MADISON — Happy anniversary!!
The Madison City School system is celebrating 25 years.
In 1997 the Madison City Council approved the measure that created a Madison City Board of Education and formally separated from the countywide school district.
Madison City Schools is consistently ranked one of the best school systems in Alabama as well as the nation.
“When the district began, I was a school teacher,” said former Superintendent Robby Parker. “We were just a family. We wanted to build something.
“It wasn’t that we were shooting to be the best school district in America, we might have said that, but we were just taking care of our children, all the children every day, and just enjoying that.”
Parker, who retired after 31 years with the school system, told 256 Today the community that calls Madison home makes all the difference.
“I’m a Madison guy to the core,” he said. “Like Dr. (Dee) Fowler used to say ‘If they made Madison socks, I’d wear them’. I just believe, and I admit I’m biased, that this is the best school district in the America.”
Fowler served as the Madison City Schools superintendent from 2007-16 before joining the state superintendent’s office.
Dr. Terri Johnson, a former school board member, said the system will continue to thrive because of the people.
“These teachers are invested in the lives of our student,” she said. “I’ve always felt like, from the classroom all the way up to the principal, all the way to the board, the superintendent to the central office staff, everybody has the mindset of putting students first and doing what’s best for students.
“I think that’s what made the school system so successful.”
Johnson, who served on the school board for 10 years – the last two as president, said putting students first has always been a priority.
“We both quote Dee Fowler a lot because he is very wise man,” she said. “One of the things that helped guide our decisions when I was on the board was he would always say ‘I don’t care about what’s convenient for adults, I care about what’s right for kids, and if you keep your focus on that most of the decisions you have to make really aren’t that hard.’”
Madison City Schools, which also serves the town of Triana, is the 12th largest school district in Alabama. It serves more than 12,400 students across 11 campuses. But, it will be 12 campuses when Journey Middle School opens for the upcoming school year.
In 1998, the system started with 5,638 students and six schools.
Marc Jacobson, the chair of the Madison Education Committee 25 years ago, said the success did not come without challenges.
“There were many challenges; funding the new school system, splitting from the county, meeting a very tight timeline, and convincing the community we could do this,” the former city council member told 256 Today. “The formation of an independent school system was probably the most significant event in Madison’s history. Much of the success Madison sees today is because of our school system.
“I’m proud of what was accomplished. And we’ve never looked back.”
In just 25 years, Madison has emerged as a public education leader. MCS consistently earns “all A’s” — most recently in the State Education Report Card as well as earning the title of Best Public School District in the state by a national education research group. NICHE placed MCS as number 1 out of 138 school districts in the state of Alabama for the 2022-2023 school year. MCS was ranked 57th out of more than 10,000 school districts across the nation.
Superintendent Dr. Ed Nichols chalked up the success to the community.
“I always tell people that when you have a great community that’s dedicated to having the best school system and you have great parents and great students and great staff and teachers, you’ll have a great school system,” he said.
Nichols highlighted the opportunities for students, pointing out there are 54 electives for middle school students. MCS also offers more than a dozen career academies and 36 AP classes.
“While we are not abundantly wealthy in money to run a school district, we utilize that money effectively,” he said.
Looking to the future, Nichols said there’s more to come because they are always looking for new opportunities to provide their students.
“Whatever we do, we compete to be the best,” he said.
The celebration will continue this fall with the opening of the new middle school and the 25th anniversary of the first school-year start.
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