| Itawamba County School District | |
|---|---|
| Type and location | |
| Type | Public |
| Grades | Pre-K – 12th |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Fulton, Mississippi Itawamba County |
| District Info | |
| Superintendent | Teresa McNeece |
| Students and staff | |
| Other information | |
| Information | School Board Member Listing |
| Website | Itawamba County School District |
The Itawamba County School District is a public school district based in Fulton, Mississippi (USA). The district's boundaries parallel that of Itawamba County.
Contents |
There were a total of 3,695 students enrolled in the Itawamba County 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 90.45% White, 8.15% African American, 1.00% Hispanic, 0.30% Asian, and 0.11% Native American.[2] 42.1% of the district's students were eligible to receive free lunch.[3]
| School Year | Enrollment | Gender Makeup | Racial Makeup | |||||
| Female | Male | Asian | African American |
Hispanic | Native American |
White | ||
| 2005–06[2] | 3,779 | 50% | 50% | 0.32% | 8.23% | 0.85% | 0.08% | 90.53% |
| 2004–05[2] | 3,789 | 50% | 50% | 0.26% | 7.71% | 0.74% | 0.05% | 91.24% |
| 2003–04[2] | 3,823 | 50% | 50% | 0.21% | 7.45% | 0.60% | 0.03% | 91.71% |
| 2002–03[4] | 3,781 | 49% | 51% | 0.26% | 7.80% | 0.56% | – | 91.38% |
| 2006–07[5] | 2005–06[6] | 2004–05[7] | 2003–04[8] | 2002–03[9] | |
| District Accreditation Status | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited | Accredited |
| School Performance Classifications | |||||
| Level 5 (Superior Performing) Schools | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Level 4 (Exemplary) Schools | 4 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| Level 3 (Successful) Schools | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Level 2 (Under Performing) Schools | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Level 1 (Low Performing) Schools | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Not Assigned | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
In 2010, Itawamba Agricultural High School found itself in the national media twice for LGBT related issues. In one incident, a transgender student was suspended for wearing heels and makeup. In another incident, the school's prom was cancelled after a lesbian student articulated that she wanted to bring her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.
Juin Baize is a gender variant teenager, who, at the time, was a sixteen-year-old who along with his mother and two sisters moved to Fulton, Mississippi from New Harmony, Indiana to live with Baize's grandmother.[10][11] As a result of this move, Baize had to enroll at Itawamba Agricultural High School. Because Baize was legally assigned male at birth yet normally dressed in clothing considered feminine and wore makeup, and as a result of wearing these clothes and makeup to school, he was sent home from the school on February 3, 2010 and suspended from the school on February 4, 2010.[10][11] Baize contacted the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi (ACLUMS). However, the ACLUMS noted that on Baize's suspension form, the school had left the section that should have contained the reason for suspension, blank. The ACLUMS needed this information as part of its court challenge to Baize's suspension. The ACLUMS sent a letter to the school requesting the school to provide the reason Baize was suspended but the school did not reply.[10] When the story was published in the local newspaper, Baize's grandmother ordered him, his mother and his two sisters to move out of her house.[10] Baize ended up living with old friends of his mother in Florida. Because he no longer lived in Fulton to attend the school, he and the ACLUMS decided not to continue with a court challenge.[10]
In March 2010, the school district board made national news after it decided to cancel the prom for Itawamba Agricultural High School because 18-year old lesbian student Constance McMillen requested permission to take a same-sex date (aged 15) to the event, and to wear a tuxedo.[12][13][14][15] The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit in federal court against the school district seeking reinstatement of the prom.[16] U.S. District Court Judge Glen Davidson issued a ruling in favor of both McMillen and the Itawamba County School District, ruling that Itawamba County School District did violate McMillen's First Amendment rights by not allowing her to attend the prom with her girlfriend, not allowing her to wear a tuxedo and by cancelling the prom, but that he would not force the school district to hold the prom since a private prom has already been planned.[17] A prom was organized, advertised by the school's lawyer, and was attended by McMillen and five other students, including two students with learning disabilities.[18] Meanwhile, another prom had been arranged by parents in another location, and the rest of the students attended that prom.[18][19] Some students who attended the private prom defended the event saying it wasn't a prom but was instead a birthday party, while some said it was just a private party.