The Jackson Parish School District implemented the AVID Program at Jonesboro Hodge High School for 9th grade students under the direction of JHHS Principal, Dr. Chevonda Leonard, with Student Support Coordinator/AVID District Director, Rebecca Womack, and AVID Site Coordinator, Londrea Johnson.
The AVID 9th Grade Academy was created in the 2023-24 school year at JHHS with a funding grant from the Louisiana Department of Education to assist 9th grade students with preparing for college and career readiness. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. AVID is a nationally recognized program in supporting students’ college and career preparedness.
What Does College and Career Readiness Mean? No matter what post-secondary path high school graduates choose, students must develop certain essential skills to design their own futures: critical thinking, collaboration, reading, writing, and relationship building.
The development of these skills is rooted in belief in self. If students believe they are capable, there is a foundational confidence to learn and a resiliency to overcome setbacks. AVID students receive intentional support and mentoring in three major areas that help them become confident individuals who can successfully navigate life and career:
Rigorous Academic Preparedness — Students develop academic skills and can successfully complete rigorous college and career preparatory curriculum and experiences.
Opportunity Knowledge — Students research opportunities, set goals, make choices that support their long-term aspirations, and successfully navigate transitions to the next level.
Student Agency — Students believe in themselves and act intentionally to build relationships, persist through obstacles, and activate their academic, social, emotional, and professional knowledge and skills to reach their potential.
The teachers in the 9th Grade Academy at JHHS attended the AVID Summer Institute in order to be AVID trained in the many strategies that are used in the classroom to enhance learning. It is a 3 day training in which teachers learn to use the AVID curriculum in their respective disciplines and incorporate AVID strategies into their lesson plans. Students are held to a higher standard of learning and are encouraged to progress through the curriculum and be successful.
The JHHS 9th Grade Academy currently has 59 students enrolled. The following teachers are on faculty in the 9th Grade Academy: Mr. Nick St. Pierre, Dr. Stephanie Smith, Mrs. Dormeka Pearce, Mr. MacKenzie Chamblee, and Mr. Jared Carpenter. Dr. Chevonda Leonard, JHHS Principal, and Kristopher Cash, JHHS Assistant Principal, are administrators. Mrs. Bonnie Buckelew, Supervisor, wrote the grant to obtain funding.
