Jules Michel, principal of St. Richard Catholic School, will be retiring at the end of this school year. A special Mass will be held at St. Richard Church on Sunday, May 20, at 1:30 p.m. with a reception following.
By Susan Marquez
      Charles Jules Michel made the decision to go into education in the ninth grade. “I had a teacher, Mr. Glen Patterson, who had a profound influence on me. He was a friend of my brother’s, and I just knew in the ninth grade that I wanted to be a teacher like Mr. Patterson.”
      Michel decided he’d serve in the military then teach. That was the plan, anyway, but those plans were cut short after serving in the military for four years before receiving a medical discharge. “They found a tumor in my leg, and that ended my military career.”
      So he began his career in education in 1969. His first job was in the Humphrey County school system as a history teacher and baseball coach at McNair High School in Belzoni. “I was the only white teacher in a black school.”
      The state was going through tumultuous times. The Magnolia School System, which was all black, and the Mississippi State Department of Education, which was all white, was merging. It was thought then that if the faculty would integrate, the students wouldn’t have to.
      The experience didn’t discourage Michel at all. Instead, it made him stronger and more dedicated to education.
Michel’s own education began in 1953, where he started school at St. Richard School in Jackson.
      His principal and first grade teacher was Sister Cyrena Harkins, RSM. Michel went on to graduate from St. Joseph in 1965. He attended Louisiana State University from 1965 to 1967, then transferred to Mississippi State, where he received his bachelor of science and education degrees in 1969.
      After his first job at McNair, Michel was moved to the new integrated high school in Belzoni, where he taught history. While teaching, he completed his master’s in educational administration at Delta State University, and in 1972, he served as the assistant principal at Humphreys County High School.
      The next school year, he served as the curriculum coordinator for all of the schools in the county. It was there that he created the first open school concept. During that same time, Michel completed his master’s in elementary education.    READ MORE