The Oxford School District is a public school district based in Oxford, Mississippi.
Its boundary includes almost all of Oxford, the University census-designated place, and some unincorporated areas.[1]
The district is governed by a six-member elected board of trustees. There are two Office of the Board positions, President and Secretary, that are annually elected by the district for one-year terms at the end of each fiscal year. By law, at least two board members must be appointed by the Board of Alderman and remaining members are elected by county residents living within the Municipal Separate School District.[2] As of May 2017 the school board members are: S. Ray Hill; Marian Barksdale, President; Romana Reed; Brian Harvey, Superintendent; Gray Edmondson, Secretary; and Scott Shipman.[3]
The superintendent is voted on and elected by the school board. From 2013 through 2017 the superintendent was Brian Harvey. Harvey graduated from the district in 1990 and worked in the district for 17 years; as a middle and high school teacher, the assistant principal at Oxford High School, and the principal at both Central Elementary and Oxford Middle School. While serving as interim superintendent, Harvey was appointed after the previous superintendent, Kim Stasny, died from a short illness. In 2021, Bradley Robertson was announced as the new superintendent.[4]
Central Elementary School was previously known as Oxford Elementary School. The school was renamed in 2019 in order to honor Oxford's African-American school pre-integration, Central High School.[5]
In the Jim Crow era, where white and black students attended separate schools, the "Negro Elementary and High School" housed black students. Construction began and ended in 1938 and 1939, respectively. The Public Works Administration (PWA) was involved in the building of this school.[6]
There were a total of 3,356 students enrolled in the Oxford 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 43.65% African American, 49.70% White, 2.18% Hispanic, 4.32% Asian, and 0.15% Native American.[7] 41.9% of the district's students were eligible to receive free lunch.[8]
| School Year | Enrollment | Gender Makeup | Racial Makeup | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | Male | Asian | African American | Hispanic | Native American | White | ||
| 2007-08[9] | 3,360 | 48% | 52% | 4.17% | 42.32% | No Data | No Data | 50% |
| 2006-07 | 3,356 | 50% | 50% | 4.32% | 43.65% | 2.18% | 0.15% | 49.70% |
| 2005-06 | 3,320 | 50% | 50% | 4.13% | 44.55% | 2.02% | 0.12% | 49.19% |
| 2004-05 | 3,169 | 50% | 50% | 3.72% | 45.69% | 1.61% | 0.22% | 48.75% |
| 2003-04 | 3,118 | 49% | 51% | 3.40% | 44.68% | 1.64% | 0.16% | 50.13% |
| 2002-03[10] | 3,198 | 49% | 51% | 3.38% | 42.68% | 1.66% | 0.13% | 52.16% |
| 2006-07[11] | 2005-06[12] | 2004-05[13] | 2003-04[14] | 2002-03[15] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District Accreditation Status | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited |
| School Performance Classifications | |||||
| Level 5 (Superior Performing) Schools | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Level 4 (Exemplary) Schools | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Level 3 (Successful) Schools | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Level 2 (Under Performing) Schools | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Level 1 (Low Performing) Schools | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Not Assigned | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
The Mississippi Statewide Accountability System provides performance ratings of A, B, C, D, and F for public school districts in the state, with A as the highest score and F as the lowest. These ratings are based on established standards such as " student achievement, individual student growth, graduation rate, and participation rate."[16] Data is available from the 2017-2018 school year until the 2020-2021 school year.
| 2017-2018[17] | A | A | A | B | B | A | |
| 2018-2019 | A | A | A | B | A | B | |
| 2019-2020 | A | A | A | B | A | B | |
| 2020-2021 | A | A | A | B | A | B |