Lincoln County educator Jennifer Jackson Whittier was reconfirmed this week to the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board by Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann.

Hosemann appointed Whittier to the board in 2020, and her first term will end June 2022.

“Jennifer has been an encouragement to thousands of children in her more than three decade tenure as a teacher in classrooms in northeast and southwest Mississippi,” Hosemann said in 2020. “She personally knows what it takes for our schools and students to succeed, and I know she will be an asset to this important Board.”

Whittier taught 10 years at Alexander Junior High and Brookhaven High School, before teaching 21 years at Loyd Star Attendance Center. She then taught in the Aberdeen school district.

After retiring in 2012, she taught at Parklane Academy and Brookhaven Academy.

She has taught English, Spanish, creative writing and public speaking. Her honors include being selected as her district’s Teacher of the Year three times and a STAR teacher six times.

The Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board operates with seven members from across the state. The lieutenant governor appoints three members, one from each Supreme Court District.

The board oversees the state’s seven authorized charter schools, approves applications for new schools and determines whether under-performing schools should close, among other responsibilities. Charter schools in Mississippi are public schools open to all students, which operate with flexibility in curriculum and schedules.