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May 22, 2024 - Hundreds of people filled the gymnasium inside Forest Hill High School to cheer and applaud scholars at the 44th ÐÓ°É Public Schools' Salute to Scholars Program. The long-standing tradition honors the top ten graduating seniors from each high school. All seven high school principals and a senior counselor presented awards to the top ten graduating seniors, based on their grade point averages.

 

"We are excited to celebrate you for outstanding academic achievements gained through your pursuit of excellence throughout your high school years," said Laketia Marshall-Thomas, Assistant Superintendent for High School.  

 

 

Scholars from Callaway, Forest Hill, Jim Hill, Lanier, Murrah, Provine, and Wingfield High Schools smiled as their names were called. 

 

The JPS Collaborative Choir, under the direction of Pamela Moody, left the audience in awe as scholars performed, "Battle of Jericho." 

 

 

The guest speaker, Founder and CEO of , Dr. Nashlie Sephus, encouraged scholars to stay true to themselves and never accept defeat.

 

"People will look at you and where you come from to figure out what you're capable of, but as a 2023 graduate of Murrah High School and a ÐÓ°É, Mississippi, native - I'm here to tell you that anything is possible."

 

 

Dr. Sephus is the Applied Science manager for Amazon’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) focusing on fairness and identifying biases in the organization's technologies. 

 

In 2018, Dr. Sephus became the founder and CEO of The Bean Path, a non-profit organization based in ÐÓ°É, MS, assisting individuals and startups with technical expertise and guidance. In September 2020, she became the owner and developer of the ÐÓ°É Tech District, at least 12 acres of mixed-use commercial real-estate in downtown ÐÓ°É to bring tech training and workforce/economic development to Mississippi.

 

See each top ten scholar from all JPS high schools below.