"There is, in any population center, a small minority of parents who recognize that there can be a wide variation in the depth, breadth, richness, and spiritual character of education from one school to another, although the marks and diplomas issued by the schools may appear to be the same. These are the parents who want to offer their children every possible opportunity for developing their minds, their bodies, and their spirits to the fullest potential. These parents are the reason St. James Day School exists."

-from A Parish History by former Headmaster
the late J. Bettis Lawrence

This web site in loving memory of Wendell Blake
1928~1999
Former Teacher & Headmaster

St. James Day School
Our History
1948 ~ 2004


~1948 ~

The Venerable Thomas H. Carson, Rector of St. James Episcopal Church, together with a small group of Texarkanians founded St. James Day School in 1948. At that time, the School offered kindergarten and first grade, and met in the old parish house of St. James Church. A faculty of four handled all instruction, with an enrollment of 32. An additional grade was added each year.

 

1950-1952

By 1950, St. James School had greatly expanded. With an enrollment of 140, a faculty of 17, plus a nurse, a consulting psychologist, and a school physician available, the School moved to a beautiful country campus on North State Line. The 35 acres of land with an abundance of East Texas hard woods and pines continues to provide a wonderful atmosphere for the children of St. James.

St. James graduated its first 6th grade class on May 30, 1952. Members of the first graduating class were Mary Sue Smith, Nancy Ketchum, Nancy Atkinson, Dick Murphy, John Carson, Billy Moseley, and Dan Murphy.

~1953~

In 1953, St. James expanded by two grades and began the fall term with Pre-Kindergarten through the eighth grade. The previous rectory for St. James Episcopal Church (originally the Seegar Home) was acquired and converted into the new school building for St. James.

The Board of Trustees brought J. Bettis Lawrence from the University of Oklahoma to serve as the new headmaster. Mr. Lawrence was a renowned historian who received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Oklahoma and his Master's degree from the University of California.

Another new faculty member in 1953 was Wendell Blake, a

The 1953 graduating class included Libby Gooch, Haydon Fuller, the Honorable Buzz Arnold, Tabby Schnipper, and Robert Young.

 

~1954-1959~

The Board of Trustees, under the leadership of Josh Morriss, Sr. and a committee composed of Mrs. William Fuller, Mrs. Richard L. Arnold, and Headmaster Lawrence, unanimously passed the committee's proposal to add a ninth grade in the fall of 1954.

In preparation for offering classes from Pre-Kindergarten through 9th grade, much time was spent improving the athletic fields, and a program of soccer, touch football, baseball, and basketball was carried out under the direction of Upper School Director, Wendell Blake.

~1960-1980~

These years saw the construction of a new Lower School, Middle School, and PreSchool as the student population outgrew the original plantation home on the premises. A full-sized gym was built adjacent to a tennis court to enhance the physical education of our students.

Father Richard Allen, Rector St. James Episcopal Church

Martin Filogamo served as Headmaster from 1977 until 1987 when he retired. 'Mr. Fil,' as he was known, was beloved of both students and faculty. His stage persona was relatively unknown until he sang Chattanooga Choo Choo in the spring musical of 1987! Mr. Fil was often seen mowing the grounds or coaching the football team, but he especially liked subbing for the music teacher because he would perform A Tisket, A Tasket on the piano as the class tried to sing along. (Mr. Fil could not play the piano.)

 

Nancy L. Russell began her duties as Headmistress with the 1987-88 school year.

1987~1995

Once again, the growing student body of St. James Day School experienced a need for new facilities on campus, and once again, an overwhelmingly supportive group of parents, Board of Trustees, and Faculty found the ways and means to fulfill the need under the outstanding leadership of Headmistress Nancy Russell. In 1991, a new cafeteria and two new Kindergarten classrooms were added to the front of the gym, and the existing Lower School remodeled to accommodate two additional classrooms for grades 1 and 2.

1995 saw the completion of the first phase of the Shared Visions I building program, as a brand new Lower School was completed adjacent to the cafeteria/kindergarten building--debt-free. The new housing for grades 1-3 includes a beautiful common area with classrooms branching off in six directions. This phase of the Shared Visions also included the renovation of the old Lower School Building into Fine Arts, Foreign Language, and Computer labs. Referred to as the Morriss Building, the After School Program was also housed there.

1996~2000

With the dedication of the new Middle School addition in March, 1998, St. James completed phase II of Shared Visions. The remodeling included the addition of three new classrooms and a common area for the Middle School. In addition, a new computer lab containing state-of-the-art wiring provides enhancement for our 24hr/day broad band fiber optic Internet connection, as well as capabilities for multimedia production. New restroom facilities for both boys and girls, and a conference room are a great treat for current students and teachers. The portable building behind the Admin building was also renovated as the school's new library.

The ongoing additions of campus facilities as well as a continuing growth in the student population made repair of the road a necessity to ease traffic problems on the main campus.

With much regret, 2000 saw longtime Headmistress Nancy Russell leave the School to be with her family in Tucson, Arizona. The School remains grateful to Ms. Russell for the tremendous expansion of the school during her thirteen-year tenure, and will not soon forget the intense growth experienced by St. James under her leadership.

Nancy now serves as Dean of Workforce and Business Development at Pima Community College in Tucson.

2000~2004

St. James welcomed new headmistress Mary Nell Short in 2000. Ms. Short carried on the innovative leadership of her predecessor as we moved into the 21st century. Mary Nell understood the need to bring education out of the industrial age and into the information age; She encouraged and supported the movement in both the country and our school for training teachers to teach with 21st century technology tools. Under her leadership, teachers worked hard to achieve the state and national standards required of every classroom teacher to teach with technology. Ms. Short promoted the continuous upgrading and alignment of all areas of curriculum, and was not too proud to teach a class when needed.

The faculty knew Mary Nell was always supportive of, and encouraged, innovative ideas in teaching and ongoing professional development for every teacher. St. James parents, students, and staff were sad to bid farewell to Ms. Short in May of 2004. Mary Nell now uses her expertise in education serving as Director of Christian Education at St. James Episcopal Church.

St. James is indeed lucky to have had such loving, caring, and academically astute Heads for over five decades.

2004~2008

 

Audrey Russell

 

2008

Dee Miller is serving as Interim Head of School this year. To read more information on Ms. Miller, click here

 

The continuing existence, success, and growth of the School is both a tribute to the founders' vision, the dedicated love and service of its longtime teachers, and witness to Texarkana's need for a school dedicated to excellence in education within a Christian setting.