Tell me more about these private academy schools in Mississippi

[bluestateguy]

Last night I did some cruising around the website of the Mississippi Private School Association (http://www.mpsa.org/default2.php), which has links to all of the private academies for K-12 schoolchildren in Mississippi. I looked at many of the school webpages and noticed some interesting things:

1) Many of the schools' mascots are the "rebels".

2) A large number of these schools were formed in the mid to late 1960's, coincidentally, at the same time as court ordered racial integration was going on in the schools.

3) Most of the schools seemed to have non-discrimination policies on paper, but pictures of the students indicated that all or almost all students were white.

4) It seemed like the schools in Jackson were a little more integrated than other academies.

So educate me here. Do these schools really mean what they say when they profess to not discriminate on the basis of race? Do you think racial prejudice is what is really driving the wishes of white parents who put there kids in these schools? Is this really a healthy thing in a state that is so racially mixed? Finally, are there any private academies that make real affirmative efforts to have a diverse student body and a diverse faculty?

[Tim4319]

1. Racism is not always on the surface.

Somethings you will have to look into are: What is the tuition? What type of scholarships do they offer? What are races of the teachers? Do they offer studies that are diverse?

The reason I would say this, are they really making themselves accessible to the African American community. If that is the case, I am sure it is done on purpose, just so they can say that their school is open to all races but they put obstacles up to prevent Blacks from attending.

This is why Affirmative Action has been established.

[youngdem]

2. Ref MPSA school , personal opinion...

1)Many may be but not all. My children attended a MPSA school in LA. Our mascot was an indian chief.

2)Absolutely correct. Tensas academy in LA, as told to me was built for the reasons of racial segregation. My children were not born at this time.

3)Yes most students are white. Why? because the African American parents in ( at least our district) do not want their children in a predominately white school.

4) Jackson is a little more progressive then most other private schools.


I sent my children starting in 1996 to the the private school, not because of African Americans in the public school, but because the public schools in Tensas Parish are among the the worst in the country. I had tried speaking of making changes in the public school system for years in the parish but it fell on deaf ears. Tensas Academy has also tried to recruit many minority students, but to no avail. I finally moved to Vicksburg, MS this past year and enrolled my children in a public school here. I did so because the public schools here are diverse, academically progressive, and offer many wonderful programs. But as I have stressed to many of my friends race did not play a part in the private school decision it was based on education. I was not willing to sacrifice my children's education for the sake of making a point on race.

I am saddened that the private schools can not make amends for sins of the past, in their defense, yes they are trying to make changes.Hopefully one day it can have equal amounts of minorities.

[bluestateguy]

3. I also noticed that there were no Catholic schools in the Association

Are there Catholic schools in Mississippi? Are they more diverse?

[Rico1956]

4. Yes...

Catholic schools in the south have always been more diverse- at least as far back as the 60's when I was still attending them...

[newyawker99]

5. Hi Rico1956!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[merh]

6. There is one Jackson private academy serving the elite

that had a fund raiser conducted by the CCC. Because it was a fund raiser for the academy, the repuke gov did not feel a need to compel that his image be removed from the CCC's website.
http://www.adl.org/learn/extremism_in_america_updates/groups/council_of_conservative_citizens/CCCitizens_up_1_cms.htm

Your hypothesis that these academies were born in an attempt to keep the children safe from the segregated schools is right on point, imho.

[tinfoil tiaras]

7. Yeah, the schools in Jackson are more integrated

but theres like 5 or so black people at each of em. And some asians and indians. I go to a private school but it isn't an ''academy'' per-say. Yeah lots of their mascots are rebels but the ones in Jackson are the patriots :patriot: and the raiders.

[youngdem]

8. What private school do you go to?

[tinfoil tiaras]

9. I go to Saint Andrews

...website
http://www.gosaints.org

[newyawker99]

11. Hi tinfoil tiaras!!

Welcome to DU! :toast:

[tahoedenver]

10. re:

The Coast was a hell of a lot more intergrated than the rest of the state before the storm. I had a huge high school and we were very diverse. This thing where all the whites go to private schools and the blacks go to public schools exists mainly in and around Hattiesburg and everywhere north of there. It's really bad in the Delta I hear.

Everybody from the Coast though knows that it's a lot more like Mobile or West Florida than Mississippi in the first place so that explains that.

I think most of the people inland still haven't come in yet from the 60's. For some reason both races still see it neccessary to voluntarily segregate themselves from eachother. It's nobody's choice but their own. When they get their problems straight they'll finally have reform. Until then it's going to continue on the way it's always been.

[tinfoil tiaras]

12. There was, I do belive, one "academy"

on the coast. It was in Moss Point, where my mom is from. It's called like Live Oak Academy, but I don't know if it still exists. It wasn't on that MPSA website. Maybe it changed it's name to get away from its past, I don't know....