Personnel, Public Relations, and Student Affairs

This department consists of 3 departments, all aimed at accomplishing the mission of the Sunflower County Consolidated School District: Empowering Staff, Engaging Communities, and Educating Students! As our title indicates, we directly impact all 3 of these entities. Though we are many members, we operate as one body.

Personnel/Human Resources

This department works diligently to ensure that our school district recruits and retains highly qualified staff who are appropriately licensed, and who maintain these credentials while employed with the SCCSD. Ms. Pamela Watson (pwatson@sunflowerk12.org) lead this department and other areas that fall under the umbrella of this department include: 

  • Teacher/Staff Recruitment
  • Educator Licensure
  • Employee Work Verifications
  • Family Medical Leave
  • Workers’ Compensation
  • Substitute Teacher/Custodian/Cafeteria Worker Trainings
  • Volunteer Trainings
  • New Teacher Support
  • Maintenance of Personnel Records
  • Employee Grievances
  • Develop Employee/Personnel Handbook
Pamela Watson

Public Relations 

The goal of this department is to consistently present the school district in a positive and favorable light internally and externally. We fully believe that no one can tell our story better than we can, and that is what we intend to do! The PR Department is a truly collaborative effort headed by Ms. Pamela Watson. Some of the tasks include: 

  • Collaboration with local media (newspaper, radio, and news stations)
  • Maintenance of Social Media Accounts
  • Creation of Flyers/Announcements for Events
  • Superintendent’s Advisory Council (Retired Educators) and Community Meetings
  • Establishment of partnerships with local groups and entities
  • Weekly “Week-in-Review” sharing in-district highlights of the week among SCCSD staff 

 

Student Affairs 

This department, under the leadership of Ms. Pamela Watson, is responsible for ensuring that students are treated fairly and in accordance with policy, specifically regarding the Code of Conduct. Student Affairs also encompasses the following:

  • Conducting disciplinary hearings for infractions that result in 10-day suspensions
  • Partnership with the MS Center for Justice and Sunflower County Systems Change Project
  • Developing behavioral supports, interventions, and systems within the school district
  • Connecting District Staff to trainings that help with student discipline, climate, and culture
  • Meetings with the Superintendent Advisory Council (high school students) to hear the student perspective
  • Leading the Gallup Poll
  • Monthly analysis of discipline data
  • Hears grievances/complaints that parents or students may have regarding discipline AFTER the matter is not resolved at the school level 

 

Mississippi Student Information System 

This department works to maintain accurate reporting of personnel and student attendance to the state, using the MSIS database. This information must be closely monitored because it is reviewed by the state and federal government. Ms. Li'Thesia Kent (lkent@sunflowerk12.org) is the leader of this department.   

Pamela Watson, Director of Personnel, Public Relations, and Student Affairs

Location: Central Office, Hwy 49N 196 MLK Jr. Drive, Indianola, MS 38751  

E-mail: pwatson@sunflowerk12.org

Phone: (662) 887.4919/Ext. 102

Vilinda Dixon, Personnel Administrative Assistant

Location: Central Office, Hwy 49N 196 MLK Jr. Drive, Indianola, MS 38751 

Email: vdixon@sunflowerk12.org

Phone: (662) 887.4919/Ext. 118 

PATHWAYS TO TEACHING

A five (5)-year educator license is granted to applicants meeting all MS licensing requirements and completing a state-approved or National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) or Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) approved teacher education program from a regionally/nationally accredited institution of higher learning.

Licensure Requirements include:

The Alternate Route is for teachers with a non-teacher education bachelor's degree from an accredited college/university. All Alternate Route programs have the following components:

Once you have successfully completed testing requirements, you must enroll in an alternate route program and complete the training or coursework required. You will then be ready for your initial alternate-route license and internship.

The alternate route program must recommend you for licensure to the MDE Office of Educator Licensure. Along with the recommendation, you must submit to the MDE Office of Educator Licensure:

  • A completed licensure application
  • All sealed, official transcripts showing at minimum a bachelor’s degree
  • Original Praxis scores, and
  • Proof of alternate route program enrollment

Upon completion of the internship, you are ready to apply for your 5-year Standard Teaching License. Educators must submit a completed licensure application and proof of internship completion to the Office of Educator Licensure.

Mississippi has three approved Alternate Route Programs that lead to educator licensure, including:

  • Degree Option:
    • Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) (1st 12 hours are required for Certification)
      • Coursework includes 6 hours of graduate coursework or equivalent training program:
        • Classroom Management
        • Tests, Measurements, and Evaluations (or course equivalent)
      • Teacher Internship includes 3 hours per semester (6 hours total = 1 Full School Year) – See Step 4.
      • Courses beyond the initial 12 hours for certification lead to a Master’s Degree in Teaching Arts.
    • Certification Only:
      • Teach Mississippi Institute (TMI) – Ole Miss (Online), Mississippi State, USM
      • American Board Certification for Teacher Excellence (ABCTE) – National Certification Program

Learn more about Mississippi Alternate Route programs.

District-requested licenses are special licenses that may be requested only by an employing local school district or an eligible nonpublic school.

These provisional licenses enable local school district officials to employ candidates working toward full educator certification while temporarily addressing the ongoing teacher shortage.

Local school districts and eligible nonpublic schools can now submit online requests for district-requested licenses via the Educator Licensure Management System (ELMS). 

 

SCCSD can request the following district-requested licenses for aspiring educators:

  • Career and Technical Education (CTE) Licenses are specific licenses that are needed to teach CTE-qualifying courses.
  • This license is based on work experience in career and technical fields. Certain CTE endorsements can be requested as an occupational endorsement for prospective teachers or added as a supplemental endorsement for current teachers who have a standard (5-Year) license.
  • You may apply for a CTE license if you have an Associate Degree.
  • Depending on your highest degree earned, you must establish expertise in the field in which you want to teach by logging a certain number of years of experience in that field.
The Mississippi Department of Education may grant an Expert Citizen License to local businesses or other professional personnel, allowing a school district to offer specialized or technical courses. This is a one-year license that can only be requested by a local school district employing the applicant or an eligible nonpublic school in the state of Mississippi. This license is issued at the Class A level.
This license is for a teacher who has documented teaching experience. Evidence of progress toward completing the necessary requirements to add the designated endorsement and become Highly Qualified must be documented to renew this license.

The special, non-renewable license for prospective non-traditional teacher preparation program completers is a one-year license that can only be requested by an employing local school district or an eligible nonpublic school in the state of Mississippi for up to three (3) years for a candidate who has not met all certification requirements.

This license type can be requested for a prospective non-traditional teacher preparation program completer who meets one of the following conditions:

  1. Holds at least a bachelor’s degree in the endorsement area in which the license is requested from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred; or
  2. Holds at least a bachelor’s degree in any area and eighteen (18) hours of undergraduate and/or graduate-level coursework with a grade of “C” or higher in the endorsement area in which the license is requested. Both the degree(s) and the eighteen (18) hours of undergraduate and/or graduate-level coursework must have been earned from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred. Remedial courses (also referred to as compensatory, developmental, or basic skills) will not be recognized for certification purposes and are usually numbered below 100 on the transcript (Elementary Education is not included under option B); or
  3. Holds at least a bachelor’s degree in any area from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred, and a passing score on the appropriate Mississippi State Board of Education-approved licensure Subject Area Assessment in the endorsement area in which the license is requested.

Specific restrictions for the Special, Non-renewable license apply:

  • The license is not transferable between districts or eligible nonpublic schools.
  • If the educator is not renewed by the local school district after the first year, the educator will not be issued a license by another district for the remaining two (2) years.
  • The license can only be requested in one (1) endorsement area.
  • Additional endorsements will not be added to the special, non-renewable license.
  • The candidate must meet all licensure requirements for a standard, five (5) year renewable license by the end of the third year.


The Mississippi Department of Education shall grant a standard five-year license to any individual who possesses a valid standard license from another state within a period of twenty-one (21) days from the date of a completed application.

Requirements Include:

  • A valid standard out-of-state license (Upload PDF copy of valid standard out-of-state license via Educator Licensure Management System (ELMS) account or submit photocopy of original valid standard out-of-state educator license via postal mail)
  • An official Sealed copy of all college/university-level academic transcripts