The Mississippi State Board of Education (SBE) has selected 10 semifinalists to serve as the SBE junior student representative in the 2023-24 school year.

The SBE student representative program includes one high school junior and one high school senior who serve as non-voting SBE members and provide input on policy decisions that affect Mississippi public schools. The current junior SBE representative, Charlie Frugé of Oxford High School, will serve as the senior representative in 2023-24.

The eligible applicant pool for the rising junior representative included 28 students.

Student representatives are responsible for attending monthly SBE meetings and any standing committees or subcommittees to which they are assigned. Student representatives are excused from school to attend SBE meetings as official school business.

The SBE adopted a policy in 2018 outlining the criteria for adding student representatives to the State Board.

Semifinalists will be interviewed and up to four finalists will be named. The SBE will interview the finalists and appoint one rising junior.

The 10 semifinalists are as follows:

– Mafati Bah, Tate County School District, Strayhorn High School
– Kenadi Carpenter, Rankin County School District, Brandon High School
– Yaerim Choi, Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District, Starkville High School
– Mennah Ibrahim, Oxford School District, Oxford High School
– Jackson Pearce, Gulfport School District, Gulfport High School
– Kate Riddle, Lafayette County School District, Lafayette High School
– Alexandra Ritchie, Oxford School District, Oxford High School
– Hannah Smith-Phillips, Rankin County School District, Northwest Rankin High School
– Grace Taylor, Rankin County School District, Northwest Rankin High School
– Addison Winburn, Lafayette County School District, Lafayette High School