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Top Magnet School National Award of Merit

Top Magnet School National Award of Merit

Tangipahoa Parish is receiving national accolades for the success of one of the district’s largest magnet schools.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tangipahoa Parish School Superintendent Melissa M. Stilley
 


On Friday, Hammond High Magnet School has been recognized with the highest merit award offered by the Magnet Schools of America, which has distinguished the school as a “Top Merit Award of Excellence” campus.

It is a first for both the school and the district, which relaunched HHMS as a magnet and International Baccalaureate school at the start of the 2010-11 school year. At the time, the school was in decline, boasting an enrollment of only several hundred students. Today, HHMS is the second-largest high school in the parish, receiving hundreds of magnet transfer applications each year for students to participate in a wealth of programs offered at the school.

Tangipahoa Parish School Superintendent Melissa Stilley was part of the leadership team who witnessed the transformation of Hammond High to a magnet campus nearly 15 years ago.

“This is a proud day, not only for our district, but so much more so for the families and businesses in Hammond who championed for the transformation of this campus to a dynamic school that would draw students from all over Tangipahoa Parish to achieve their academic goals,” Stilley said.

Michael Kyles, Jr., principal of HHMS, was a teacher at the campus when the school began its transformation more than a decade ago. “When I think about where we started and how Hammond High Magnet has grown in such a short time, I am so excited for the opportunities we can afford students not only in Hammond but all over Tangipahoa Parish. This recognition is a powerful reminder that HHMS is on the move, making positive gains for students in our community and gaining national attention for the opportunities we are providing for our students,” Kyles said.

Among those opportunities are the Northshore’s only IB high school diploma program and a sports medicine magnet program which draws students from across the parish to attend HHMS. The magnet specialty programs have been so well-received the campus has had to complete several additions, including a ProStart culinary kitchen and most recently a 14-classroom wing to accommodate the influx of students.


The “Top Magnet Schools of Excellence” award from Magnet Schools of America recognizes schools that were designated as National Certified Demonstration Schools in the fall of 2024 or schools that achieved the highest score threshold or ranked at the top of their reader group.” It is the highest merit award the organization offers to magnet schools across the country.

Stilley said this the first time one of the Tangipahoa Parish School System’s magnet schools has been recognized by an outside magnet organization for their excellence.

“This is a moment to be celebrated, not only in Hammond but parish wide,” Stilley said. 

Tangipahoa Parish School Board member Brett Duncan, who has championed the magnet program since its inception, called the recognition well-deserved.

“I am so glad that our educators, students, and this community will receive the recognition they deserve,” Duncan said, adding that “the work that has been done to improve Hammond High Magnet over the last 12 years has been a yeoman’s job, and the result has been remarkable.”

Duncan said this transformation would not have been possible without the support of the entire community, and he applauded Hammond’s investment in the dedicated magnet tax which has benefited not only HHMS, but all of Hammond’s magnet, Montessori, and IB programs.

“The people of Hammond supported this program when it was just a dream. I am beyond excited for these stakeholders to see the rewards of their commitment and their investment in our schools,” Duncan said.

Stilley visited the campus on Friday to join Principal Kyles and the entire Hammond High Magnet community in celebrating this outstanding achievement.

Pictured: TPSS Superintendent Melissa Stilley, HHMS Principal Michael Kyles Jr., Coordinator of Magnet School Programs DeShea Johnson.

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