Columbia Academy (Mississippi)

Columbia Academy
Location
1548 Hwy 98 E Columbia , Mississippi 39429 United States
Coordinates	31°15′12″N89°46′45″W / 31.2534°N 89.7793°W / 31.2534; -89.7793
Information
Type	Private school
Religious affiliation(s)	Christian (no specific denomination)
Established	1969 (1969)
NCES School ID	00735909 [1]
Head of school	Angie Burkett [2]
Teaching staff	42.9 (on an FTE basis) [1]
Grades	PK–12
Gender	Co-educational
Enrollment	460 (2017–2018, excluding PK) [1]
Student to teacher ratio	10.7 [1]
Color(s)	Orange, white, and royal blue
Nickname	Cougars
Website	www.cacougars.com

Columbia Academy is private school in Columbia, Mississippi, that was founded as a segregation academy in 1969 to provide white-only education.

History

Columbia Academy was created in September 1969 for white students in grades 1-8 as an alternative to attending public schools with black students. ^{[3] [4]} Grades 9-12 were added in January 1970, after a meeting at the Marion County Annex. ^[5] The first headmaster was Thomas Blakeney.

While the school has a non-discriminatory admissions policy, over 99% of the student body are white. ^[6] As of 2018, the school had 460 students, 457 of whom were white, and designates itself a Christian school. Of the three non-white students, one was Asian, one was Hispanic, and one was black. ^[1]

Admissions policy excludes married or pregnant students, and any student who becomes married or pregnant is not allowed to continue. ^[2]

In 2019 Columbia Academy was one of several segregation academies awarded money by the Mississippi State Legislature through a program for students with disabilities, even though the school does not provide services for those students. ^[7]

Notable people

Logan Cooke, NFL punter ^[8]

References

1. "Search for Private Schools – School Detail for Columbia Academy". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved March 28, 2021.
2. http://www.cacougars.com/editoruploads/files/Handbooks/2020-2021_Student_Handbook__Final_-_Uploaded_.pdf ^{[ dead link ]}
3. Batten, James K (January 7, 1970). "Integration comes quietly along the Pearl". Miami Herald. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
4. "City, County, Private School Attendance Nears Old Total". Columbian-Progress. January 15, 1970. p. 1. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
5. "Columbia Academy to establish high school". Hattiesburg American. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
6. "Admissions - Columbia Academy". www.cacougars.com. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
7. ""Voucher Program Helping Seg Schools Should Go, Education Advocates Say"". February 21, 2019.
8. "Logan Cooke - Football Recruiting - Player Profiles - ESPN".