Jackson Jambalaya

Thank you, JA. Sincerely, 7A North.

As Robespierre found out, sometimes things you do turn on you unexpectedly. A lot of parents were fine with recruiting players to take playing time from other parents’ children, but then were horrified when a recruit threatened to replace their own kid’s. How are they going to walk the stands on Friday nights with such swagger if their kid never leaves the bench? You can’t live your dreams through a bench-warmer.

It seems maybe JA forgot why it was founded in the first place.

Parents, just get your kids started in Forensics (Speech & Debate). It prepares them for college, and life, better than any other extracurricular. As a bonus, it doesn’t leave them with bad knees and CTE like American football does.

Usually kids who can't start at the 7A schools end up at the MAIS schools. I know a kid who did that for baseball from MCHS to Canton Academy.
If you're a starter at 7A, it's a step down to go to JA. I don't know any details but I've experienced this "recruiting" as I have a sophomore football player. There was some incentive to change schools, 100% guaranteed.

What lessons from this situation are the kids going to learn?

Seems a bump in tuition is in order. Lol. All well deserved.

💯

My Clinton sources said they left because of a coaching change. The CHS coach went to Starkpatch. The DC was promoted. Remember when the coach who came after Leach switched from the Air Raid to a running attack? All the players were recruited for the Leach passing frenzy so what did they all do? Transfer. Same thing happened here allegedly. Coach changing offense to running so if you are a hot passer or receiver, you want to play and have a chance at a good scholarship. Probably the only place they could go is a private school.

I recently read an Ole Miss sports message board where a poster who was moving to the metro area asked for recommendations on private schools in the Jackson area. Most of the recommendations focused on and touted the academic success of the various private schools. Well, if JA is only chasing athletic success, then I see their academic rankings plummet soon.

Wow, both 9:26 & 9:29 are tied for the win on this issue!!! Well said!

There’s usually only one thing that can make otherwise sane and moral men, more stupid and immoral, than sports.

All these defensive players transferred from Clinton because the offense changed????? Great try Pinochio.

What a joke of a school!

"Jackson Academy players TJ White (linebacker) and Dereon Albert (defensive lineman) both committed to the University of Tennessee in July 2025 for the 2026 football class. Both are considered four-star recruits, with White being a top player in Mississippi and Albert also ranked highly in the state."

I think we should be more concerned about the use of the arrow head. That could be taken as an improper adoption of Native American culture.

Clinton had a lousy defense last year. The defensive players were not too crazy about the coach. Think Lou Tepper and look at his roster and record at LSU

I'm not buying the Clinton coaching change line. This is money.

Don't let anyone fool you. I personally know multiple public school families that have been offered FULLY paid tuition for their athletically gifted to attend JA.
There are not enough financially successful families left living in NE Jackson to support JA. No one is going to drive past MRA, Prep, or Heartfield to attend JA. When all the families that pay full tuition leave the school will die. The recruiting has materially changed the school to the point where families with elementary age children will choose to go elsewhere. Middle school Families are leaving in droves.

If you do a little diving into this, you will see most of the kids have siblings that didn’t come to Jackson Academy. You can also see that their parents live at the poverty level.
So who is paying for this? I suspect nobody. JA is just allowing it to win at all cost.
I remember Hillcrest Christain did this a while back ago. How did that work out for them?

Appears Clinton didn't miss any of them on Friday night

Apparently, the 9th grade football team lost to Prep. I’m wondering how many new ninth graders enrolled today. Jackson Academy had some time to look for kids over the long weekend.

As a Hillcrest alum, 10:29 trying to draw any parallels between JA and Hillcrest is laughable. Hillcrest had one good year once, 20 years ago, with transfer players. Hillcrest unfortunately being located in South Jackson is the biggest reason for its decline.

Had two sons at JA, competed in Soccer and Track, one got an athletic scholarship to Ole Miss and actually learned enough there to use his Business degree to become a successful independent international financier, but he spent 5 years to graduate as an athlete. He still is an amazing athlete.

Point is, athletic students often work hard at both education and athletics.

I have to pick a school for my kids in a couple of years, and JA has always been out. Weird vibes going on over there

10:29, thats just wrong. First, you don’t know if their families are at the poverty level and second it’s inappropriate to post such mess whether it’s true or not.

Ask Warren Central how much Clinton misses their old Coach.

Does anyone know how many kids Jackson Academy enrolled in the 11th and 12th grade that did not play sports?

Did Jason and Carolyn pony up for KF’s “Support Jackson Jambalaya” begging thread?

Reminiscent of the 1988 matchup between ND and S Cal (where Holtz benched his starters), Clinton seemed to do a fine job defeating Warren Central. Maybe those players weren't needed after all.

@10:21 and 10:29 nailed it. JA may win a football championship this year but is it worth it to sacrifice the school? If JA is going to survive, it needs to clean house - the Board, Head of School and Athletic Director and go back to the school it once was.

Starkpatch ... really? How old are you?

Better education for the transfers. Work harder and that's life.

Huge "if". I can promise you they'll keep their academic standards for the 99%.😉

Taylorsville and South Panola say, "Hold my beer."

Sacrifice the school? YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS! DIDNT HURT MRA. You sound like a Preppy, of which I am. 🫡

@11:06 see KF’s post over the weekend where there was a murder at the Chevron on Ridgewood…. Go walk at Parham Bridges at night. Go walk in the apartment complex next door. Go 1 street south of Sheffield..

Point is, It’s South Jackson already

@11:58 that's a bit of an overstatement lol. I like how you have to say walk around park at night for it to even be comparable to SJ in the daytime. And even then its not

11:58,

The area around JA is not like South Jackson

Also, JA should be a little embarrassed about bringing all these kids in. It’s not the same thing as players leaving Mississippi State when they changed the offense.

Hillcrest is missing the chance to leverage their famous Deputy Phil aka the whistleblower!

One good year? Hillcrest dominated MAIS baseball for a decade and had several extremely good basketball teams. Their decline was due to being in Jackson. Isn't JA the only private school left in Jackson? Do you really think people are going to drive from Madison or Rankin to attend JA? That area around JA is in about the same shape as the area around Hillcrest 15 years ago.

@11:50 MRA didn’t have this many…

I was at Oxford this weekend and didn’t see this many recruits

Lord only knows how many comments you have culled. You have burned 3 of mine already. Bet they would have been interesting reading.

Lou Tepper at LSU is the worst defensive coaching job in the history of football and that’s a hill I’ll die on.

If a kid can pass the private school entrance exam (without any DEI BS social engineering) and his or her parent(s) is/are paying their tuition, God bless them, regardless of what city they live in, where they came from, or what race they are.

But those paying tuition for kids in order to stack the deck in sports, that take positions away from kids that did pass the test and his/her parents are paying their tuition, that are potentially infiltrating the private schools with immoral mentality’s, simply because they’re an athlete, just to win a sports event - those people need their names made public and should be called out for the P’s O S that they are.

12:18 (who I assume is also 10:59), Hillcrest was good at baseball for close to two decades because they had a fountain of talented white kids to draw from....they weren't recruiting them from public schools, and if they were it was the exception, not the rule. Their best players through that period had been at Hillcrest since elementary school. This was a football conversation, baseball doesn't enter into it.

Also, Hillcrest's campus is basically in the country, literally across the street from not being in the city limits. It is in no way reflective of JA which is located in the middle of the city square in the middle of a large neighborhood on a main thoroughfare.

And to others trying to say that people from Madison County don't go to JA, you're wrong, I know multiple Madison County families with parents that work downtown or at the hospitals who send their kids to JA. It's certainly easier to access from the interstate than MRA for someone who wants to do private school.

Finally, I hate you all because you're making me defend JA, and as a 1990's Hillcrest alum, I hate JA with every fiber of my being. (And Prep, and MRA)

I've known quite a few parents living in Madison County who send or sent their kids to JA or Prep.

This is heart breaking for the kids that have been there their entire life. High school sports were a huge part of my life growing up. I would have been devastated if that got stripped away from me.

Even if JA wins football, basketball and baseball championships, it’s meaningless. These aren’t JA kids. Just the best money could buy.

I'll echo 1:57. I know Madison County families at JA. I don't know why, but they do it.

Everyone I know who sends their kids there, and there are quite a few I know, are happy with the education there.

KF- from what I hear the education is going down fast. They let go a teacher last year because he was too hard. He had been there almost 10 years. He got let go for not passing kids

Too many of these predatory off the books recruiters feeding off of local public school teams...if you cannot start in 7A instead of working hard and earning you a spot, let's just go to a MAIS school for highlights against BS teams...

My anonymous prediction: in 10-15 years, if not sooner, JA will be the private school of choice for middle to upper class African Americans seeking asylum from JPS. Mostly black medical center and Jackson State employees seeking something better than the public offering. JA will tip over 40% AA in the next 7 years. Good? Bad? That's your opinion.

This is a bad look for a school that used to be known for academic excellence. I feel for the kids that have been there for years and won't get to play. Who cares if you're no longer a powerhouse? Go out there and have fun, and be known as a school where you can get a really good education. Unfortunately, WAY too much emphasis is placed on HS athletics nowadays.

Just because you go to a school your whole life doesn’t mean you deserve a chance to play. What the heck would that teach a child? That’s not teaching them to go out and EARN it. I see a lot of theses kids.They are all small, they hang out at a friends house instead of being in the gym. They lack “the want to, and athletic ability to be great”….. it is what it is. Besides that, they know they have mommy and daddy’s money to fall back on as a plan B.

I think KF needs to host a podcast regarding this. I would love to hear JA’s side of the story. Have headmaster, AD, football coach, baseball coach, and head of the board on there. Some of the new kids parents are very vocal on social media and would be an interesting interview. The MAIS would be a good to cover also…

Thoughts???

Some of the commenters really would've blown a gasket if some of those kids transferred from JPS. LOL! The majority of these student athletes have transferred from top tier public schools in the state of Mississippi. All of this snowflake rhetoric "Taken a kid spot on the team" blah blah blah. It's called competition. If you are the better player, you will get in the game and receive playing time. Not just your parents paid tuition. Finally, news flash ladies and gents. Private schools in the Midwest and West Coast have been doing this for years. Offering scholarships to potential student athletes in private school. Exhibit A: LeBron James attended St. Vincent Saint Mary a very prestigious private school in Ohio. Exhibit B: Chris Webber attended Country Day a prestigious private school in Michigan. Exhibit C: Kyrie Irving attended Montclair Academy in New Jersey, another prestigious private school. Bout time private schools in Jackson, Mississippi are catching up.

Come on people, we all know KF is just riding someone else's "Coat Tails"

In ref to the guy that said, “bad look”I hear you, and I truly appreciate your honesty. Your child deserves the chance to participate, grow, and feel seen—regardless of athletic ability. That’s what school should be about: creating space for every student to thrive, not just the ones who fit a narrow mold.

It’s frustrating when the focus shifts so heavily toward sports that we forget the deeper mission of education: building character, fostering curiosity, and preparing kids for life beyond the scoreboard. And yes, when the demographics of a school begin to shift, some people start to question whether their children can still succeed there. That’s not just unfair—it’s harmful. Every child, no matter their background, deserves access to the same resources, support, and opportunities.

Let’s be real: the landscape has changed. But that doesn’t mean excellence is gone—it just looks different now. It’s more inclusive, more representative, and more focused on lifting all students. That’s something to be proud of.

Your child wanting to participate—even without being the star athlete—is a powerful statement. It says they believe in community, in effort, and in belonging. And that’s the kind of spirit we should be celebrating.

This isn’t about lowering standards. It’s about expanding the definition of success. Let’s build a school culture where kids are encouraged to try, to learn, and to grow—whether they’re scoring touchdowns or solving equations. Because when we do that, every child wins.

There's deserving of a chance and the alumni bringing in ringers that take your spot when you've earned a spot on the team for years. I think those are two different arguments. I'd be pissed if two months ago I thought my kid was going to start his senior year then some kids from Clinton get paid to come in and he's suddenly on the bench.

@4:06 that’s a real touching post. But completely ridiculous. This isn’t about making the school better or being inclusive. It’s about winning championships. If it was that inclusive, why aren’t all the other siblings at Jackson Academy. I have several siblings left to go back to their public school. This is that about lifting up anything but a trophy.

For the record, we don't know who is paying what and will never know as it is a private school and has no duty to disclose.

@4:20 Totally get where you’re coming from. But maybe it’s time we ask—what’s the real win? A trophy lasts a season. Opportunity, growth, and access? That lasts a lifetime. Every kid deserves that shot.

Bless ALL these pearl-clutching hearts. You all are acting like these public school players are illegal immigrants sneaking across Sheffield Drive!🤣 If the administration wants to run the school and athletic department like this, then why do we care?

Here’s the moral of the story. If your child happens to be built like a man child at 14-15, get them in some sort of skill training in their favorite sport because they are being viewed as a Mandingo by coaches who want to climb coaching ladder. If your child is built like a scrawny normal teen, well…you s@&t out of luck and better start looking at Discovery Christian, Canton Academy, E Rankin, etc.

First of all, that list is incorrect. What is basically being said is anyone that comes in that isn’t white is a recruit. Some of those students don’t even go to JA anymore and some have been there for years. I find it sad that grownups are having so much fun tearing down young men and women. If a school does not have caliber coaching or teachers, no one would want to choose them. It’s pretty hard to sit here and read these comments knowing that JA is an excellent goal and has wonderful programs, including athletics. If they didn’t, no one would even want to come.

Bottom line, both public and private schools have been trading back-and-forth for years. This is not anything new. JA has a wonderful reputation producing very strong students, some of which are athletic as well.

I have no idea why the students chose to change, but it’s obvious they want to be in a better situation, whatever that might be.

Everyone’s speaking about the money side, unless you’ve worked in a school and you’ve seen exactly what goes on the Jackson Academy financially, you have zero idea.

If families are unhappy that new students come to a school and their child does not get as much playing time, they should go to another school and they will take the place of that child spot. That’s just the way it is in life.

Let these kids play with dignity and let’s support all our children.

@4:42 once again a heartwarming post but you missed the overall point. It’s not like one kid came over for a better opportunity. They brought just about an entire team over to win a state championship.

The parents didn’t move their kids for a better experience for their child. They brought them over for sports only. If that wasn’t the case, then why are the siblings of these kids not at Jackson Academy. Most of these kids have several siblings and none of them came. I guess JA wasn’t going to pay for the younger kids until they were athletes

Did Kingfish steal your boo?

As a parent and grand parent of children who have gone to private and public schools, it’s expensive and sometimes you have to bring over the oldest and then the younger siblings come the following year.

You can’t put all children and families in the same group. That’s short sided as well as assuming the worst.

As stated, changing schools has been going on forever. This is nothing new and there is zero need to shame or belittle the families and especially the kids.

Thank you. Hitting "LIKE" button twice.

Whatta you mean, Kingfish, by "We will never know"? Most of your posts are based on gossip, snitches and "sources say" bullshit.

Meanwhile: What's the big deal about a private school buying athletic ability on the open market. That simply mirrors the College Portal. It's the name of the game. Get over it.

4:06, that has to be the most goody-two-shoes thing I've ever read.

That alleged adults care this much about sports at a handful of Jackson-area middlin' private schools tells actual sensible adults where the entire problem originates.

This kind of thing stands a fair chance of tarnishing the academic reputation of the schools involved. That won't matter for kids who aspire to State, Ole Miss, and other in-state schools. But for the kids wanting to go to out-of-state schools with tough admission standards, it will likely matter quite a bit.

A lawsuit and under oath depositions will clear this all up. Now POST THIS. You have culled any mention of this.

Mr. Kingfish, you put a lot of work into all the information you provided about JA students this year. You’re not publishing fake news, it looks all true. How about giving the other schools in the metro area the same coverage with PICTURES AND DETAILS over the past five years. You’re following the same path of the national media if you don’t.
It’s pretty obvious all the schools have been doing the same thing.
Look at what’s going on in college sports today. It’s only natural that it was going to spread into high school sports. That’s the world we live in now.
In Mississippi, we tend to hold out a little longer to change as compared to other parts of the country, the good and bad. All the schools are changing so you better get with it or get left behind.
Did anyone watch the Jackson Prep football game vs Nashville, TN, Battle Ground Academy last week.
Battle Ground Academy is Jackson Academy on steroids.
Prep traveled all the way to Memphis to play that game.
In regard to Hatfield, they have come a really long way from just a few years ago. Kingfish, publish the picture of the starting offense and defense on that football team last year.
They are growing and thriving using the same approach that JA is using.
This whole discussion reminds me of a lot of the mommies and daddies whining at junior’s little leagues baseball games on Lakeland Drive years ago and I’m sure, buy the sound of some of you, it’s still going on.
Good Luck to all the schools in the Jackson Metro Area!

"Did anyone watch the Jackson Prep football game vs Nashville, TN, Battle Ground Academy last week.
Battle Ground Academy is Jackson Academy on steroids.
Prep traveled all the way to Memphis to play that game. "

How did Prep do playing a Nashville team in Memphis?

I think most people understand what happened to Jackson Academy. They hadn’t won anything in years. They had very weak leadership. A new headmaster with no experience and an athletic director with no guts. They have let the coaches take control of the school by recruiting any kids and as many kids as they want.

No school in the Metropolitan area has brought this many recruits in. When Jackson Academy/Clinton wins their state championships, I hope it has an Asterix by it. For the rest of us at smaller schools, we will never think JA won at all. We have known a lot of of the kids at that school who are good kids, they’re not the ones on the field..

Since you mention Jackson Prep, let me tell you what I know for fact. Jackson Prep parents are so so happy their kids are not at JA. True, they will not win many games this year since they are playing with homegrown kids, but at least those kids are getting a chance to compete. See...when you recruit the entire metro area, the "normal" kid who has a multitude of interests doesn't get the chance over the "sports is the way out" kid coached by people who perpetuate that myth. And many of these kids are built like Mack trucks where the average kid isn't built that way in high school, therefore they don't have a chance to compete. I, for one, don't want my kid playing against 250lb high school kids that can run a 4.5

And, for @4:42...let me guess...your kid plays a position that avoided the wreckage. Good for you! Glad your boy worked so hard to earn his role....Or, could it be, the players that were targeted to take his spot didn't pass the entrance exam?????

The entire high school sports craze is all about size. If you're a kid that sprouts early, enjoy the early success. Most kids sprout late, and at JA, those kids won't get the chance to compete. There are many kids with more skill at sport but just aren't big enough or fast enough...yet.

Lastly, this will run its course. JA will go undefeated and win most games by a large margin. Prep will win maybe 3-4 games. Prep parents will be glad their kids got to play, but many Prep alumni or big-money parents with kids coming up will interject money to help them compete in the future. Meanwhile, JA will revert back to letting home-grown white boys play more after seeing decline in enrollment, and they will lose more in future years. It's a cycle.

All-in-all, it's a hamster wheel that never ends. For one, I'll be glad when high school years are over. Never thought I would think that.

JA parent here. We are embarrassed this is happening. Most parents are but if you say something, the chance of playing time after this has passed is gone. We've lost many good families over this.

Other posters are right. College sports is all about paying athletes and what happens at the college level always trickles down to high school. It's embarrassing, but JA board and administration doesn't care, as long as they raise that trophy in November.

Prep has 15 kids on its varsity roster that have transferred to Prep in the last few years. They have several new faces this year on the JV roster as well - just like last year.

Of all these new kids, most are white. For most of you, that’s why you have no problem.

Money. It's all about money. Who has it and who does not. If JA has money why should they not buy what they want if it suits them. What's the difference between them and Ole Miss? A few years that's all. It's the landscape of sports in 2025. It's everywhere now including Mississippi.

"last few years" - so if they are in high school, they transferred over at the start of high school. A logical time to transfer academically.

As a JA alum, I don't love this situation either, but we are all rooting for our college teams, and we don't know who half of these one-year free agents are. MRA has recruited for years, Hartfield has obviously recruited as well, and Prep has simply had a much larger enrollment than all its competitors for the past 50 years.

I read your message, and I want to respond with honesty and respect.

As a white parent at JA, I’m deeply troubled by the sentiment you expressed. If your vision for this school excludes diversity, then it’s not just out of step with the world we live in—it’s harmful to the values we should be instilling in our children. JA should be a place where every student, regardless of background, feels seen, valued, and supported. That’s not political correctness—it’s basic human decency.

I didn’t choose JA to isolate my children from others. I chose it because I believed in the strength of its academics, its community, and its potential to prepare our kids for a diverse and interconnected world. If we teach our children to fear or reject difference, we’re failing them in the most fundamental way.

I understand that emotions run high around sports and competition. But when winning becomes more important than character, we lose far more than games—we lose good families, trust, and the soul of our school.

I hope you’ll reflect on the impact of your words and consider what kind of legacy we’re leaving for our kids. They’re watching us. Let’s give them something better to emulate.

All you people who claim that Prep does anything completely with “homegrown” talent are either ignorant, in denial, or just lying. Look at the roster over the last several years. Hell most of last year’s senior class transferred from JA. Neither Orange Beach nor Meridian are just around the corner. Neither is Florence. And that’s not even counting the “transfers” from FPDS. Everyone recruits, including Prep.

"the new state of athletic affairs at Jackson Academy"

I don't get it. What does that mean?

CoatTails.............very well played, maybe the comment of the year.

I'm just glad Prep got those new preschool teachers who desperately needed jobs for their families.

You must be a child because no adult with a brain would really make this statement. I must need new glasses because I’ve been watching
Prep these last few years and haven’t seen these “new 15.” But yall keep on recruiting and we will get some more of the sweet families JA seems to be running off.

Here is the truth from a JA alumni and a parent who put multiple children through the school (thankful that they all graduated before this recruiting debacle). It’s about the over $150,000 I spent per child to go there for 12 years. I worked extremely hard so my children could receive a quality education in a safe environment that included all the extracurricular activities. Team sports build character. Being part of a team that works hard together for a goal is magical. When leadership at JA decided to abandon all of its previous ideals in pursuit of winning in sports, it lost me and many others for all time. If everyone that goes out for football is paying full tuition then the who gets to play is just dependent on God given ability and hard work. If I’m playing over $18,000 for senior year and the school leadership recruits a student purely on athletic ability that pays nothing and takes my child’s spot I have a huge problem with that. It is an insult in so many ways. Let be real, private HS students are not for the most part D1 prospects. Yes there has been that one every couple of years that play at the next level. What JA has done by evidence of the graphic at the beginning of this story is to change the mission of the school from one based on a well rounded quality education to a sports academy all on the backs and dollars of the past and present families paying full tuition. It’s sad and will ultimately end in a downward financial spiral for the school. That’s the path they have chosen. HS sports don’t drive revenue like college. It’s not a sustainable investment.

Not going to lament here about why what JA is doing is wrong but the fact of the matter is the school has allowed many kids to transfer in that are not cutting it academically. Classrooms historically cater to who needs the most help and when your average student, black or white, is not academically prepared to meet a standard then everyone is affected. People, especially Mississippians, seem to some reason enjoy fighting especially when they can make it about race. Mississippians need to move on when playing the "race" card. JA is a mediocre academic school and their standards have lowered over the years. The only reason anyone would send their children to JA is if the mom teaches there or they live on Sheffield because other than than the drive down Lakeland is worth it especially if you are paying to send your children.

9:56 recruiting from FPDS???? Hahaha that’s where you want to get young kids from

@956 if I’m not mistaken, all of the kids you reference came over early in life. Not juniors and seniors. Also their siblings are also at Prep

At the end of the day these are kids and we don’t know their stories. We either need to start asking these kids theirs stories or we need to leave them alone.

10:15 PM, please enlighten us on what Prep’s hiring of preschool teachers has to do with private school meathead coaches and school administrators allowing kids with parents that don’t pay their tuition to come in and take the spots of the tuition paying parents kids, just so the meathead coaches and their narcissistic accomplices can purchase sports victories?

@10:21 I have a middle schooler. Families aren’t leaving in droves. And all the families who pay full tuition aren’t leaving. Only a few. Some new families from St. Andrew and MRA have transferred to JA. So basically, this is just your uninformed opinion and it’s a dumb one.

@3:17 nailed it. nothing more to say.
JA has gone down this path and cannot go back now

Anyone want to tell 9:56 & 10:15 FPDS doesn't have a middle/high school with no sports team and the teachers leaving have more to do with administration than their kids? FPDS was always the feeder to Prep until Prep built the lower school. I guess all the kids who outgrow FPDS are considered transfers?

I know every single family that moved their kid to Prep from JA. They did so because JA's leadership and coaching was so poor for so long that it would have harmed the kids by leaving them at JA.

The fact of the matter is that JA has averaged a new headmaster about 2.5-3 years. The same is true for its athletic director and head football coaches. This is just another example of JA's poor leadership, manifesting this time as out-of-control recruiting and booster financing.

The only way to get this under control is for someone to file a complaint with the MAIS for illegal recruiting, to name name's, and make it public. And Hartfield showed us that even then, it may not matter.

This post nails the issue. Nothing will change until enough tuition-paying families pull their children from the school that the bottom line is impacted.

1990's ALUMNI

I am very disappointed in our school. This is not the school of Peter Jernberg. For some people to go on this site and defend it, you must be new to JA. When I go on campus and see the class composite, I can tell you about everyone my class, in the class above me, and the class below me. I know their moms and dads, their siblings, and etc. Jackson Academy was special because of the family environment it created. Looking a file of approximately 20 kids transferring in over 2 years in the 11th and 12th grade has destroyed that environment.

It's a joke to try to make comparisons to high school athletics and college athletics. All college athletes are paid or at least on scholarship. If a kid wants to play college sports, they know what the expectations are. Over the summer, a rising high school senior should not be worried about a transfer from a public school coming to replace him on the football field.

I know Jackson Academy wants to change the culture back to what it used to be. We all know about the emergency board meetings. We have even seen Mr. Jernberg on campus. There are so many group text messages that I am on regarding all the transfers.

When we are all sitting in the stands this Friday night, see if the family environment of Jackson Academy is still there. Is the Jackson Academy you grew up going to? Is this the Jackson Academy you signed up for and have paid your hard-earned money to send your kids to? We all know most of the new kids are not paying to go there.

@3:17. You hit the nail on the head. As a former employee of JA, this sounds nothing like the school I remember 20 years ago.

May want to enlighten yourself on the loophole in the transfer rules

Jesus people, the FPDS transfer comment was a joke. Some of you need to step away from the computer and take in another round of yoga at CCJ.

@9:20 what “illegal recruiting” has taken place? Do tell.

If the coaches don’t want to coach the kids at JA and want to recruit other kids to come to JA, why don’t they go to JUCO and coach where it’s expected?

What’s so extremely hilarious about the private school bogus recruiting is that the so-called smart people running these expensive private schools that are supposed to know the difference between right and wrong (that are teaching our children) are too stupid to easily understand how inequitable it is for non-tuition paying parents to have kids at these schools due to sports, stealing opportunities from the payers.

Meathead coaches that only care about wins is somewhat understandable. And the heaf jank trailer men can always be counted on to show us how rich and capable of buying wins they are. But the school administrator, the board of trustees and all the school faculty (less coaches) should know better.

9:23. Great post. AMEN. Thank you. Period.

Let’s not kid ourselves. This is all about the coaches and their effort to climb the coaching ladder. For the kids, sure they’ll get a better education. But, for sports, how is playing weaker competition in MAIS helping enhance their status? Is it Raider Network with higher quality videos of highlights? Is it playing for Shay Hodge and his connections? The way I see it, snaps/stats will go down for skill players due to the blow out victories and number of kids they need to get in. In the end, the coaches will win…I guess. For what it’s worth, I’ve always been impressed with coaches who can win with less talent. Heck, even I could win with the most talent and I don’t know much about sports. Come join Raider Nation. Lock it out!

@9:23 I hate to tell you, but 1990 was 35 years ago. The world has changed a lot since then. I wish I could go back and relive the 80’s, but I can’t. It seems most people on this thread would like to go back to the 1950’s. And we don’t know that most of the new kids aren’t paying to go to JA, only making assumptions. And I pay my hard earned money to send my kids to JA and I haven’t seen the environment change. And there are a lot of young families joining JA and moving onto Sheffield.

I graduated from JA in 1983. 1982 was the first graduating class. For those newer to JA, it had not always had a high school. So, it was quite the accomplishment to start the high school. Everyone knew everyone, every teacher, most of the parents. Classes were small. The education was outstanding. We were all extremely close. All the little scrawny 15 year olds to the bulky (some) seniors played football. The football team was small (really just enough boys to play and keep a few on the bench at a time) and all got to play (same for basketball, baseball, etc.). Sports build character. I do not recognize JA any longer. I'm not sure what goes on where now but it seems like to me JA would rather be known for sports rather than academics. Is it still rigorous? I don't know. The world is changing and with colleges now paying players we can't be surprised. Dissapointing, yes, but sadly not shocked. Nothing is like it used to be. I got so many ruthless alumni letters from JA asking me to donate to the school that I asked to be taken off their mailing list years ago and am out of the loop.

Count me among those agreeing with 3:17. I have no connection to any of the schools in question, but I went to a private school, as did the kids and now, the grandkids. None are in MS and none "recruit" seriously based upon sports. Their mission and job is prepare students for college and the future. Team sports, along with non-sporting extra-curricular activities, are important, but as 3:17 pointed out, as part of a well-rounded education (and a healthy lifestyle in general). One thing I would point out is that "investment" aspect is a bit different for many private schools (vs. colleges). Most are made up of a variety of kids from every socioeconomic level, from very wealthy to able to afford it to scholarship. Obviously, much of the non-tuition money comes the families who are able are generous to the schools, and that includes the sports programs - BUT - we are generous because we know the benefits of such programs as part of the overall education. Our parents saw the benefits to us, we saw the benefits to our children, they see the benefits to their kids, etc.

I can only speak for us and those we know, but most would not be generous if the goal was merely to build championship teams with "scholarship recruits," regardless of any characteristic of the recruits or their parents. It just isn't the type of goal or program we would support. The role of a school is to be a major part of the kids' overall education (along with parents, family, etc.). Extra-curricular activities, including sports, are a part of that. When advancement asks us to donate for any specific expenditure/project, my first question is, "How will our money help educate (overall) the students?" If the phrase (or general concept of) "championship team" were used, the answer from some number of supporters would be an instant and unequivocal, "No, and we're done here..." And phone calls would be made demanding a re-assessment of both concept and conceptualizers.

Granted, Mississippi is a bit different when it comes to sports, especially football, but the advancement departments of these schools better be very careful because football fever among some parents might not lead to support the schools can truly count on, year-in and year-out, and at the levels they might hope to have.

@3:17 AM. JA hasn’t abandoned its previous ideals or its goal for academic achievement in pursuit of winning championships, unless you mean hiring coaches that kids want to play for. There is a lot of false and misleading information on the “graphic” you referenced to make your point. I would consider the source of the PDF. That source had no concern or consideration for the hardworking families paying for kids to attend JA. IYKYK.

JA's biggest improvement wasn't recruiting players, it was dumping their dead weight middle school and JV football coaches and somehow convincing MRA to hire them. Now MRA can barely score a touchdown in JV and middle school. Well played JA!

Kingfish that graphic doesn't even mention Germantown's starting Nose Tackle who magically appeared at JA last week right before the season started.

"What's the big deal about a private school buying athletic ability on the open market."

And there it is: To some people, high school kids are raw material in the business of high school athletics.

It looks to me like a handful of employees are using the school to advance their own careers, by any means necessary.

Section V - Eligibility Rules of the AAC Handbook, Subsection H-Financial Consideration reads:

No student may be eligible to participate in inter-school athletics if he has been shown financial consideration by a school, or any of its associated organizations, on the basis of his value to the activity program of the school. A student shown financial consideration of any kind shall be so noted on the eligibility lists that are submitted to the Director of Athletic Events. If the ownership of stock is a requirement for entrance to a school, the gift of such stock to a student who enters into school on someone else's share of stock is considered to be receiving financial aid, and must be so noted.

Subsection H lists "Signs of Misguided and Faulty Financial Aid" as including "aid to athletes coming from one source, or benefactor, over an extended period of time," "a pattern of transfers into an athletic program receiving financial aid, especially at the senior high level" and "consistent reports from other member schools that a problem exists with the competition's financial aid as it relates to recruiting."

So, here's the "illegal recruiting" issue at JA (and it was the same at Hartfield): In each instance, the school had a benefactor paying the tuition owed; there was a pattern of transfers into the football program at the senior high level; and the school hired coaches who effectively serve as recruiting coordinators.

I'm not going to name the benefactors - everyone who cares to know, already knows who they are. It isn't a secret. All that is needed is a school or parent(s) who are motivated enough to hire a top-notch lawyer to build a case.

No shock at all, but this thread is total BS. Most of you commenting are clueless as to the facts, or you’re driven by a selfish or malicious intent.

All one needs to do is spend a day walking campus and you’ll see that JA maintains a vibrant campus community and close-knit student body. The Administration, teachers, coaches and staff are great people who work tirelessly for the benefit of every student, K-12. I’ve got kids at JA and I’m proud they’re there. I’m proud of the teachers and coaches I entrust them to every day. I’m proud of their classmates and the opportunity my kids have to learn and grow in a diverse, challenging and fulfilling Christian environment. I wouldn’t want my children anywhere else.

@2:47 Do you feel bad for the kids who have been there for years that want to compete and win? The ones that sacrifice their summers to show up at 6:30 am practices and workouts? Do those kids matter, or is it just the ones who want to have fun? Losing typically isn’t fun for anyone, not the players on the field, or the parents in the stands. Are you gonna pay the coaches salary when they get fired because their only objective is for the kids to have fun and not win? Most kids who play competitive sports at the high school level want to win, whether you are new to the school or have been there since kindergarten. The kids who want to compete don’t want the kids who just want to have fun on the team. They are typically a distraction and cause practices to be harder and longer because they are spending more time playing grab ass than putting in the actual work. If they did, they would play.

The number of comments defending JA does not represent the greater JA community. An overwhelmingly high % (>95%) of JA parents, students and teachers don't agree with what's happening. When parents voice their concerns to school leadership and the board, they experience gaslighting that would make mainstream media proud.

Reality is no business, school, church, club, etc, can survive by ignoring the wants, needs and desires of the people it is designed to serve. Unfortunately, JA's inexperienced leadership decided serving the egos of its AD and a few coaches was more important than serving the wants, needs and desires of its students. JA is and will continue to suffer the consequences of that poor decision. It's sad.
JA Parent and Alumni

“An overwhelmingly high % (>95%) of JA parents, students and teachers don't agree with what's happening.”

Please share your poll results. Your post lost all legitimacy straight out of the gate.

@11:46 as a parent of four kids at JA I can tell you that your >95% is completely fabricated. That might be true in the small circle you run in, but doesn’t reflect on the school as a whole. This year’s prayer walk prior to the start of school had one of the highest turnouts in recent years. Were you there? Blue and White night brought in more money than recent years. Did you attend? I’ve known Brandt Walker (AD) a long time and have never know him to have an ego that needs to be fed. I’ve had several conversations with Coach Duggan and find him to be a man full of integrity. How many conversations have you had with him? In my opinion, JA would be best served if all of the “families” who are so unhappy with JA would just leave. They can go spread their negativity at Prep or somewhere else. Let the rest of us enjoy this season and school year.

Go talk to JA parents and ask them. You'll find my assessment is accurate.

Nice, 11:14! Added a bit of viciousness to the goody-two-shoes routine, this time, did we?

I don't have a dog in this hunt but recruiting talented kids has been going on for many years at all the Private Schools. Do you think Richard Duease won all those basketball championships with home grown kids from MRA?? Do you think Conner Griffin and Jerrion Ealy wound up at Prep after attending First Pres?? Coaches are under pressure to win, regardless how they achieve it.

For your assessment to be accurate, you would have to have talked to 100% of the parents in order to determine that >95% of them are displeased. Or, you’re saying that 100% of the >95% of the parents you’ve talked to are displeased. Please confirm so we can understand your polling methods.

This is so strange. I took my kids out of JA back in the early 2000s to attend 6A so they could play competitive sports. My how things have changed.

So true

Lipstick the pig all you want by calling it "recruiting" or "competition." But it's really just bringing in a ringer.

@9/2 9:54am - If you chose JA based on strength of academics, community and potential to prepare kids for a diverse and interconnected world, just curious if you considered St. Andrews as well. They had 14 national merit semifinalists for the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program to JA's..... zero?

https://magnoliastatelive.com/2024/09/11/145-mississippi-students-named-as-national-merit-semifinalists-who-are-they-and-where-are-they-from/

Then you have PCS in Hattiesburg, that left the MAIS and is now a member of the MHSAA in the 3A classification. PCS cited travel costs (to the Jackson Metro) as a factor for the change. Many Lamar County residents in the Oak Grove attendance zone are choosing to send their children to PCS (or Benedict Day School, which goes through eighth grade). Quite a few of those PCS parents are Oak Grove alumni from the years when OG was a smaller school 20 years ago. Maybe JA needs to leave the MAIS and join MHSAA.

Why is there a double standard for JA when it comes to recruiting? Why should they be treated any different than MRA, Hartfield and yes, Prep? Why villainize JA when the other metro schools do the same, some more than others?

A while back, our granddaughters were obsessed with some loony California woman's parrot rescue videos. We braced ourselves, expecting to have to have screaming Cockatoos complicating our lives. As it turned out, though, the girls were only fascinated with the Parrot PEOPLE's obsessive, emotive involvement in their Parrots' health and mental states. It was a glimpse into another world.

We're not 'Pet People'. Nor are we 'Sports People'. I'm reading this thread, with the same incredulity the grandaughters experienced, when viewing that silly blonde sobbing over her parrots' crises.

It's like I'm looking through a wormhole, viewing a parallel universe which has existed alongside our own. We lived in Eastover, had the kids in everything Beth Israel offered, and most everything Saint Andrew's offered for little ones. Then, we discovered Madison, and moved there, which saved us a fortune in tuition.

Afraid that the kids would be as ugly as we'd been, we knew that exercise was a must. So, we got them Martial Arts instructors, and parked them, summers, with personal trainers.

The ONLY advantage of sports, as far as I can see, is that one grows up with a better body. And a good body WILL get you farther in life than a Couch Potato body. But the whole thing seems stupid: way too much time and money spent, with way too little exercise value. (with the Krav Maga/MMA guys and the trainers, there was no standing-around) Then, there's the Heat Stress Brain Damage, and Subtle Brain Injury from contact sports, to consider.

In the Lower Midwest, I have a cousin who's third-generation manhood-obsessed. His actual DEGREE (though he's a very-minor industrialist) is in something like 'Sports Programs'. That corner of the family, actually identify with sports teams: big conformists/joiner-types. Their inability to think independently - their never having existed outside the aegis of some "team", seems to be the reason why their brilliant, beautiful, stacked daughter WENT TRANNY: had 'The Girls' removed: got bespoke suits to make "him" look manly. She was CONFORMING. She was vulnerable to group-think: TEAM MENTALITY. Critical Thinking took a back seat to "BELONGING!".

Meanwhile, our kids started a (probably illegal, considering their ages) yard service, then started TRADING, then took over our household, and the running of buildings owned by their trusts - and when it was time for the eldest's med school, I'm going, "What do we need to set up, to get the money to you, monthly? I don't want you three going into your trust income."

"Mom! We GOT it! It's not Harvard...." They'd developed their own income streams, while some people, apparently, were bogged-down in life-stealing sports programs.

Anyway, thanks, everybody, for this glimpse into a world I somehow blocked-out - all around me. ...a world that's the reason, I would add, why the kids picked colleges about as far from Mississippi as they could get.

And how many little high school football heroes, just in Mississippi, have offed themselves, within the last decade, because of other people's possible opinions of them? Groupthink/Team Mentality...

This kind of news is so dumb. I enjoy all kinds of sports at any level. The number of comments on this is crazy. It’s simply another form of capitalism.

PERSEPCTIVE - most thoughtful word in English language

If you're a JA parent of a kid who is average build/speed/skill, your kid is likely sad right now, and your hope to watch your kid compete is likely over. Need to look at transferring to a smaller academy. But wait, you'll need to either move or get a job there, or you can sit out a year.

If you're a parent of a kid who is jacked, can run faster than average, go to public school, your kid will be found and offered free tuition to transfer to JA to beat up on some Leake Academy/Pillow boys.

All about your perspective

Agreed -- Hartfield is blatantly doing it. The artificially-inseminated diversity makes great homecoming pics on social media.

This in California... https://www.latimes.com/sports/highschool/story/2025-09-02/booster-confirms-paying-parents-bringing-in-players-at-narbonne-st-bernard-bishop-montgomery

"We're not 'Pet People", that's where I quit reading.

"But it's really just bringing in a ringer", a ringer would imply cheating, are you saying they're cheating?