The Mississippi Department of Education recently announced that 46 Mississippi high schools have received the prestigious 2022 College Success Award from GreatSchools.org, the nation’s leading nonprofit providing school information to parents and families. And one of those 46 schools is the Noxapater Attendance Center.
Now in its fifth year, the annual recognition honors public high schools that excel at preparing students to enroll and succeed in college, as determined by available data in each state.
Mississippi’s recipients are among 1,742 winners from 25 states that have demonstrated successful track records of graduating students who enroll in two- or four-year colleges, are ready for college-level coursework, and persist on to their second year. Despite the many challenges brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic, these schools have continued to uphold many best practices to support their students’ college preparation and success.
The College Success Award is possible because Mississippi is leading the nation in both collecting and transparently sharing information on how students perform after high school, which is valuable information for families, educators, and policymakers.
Noxapater Principal Chet Wilkes said that this is the second year they have received the award which tracks students in the first two years of college. Wilkes said of his faculty, "It's an overall effort, and it's certainly a pat on the back for them to know that everything they're teaching the kids is paying off. I think we do a pretty good job here of talking about what's outside of high school." He added the focus is always to prepare the students for life after they graduate.
Wilkes added it is a great honor to again be selected to receive the College Success Award.
