Every other year the Counseling Office and Alumni Relations Office host Career Day for juniors and seniors. This year, Bethany Cooper, a corporate recruitment and talent management coordinator for FNC, Inc. in Oxford, Miss., presented the keynote talk. Her presentation was followed by track sessions featuring medical (physician, nurse practitioner, physical therapist, and physician assistant) and non-medical careers (data analyst, engineer, financial planner, and software developer/computer engineer). Speakers were Brad Antici, director of strategic pricing and analysis at Butler Snow LLP; Ryan Jones ’08, an electrical engineer with Ergon, Inc; Maury Breazeale ’98, a financial advisor with KTB Wealth Partners; Phil Ethridge ’97, product engineer with Bomgar Corporation; Lindsey Batte McMullan ’96, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and pediatrics at UMMC; Ann Fowler Purcell ’01, CFNP, nurse practitioner for women’s services at St. Dominic; Kristen Kennedy Nations ’95, PT, PRN Therapist at St. Dominic; and Carly Stegall Yelverton ’07, physician assistant at Mississippi Sports Medicine. The JAA provided refreshments.

Jackson Academy junior and seniors who have scored 29 or above on the National ACT include the following pictured above: (from left, back) Zach DePriest, Rebecca Nosef, Caroline Duncan, William Bell, Chandler Sessums, Hayden Berry, Davis Rippee, Matt Whitfield, Kyle Kantor, Thad Scott, Dalton Gibson, Tyler McClellan, Cory Tirman, Gavin Funderburg, Brennan Canton, Hannah McCowan, Amanda Ray, Ray Edward Stevens (front) Will Varner, Wyatt Powell, Will Tribble, Mary Brooks Thigpen, Elizabeth Burford, Robyn Hadden, Georgia Gibson, Danielle Hodges, Hannah Jane LeDuff, Maris Hardee, Tori Roberts, Anderson Helton, Jake Manning, Grady Fisher, and Gordon Campbell. Not pictured: Curt Knight.

Students who have scored a minimum of 29 on the National ACT are eligible for the Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant, a $2500 per year grant awarded to in-state residents pursuing their first degree at an approved postsecondary institution in Mississippi. Recipients of the grant also must have maintained a high school cumulative grade point average of 3.50 on a 4.0 scale.

JA is known for establishing high expectations for students by creating a school culture that identifies and communicates the need for all students to meet or exceed ACT College Readiness Benchmark Scores. The school engages students in early college and career awareness, helps students set high aspirations, and ensures that they plan a rigorous Upper School course load.

This year JA has offered a yearlong elective that focuses on PSAT/SAT and ACT skills for sophomores and juniors. All sophomores and juniors are encouraged to consider the class. For those who cannot work the elective into their school day because of a full course load, JA offers a PSAT workshop for juniors before school.

Pictured (from left): Phillip and Audra Bowman.

Jackson Academy seniors pursuing a business degree at Ole Miss have the opportunity to apply for a generous scholarship thanks to the generosity of JA Trustee and alumnus, Phillip Bowman ’86, and his wife, Audra. The Phillip and Audra Bowman Ole Miss First Scholarship in Business provides annual tuition assistance and funds for the student to participate in the Ole Miss First Leadership-Mentorship Program. The selected recipient will be eligible to retain the scholarship each year as long as the student maintains a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average and participates in program offerings.

“We are tremendously pleased that Phillip and Audra are honoring Jackson Academy by offering such a wonderful opportunity to a JA senior,” said JA President Cliff Kling. “This is a true blessing to a deserving student.”

Phillip is a 1986 JA graduate and was the first alumnus to serve as JA Board of Trustee Chairman. Audra has served in numerous volunteer roles at JA. They are the parents of Blaine, Wesley, and Amelia Dare.

The scholarship was first awarded in 2011 to a JA student, Bowen Thigpen ’11.

President Kling’s first meeting with (from left): Jack White, Logan Anderson, Zach Brister, and Jacob Touchstone.

During a visit last year with a head of school in another state, my colleague shared that he meets with all of his school’s seniors in small groups. I decided then that I would create a similar practice at Jackson Academy. I look forward to meeting with our seniors to ask for their reflections on the total Jackson Academy experience as they begin to transition from students to alumni. As I thought more about meeting with seniors, I felt it would be a lost opportunity to meet with our students for the first time in the spring of their senior year just as they are about to graduate and leave campus. So I decided to meet in the fall with our sophomores to strengthen my relationships with them – relationships that will continue to be nurtured over the next two-and-a-half years. And when those same students come to my office for the meeting in their senior year, they will be returning to a familiar place with the knowledge that their opinions and thoughts matter not only as “almost” alumni, but also during their Upper School years.

I embarked on meeting with all of our sophomores in groups of three to four students. The first meeting was held on September 15, and I just completed the last meeting this past Thursday. Each meeting lasted about 50 minutes, and as the above photo shows, the atmosphere was relaxed, casual, and welcoming. One of the fun things to see was how the different groups responded when I offered them soft drinks upon entering my office. Some accepted the offer immediately and chose their beverage. Some of the groups were shy at first with everyone saying they didn’t want a drink until finally one student would relent and tell me his or her choice for a drink and then, with the ice broken, everyone else would follow suit.

Having spent this time with each of our students, I am so impressed
with them. We are truly privileged to have the opportunity to serve
such great students—individuals who are not only good students, but,
even more importantly, good kids.

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National Honor Society

 View the National Honor Society program and list of current and new members here.

National Junior Honor Society

View the National Junior Honor Society program and list of current and new members here.

Congratulations to all the students inducted into the Jackson Academy Chapter of the National Honor Society of Secondary Schools and the National Junior Honor Society of Secondary Schools. They join members inducted last year to form the JA chapters of these honoraries.