School Overview

It is my honor and a pleasure to welcome you to the 2026 – 2027 school year! This new school year brings the promise of true dedication, focus, and energy to the mission of teaching and learning. We are excited to share all that JRD Academy has to offer with you and believe you will soon feel as we do, that JRD Academy is a special place for all children. Our teachers, support staff, and families are ready to welcome you into the Rocket family, where we will #BLASTOFF to greatness! The dedicated staff has been working tirelessly to finalize classes and schedules, fine-tune our instructional models, engage in professional learning opportunities, and update class routines and expectations, all with the goal of fostering academic growth and success. Our teachers are eager to meet their new students and begin this life changing journey with them. Our primary goal is to ensure student proficiency in all core academic subjects, so we will continue to refine Tier I instruction, analyze data, conduct observations, and review classwork to guide instruction and intervention. Additionally, we will continue placing a focus on the integration of the Social Justice Standards, Responsive Classroom community-building techniques, Restorative Justice practices, and social and emotional support strategies into our students’ daily school experience. We will work together to create a solid foundation for our students so that they have the opportunity to become self-directed learners, collaborative teammates, critical thinkers, and responsible citizens. We will continue to offer intervention services for all learners through specialized programs, counseling when appropriate, and the implementation of Tier II and Tier III programs and learning strategies. I look forward to the start of the new school year and to continuing our collaboration of providing you children with an effective and engaging educational experience. As always, we will look to our families to be positive partners in this year’s journey. The JRD Academy staff will continue to make working with you our priority. As always, I am here for you and your family and our team welcomes you! Please feel free to contact me via email idjones@cps.edu or call to make an appointment to speak with me to discuss any ideas you feel will make this the best year yet! Sincerely yours, Iysha D. Jones NBCT, M.Ed. Principal James R. Doolittle Academy