Sharkey-Issaquena Academy is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

nonsectarian Nonsectarian institutions are secular institutions or other organizations not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group. Academic sphere Many North American universities identify themselves as being nonsectarian, such as B ...

, school in

Rolling Fork, Mississippi Rolling Fork is a city in and the county seat of Sharkey County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the town was 1,883. History Thomas Y. Chaney settled here in 1828, and was the fir ...

. It was founded as a

segregation academy Segregation academies are private schools in the Southern United States that were founded in the mid-20th century by white parents to avoid having their children attend Racial segregation in the United States, desegregated public schools. They ...

in 1970.

History

In 1970, one year after the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

decided '' Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education'', which ordered desegregation of schools, white parents opposed to integration doubled the enrollment of the SIA (from 150 to 300). In 1982, Issaquena County public schools superintendent Dunbar Lee said he sent his children to Sharkey-Issaquena Academy because public school standards were not "what they were like before integration." Lee added that there were "so many more slow learners in public schools" In 1989, the school forfeited a football game to Heritage Academy because the other school had a black player. As late as 1995 the student body was 100% white. In the 2009–2010 school year, there were 201 students enrolled (excluding pre-kindergarten). The demographic profile was 2.0% Asian, 1.0% black, 3.5% Hispanic, and 93.5% white. In the 2015–2016 school year, Sharkey-Issaquena enrolled no Black children. In the 2017 school year, there were 184 students, 181 of whom were listed as white and 3 as hispanic. The school served as a distribution center for relief supplies after the

2023 Rolling Fork tornado 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

About the school

Located at 272 Academy Drive in

, the school serves students in grades pre-kindergarten through twelve. The SIA is a member of the

Midsouth Association of Independent Schools The Midsouth Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) is a consortium of schools in Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas. It is responsible for accreditation of its member private schools as well as governing athletic competition for i ...

(MAIS) and its mascot is the Confederate. Neither pregnant students nor known fathers nor fathers-to-be are allowed to attend SIA.

References

External links

Sharkey Issaquena Academy
– Official site.
Sharkey-Issaquena Academy
– Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Private K–12 schools in Mississippi Schools in Sharkey County, Mississippi Segregation academies in Mississippi Educational institutions established in 1970 {{Mississippi-school-stub

History

About the school

See also

References

External links