Tuesday, January 27^th not only marked Operation Shoestring’s first board meeting of the year, but also the arrival of three new board members. The trio includes Donna Barksdale, Jonathan Lee, and Trey Waterloo.

Pictured L – R: (Back) Jonathan Lee, Donna Barksdale, Board President Doug Boone, Executive Director Robert Langford (Front) Board Vice-President Dorian Turner and Trey Waterloo

Operation Shoestring’s entire 2009 Board of Directors is:
Doug Boone: President
Dorian Turner: Vice President
Wade Overstreet: Treasurer
Evelyn Edwards: Secretary
Donna Barksdale
Ken Barton
Chris Bell
Cecil Brown
Debra Brown
Lee Bush
George Evans
James E. Graves, Jr.
Jonathan Lee
LeMoyne Martin
Vickie Mason
Sally Molpus
Lamar Nesbit
Trey Porter
Mary Largent Purvis
Chris Ray
Melinda Ray
Keith Tonkel
Trey Waterloo
Primus Wheeler

Operation Shoestring is one of five community partners behind the Stamp Out Drop Out [SODO] program. Jerry Mitchell has written a front-page article for today’s Clarion-Ledger on male high school completion rates in Mississippi. It includes comments from former Secretary of State Dick Molpus, executive director of The Parents’ Campaign Nancy Loome, 100 Black Men’s Robert Gibbs, State Superintendent Hank Bounds, and assistant superintendent for Clinton Public Schools Tim Martin. To read the article click here: Males in Miss. at Risk of Not Finishing School

For more information, go to the following websites:
MS Dept of Ed Office of Dropout Prevention
On the Bus – MS’s Dropout Prevention Program