Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor:
The five individuals who serve on the Holly Springs School Board are to be commended for their commitment to this community’s students. They work long hours attending board meetings and school activities, answering community questions, refining their governance skills, and so much more.
School board members in the Holly Springs School District are Ejeera Dukes, President; Charisse Harris, Vice President; Dr. Gemma Beckley, Secretary; Lemon Phelps; and Kim Mayfield.
School Board Member Recognition Week in Mississippi, February 12-18, is just one of the opportunities we should take to recognize our school board members for the contributions they make to the education of this community’s students.
Local school board member service continues to be a job best done from a heartfelt desire to improve education. Otherwise, the requirements of the job could easily be overwhelming: meetings once or twice a month (and sometimes more); deciding tough, often emotional issues; and regularly receiving calls, texts, and emails about parent and community concerns and complaints. It is easy to see that our board members persist in working on behalf of students, with student achievement as the focus of their decisions.
Board members also must attend a lot of training. The Holly Springs School Board received Board of Merits recognition for School Year 2021-2022 as members completed 185.50 hours of Mississippi School Board Association-approved training. Lemon Phelps was a part of the Distinguished Circle with 45 hours of training and both Ejeera Dukes and Dr. Gemma Beckley were a part of the Premier Circle with 41.50 and 39.50 hours, respectively.
Board members promote the school district as they regularly interact with the community, taking the initiative to keep citizens aware of successes and challenges, and inviting the community to help schools be their best. For these and many other reasons, the board members of the Holly Springs School District deserve our support and applause during School Board Member Recognition Week, February 12-18.
Sincerely,
Irene Turnage
Superintendent of Education