Jones Academy -

Last Thursday, our Jones Academy UNITY Youth Council and members enjoyed an unforgettable night at the Cirque du Soleil tour in OKC! 🎪✨ Yakoke, to the Hartshorne Community Center and the Chahta Foundation for making this exciting experience possible!

Jones Academy students had the opportunity to take part in an artist workshop led by multi-talented artist and actor Dukon Harris!
Dukon shared his creative talents in painting, woodburning, and beading...and also spoke about his work in film, including his role as narrator and lead in the autobiography Jim Thorpe: Lit by Lightning, where he portrayed the legendary athlete.
A proud member of the Sac and Fox, Comanche, Choctaw, and Ponca Nations, Dukon brought a meaningful cultural perspective to the workshop, inspiring our students through both his art, life experiences, and storytelling.
Yakoke to Dukon Harris for sharing your gifts, and to the Chahta Foundation for sponsoring the event.

Big day for our Jones Academy graduates! 🎉 On August 28, they moved into their dorms at Haskell Indian Nations University and are officially kicking off their freshman year. We’re so proud of them and can’t wait to see all the amazing things they’ll accomplish! 💙✨

Growing Hope Program

🌾✨ Students at Jones Academy put their science skills to the test with a garden scavenger hunt comparing our Earth-grown Choctaw heirloom seeds to those that traveled to space with NASA.

They made observations, collected samples, and shared predictions about which garden was the “space garden.” It was a powerful way to connect Choctaw heritage, hands-on learning, and space exploration all in one activity. 🚀🌱

Students in grades 4 through 6 at Jones Academy recently participated in an exciting and educational experience as they learned about the democratic process and leadership. As part of their journey, they explored what it takes to run for an elected office, how to write and deliver an inspirational campaign speech, and gained hands-on experience with the voting process.
Through this experience, students discovered the responsibilities of serving as a student council representative and what it means to be a leader in their school community. Congratulations to all the candidates who participated—you demonstrated courage, commitment, and school spirit!

2025-2026 Jones Academy Elementary Student Council Representatives.
President: Kingston Billy
Vice-President: Drake Wickson
School Ambassador: Kayla Chee
Secretary: Amarae Stout
Newspaper Committee: Rose Hutchinson, Ryan Elam, Isabella McDonald

✨ Congratulations to Jones Academy freshman, Sinte-ska Roberts! On Friday, August 22nd, he won 1st place in Youth Diversified at the 20th Annual Choctaw Art Show! He handcrafted a deer rattler for traditional dance, which he proudly uses. 🎉👏

6th Grade - 1st Day of School

6th Grade - 1st Day of School

5th Grade - 1st Day of School

4th Grade - 1st Day of School

3rd Grade - 1st Day of School

2nd Grade - 1st Day of School

1st Grade - 1st Day of School

🎓🎉 Huge Congratulations to the Jones Academy Class of 2025! 🎉🎓 You've worked hard, pushed through challenges, and now your moment has arrived! Whether you're heading to college, the workforce, or blazing your own path, your future is bright and full of promise. 🌟 Your resilience, determination, and spirit have made your school, families, and community proud. Here's to bold dreams, new adventures, and everything that comes next. The world is ready for you — go make your mark! 💪✨ #JonesAcademy2025 #SeniorStrong #ClassOf2025 #FutureLeaders #GraduationDay #ProudMoment

We are incredibly grateful for our amazing Jones Academy teachers—their thoughtfulness and genuine care for each student mean the world to us. Wishing a very Happy Teacher Appreciation Week to the Hartshorne teachers as well. We appreciate each of you!

🐾📚 Our 1st and 2nd graders had a pawsome adventure today! They visited the Pittsburgh County Animal Shelter, where they read stories to the dogs and learned all about how to care for our furry friends. 🐶💛 The day ended with pizza at Pizza Hut and some fun in the sun at the park! 🍕☀️ What a memorable day of kindness, learning, and play! #FieldTripFun

Students Explore Career Pathways and Coding with Sphero BOLTs Fifth and sixth-grade students had an exciting and educational experience during a recent visit from Kiamichi Tech Career Specialist, Rachael Ranallo, who spoke with students about career planning and future academic opportunities. The discussion focused on how students can take advantage of CareerTech and college courses during high school, tailored to the careers they are interested in pursuing. Each student received a McAlester Campus Viewbook, which included: -- General information about the district -- Specific details about the McAlester campus Following the presentation, students participated in an engaging hands-on coding lesson using Sphero BOLT robots. They learned how to program the BOLTs to play a game of "Rock, Paper, Scissors" and then competed against one another. Students also created their own custom codes, demonstrating creativity, problem-solving, and teamwork.

📍 Campus Visit to East Central University! 🎓 On April 29th, Jones Academy students took a college road trip to Ada, OK to tour East Central University. From the moment we arrived, we were warmly welcomed by ECU staff and began an amazing day of exploration and learning. We toured several campus buildings, including a special stop at the Dr. Raniyah Ramadan Center for Undergraduate Research and Learning. Students got a real sense of the academic opportunities ECU has to offer! After a tasty lunch at the Taff Cafeteria, students had a blast relaxing and playing pool, ping pong, and basketball before heading to an afternoon session where we learned all about ECU’s scholarships, student organizations, events, and majors. One of the most valuable parts of the day was hearing from the ECU student panel—getting real advice and stories from current students about life as a Tiger. 🐯 Big thanks to East Central University for hosting us and giving our students a glimpse into their future possibilities! 🌟 #JonesAcademy #CollegeBound #EastCentralUniversity #CampusTour #ECUExperience

💸 Ready, set, budget! On April 24, the Student Success Center turned real-world money lessons into a full-on adventure at our Game of Life event! 🎲 Students were randomly assigned careers, incomes, and family situations, then raced through seven stations—like Property Management, Banking, and the Health Clinic—making big money moves and tough budgeting decisions. 🏡🚗🛒 Could they cover groceries, healthcare, housing and still save? Every choice made a difference! In the end, students stacked up their balances to see who crushed it as the ultimate money master. 🏆💰 This hands-on experience was more than just fun—it gave students real skills for managing income, planning for surprises, and building a smart financial future! 🙌 #FinancialLiteracy #StudentSuccess #BudgetBoss