson, Louisiana. In 1897 Murrah received his LLD from Wofford College in South Carolina. Prior to his election to the Episcopacy, he served from 1890 to 1910 as the first President of Millsaps College in Jackson. Murrah High School and Murrah Hall at Millsaps College were both named after him.

Base Pair program

JPS is a partner with the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMC) in the Base Pair research mentorship program funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The primary focus for Base Pair is to utilize the physical resources and intellectual capital of UMC to enable the pursuit of excellence in science education within a local public school environment. The program matches high school students with UMC faculty members for in-depth experiences in the sciences.

Base Pair has consistently emphasized three objectives:

That program, funded since 1992 and continuing through 2015, has brought approximately $1.3 million for science education enhancement into the district. Base Pair-trained high school students are authors on more than five dozen published scientific papers or abstracts. Twenty-five Base Pair graduates are currently in post-baccalaureate academic programs, including 12 in M.D., M.D./Ph.D., Ph.D. (science) or master's degree in science training. Six of these are currently enrolled in a program at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Visit the UMC Base Pair Web site at http://www.umc.edu/basepair/

SOAR

The Student Oriented Academic Research (SOAR) program is a companion to the Base Pair program at Murrah High School. SOAR was developed to implement advanced science research activities for JPS students outside of the UMC zone. In this program, students are enrolled in Biology II during their junior year and other advanced life science courses during their senior year. The SOAR program supports advanced biomedical and forensic science laboratory research by students at each high school site.

Forensics

Murrah's Speech and Debate Team, currently coached by Micah Everson and Kelley Patin, has produced many successful competitors. Murrah students have competed at the National Speech and Debate Tournament each of the last four years: A. Taylor (Internat'l Extemp, 2014), Taylor/Campbell (Policy, 2013), and Rucker/Porter (Public Forum, 2011 and 2012). Previous Murrah coaches include Sonya Harvey, now coaching at Madison Central High School, and Kandi Bouldin.

Academic and Performing Arts Complex (APAC)

The Academic and Performing Arts Complex (APAC) is open to students in grades 4-12 who are academic achievers and/or who show aptitude for one or more of the visual or performing arts. There is an application process held each year for entrance into the programs for the following school year.

APAC English

In APAC English courses for grades 9-10, students actively engage in the integrated language strands of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Students continue developing their command of Standard English in speaking and writing. Students study content that is a grade level ahead of the on-level curriculum, including reading multiple novels, doing research, and writing frequent critical analysis of literature across genres. The Creative Writing elective further creative writing and essay writing skills in persuasion, exposition, and narrative. (Note: Grade 11 APAC English becomes AP Language and Literature. Grade 12 APAC English becomes AP Literature and Composition.)

APAC Math

In APAC Math courses for high school, students move into higher level math courses that prepare them for college and math based careers. Students use skills, textbooks and materials that are ahead of the on-level curriculum, sometimes math based careers. Students use skills, textbooks and materials that are ahead of the on-level curriculum, sometimes adding problems taken from PSAT, ACT, SAT, and college textbooks. Emphasis is placed on problem solving and on application of concepts to real life problems. (Note: In grades 11 and 12, APAC Math becomes one or more of the following: AP Statistics, AP Calculus, AP Computer.)

APAC Science

In APAC Science courses for grades 9-11, students actively engage in an in-depth study of a specific course of science. Students work on skills, textbooks and materials that are ahead of the on-level curriculum, including reading additional texts, doing research, and writing lab reports. Emphasis is placed on continuing to build a strong foundation of content knowledge, scientific inquiry and critical thinking. Students in grades 10-12 have the option of applying for the biomedical research program, known as Base Pair, in which they collaborate with researchers at the University Medical Center. (Note: In grades 11-12, APAC Science includes one or more of the following: AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics)

APAC Social Studies

In APAC Social Studies courses for grades 9-10, students actively engage in the integrated social studies strands of geography, history, politics and economics as applied to a specific time and region of the globe. Students work on skills, textbooks and materials ahead of the on-level curriculum, including reading historical fiction and primary documents, and completing research projects. Emphasis is placed on building a foundation of strong content knowledge, along with critical analysis and application of knowledge to the current world. (Notes: In grade 10, students have the option to take AP World History. In grade 11, APAC Social Studies becomes AP U.S. History. In grade 12 APAC Social Studies contain one or more of the following: AP Economics, AP Government, AP European History.)

Health Related Professions (HRP)

Murrah High School offers the only health-related professions program in the state of Mississippi for grades 9-12. The HRP program is an innovative cooperative setting opportunity designed to prepare students in the 21st century and beyond. Its mission is to provide historically under-represented and under-served students with a quality education that will allow them to become articulate in spoken word, masterful in writing, analytical in thought and prepared to enter and complete post-secondary studies in a chosen health career. Students who take health-related professions program at Murrah take a rigorously challenging curriculum that is science-oriented,complemently by advanced math and technology courses. In addition to the academic curriculum, numerous opportunities to narrow-health career choices are provided to students with field trips, mentors from the medical fields, internships, and university partnerships.

Alumni

Feeder Patterns

The following schools feed into Murrah High School.