SOCSD Director of Choral Activities tapped to receive a 2025 NFHS Citation Award in Music Education
Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Director of Choral Activities, Jennifer Davis, has been tapped to receive one of five prestigious national Citation Awards given to professional association educators by the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS). Davis will be awarded the Citation in the category of Music Education at the annual NFHS Summer Meeting to be held in Chicago, IL in July. NFHS is the governing association for the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) which provides leadership for SOCSD athletics as well as choral and band programs.
The NFHS Citation is one of the most highly regarded achievements in high school athletics and fine arts/performing arts programs and is designed to honor individuals who have made contributions to NFHS, state high school associations, athletic director and coaching professions, the officiating avocation and arts education. The professional Citation Awards represent five out of a total of 14 Citations awarded by NFHS in 2025, with the remaining nine presented to state-level association staff members and a Canadian association member. In addition to Music Education, professional citations are presented in the categories of coaching, officiating, speech and debate, and theatre.
"Mrs. Davis has continually represented the Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District with excellence at the state and regional level, and this national award comes as no surprise," said SOCSD Superintendent Dr. Tony McGee. "Her outstanding leadership not only for the Starkville High School Choral program, but for our district-wide general music programs has resulted in unprecedented opportunities for students at every age to learn about music, embrace new experiences in the arts, and spread their wings in performing. We are very proud of her in receiving this well-deserved national honor."
In 2023, Davis was named the MHSAA Music Educator of the Year. From this honor, she subsequently earned recognition from NFHS as the 2024 Southeast Region's Outstanding Music Educator of the Year. From the pool of regional award winners in the organization's eight sections, Davis was named the 2025 national Citation award recipient for Music Education in February.
Davis has an award-winning 26-year career in music education, and during her time at SHS has produced an impressive track record of excellence with choral groups and student performers earning numerous MHSAA Superior ratings and Sweepstakes awards. SHS Singers have performed in a variety of local, regional and national venues, and in 2025, a record-breaking 61 singers earned invitations to the competitive All-State Honor Choir.
In addition, Davis has spearheaded the implementation of Piano Labs at Partnership Middle School and Starkville High School, providing students at all levels of skill with the opportunity to learn to play the piano. She has also introduced guitar instruction as well as Advanced Placement Music Theory and other dual credit/dual enrollment classes as course offerings at SHS. Each year, the Starkville High School choral program produces scholarship recipients and "signees" for participation in choral groups at the collegiate level.
Jordan Young, a 2024 graduate of Starkville High and starting member of the varsity football team, participated in the SHS Singers and other ensemble choral groups during his time at SHS –– an opportunity that prepared him to earn a scholarship from Mississippi State University to continue his choral studies. He credits Davis with inspiring and encouraging him to consider singing at the collegiate level.
"Mrs. Davis' impact on me has been nothing short of amazing," Young said. "When I decided not to play football in college, she encouraged me to continue choir at the next level. Now, I'm getting paid to sing at MSU. This doesn't happen without her. I always joked with her that she made choir my first love."
SHS 11th grade choral student, Amelia Rodgers, echoed Young's experience.
"Mrs. Davis has thoroughly prepared us for choir outside of high school, and I don't know where I would be without her direction," Rodgers said. "She has made my love for singing grow, and she has given me so much more confidence in my voice."
Rodgers, who participates in SHS Theatre in addition to choral ensembles, says the direction, work ethic and passion Davis brings to the choral program is contagious, inspiring her students to achieve their best on the risers and beyond.
"Ms. Davis does an incredible job of engaging our choir and adding a fun and positive spirit to our class," Rodgers shared. "She brings such an amazing energy, and no matter how your day has gone, you will be smiling and laughing when you are in her class. She is very passionate about her work and develops a personal connection to each of her students."
Jordan Durham, SHS Choral teacher and Davis' colleague, says this personal connection and commitment to building skills that will serve every student regardless of their plans after high school is by design and intention.
"I cannot think of a more deserving educator for this honor," Durham said. "When we first began working together, Jennifer had a goal of creating a positive, equitable environment for any student on our campus to feel like the SHS Singers could be their home, and I can wholeheartedly say that, looking at our choir today, we have achieved that goal."
The sense of "family" created through extracurricular activities has been a chief goal with the SHS Choral Department under Davis' leadership. The district encourages involvement of students in multiple activities and clubs outside of academic pursuits as a way of keeping them engaged in school and motivating excellence in the classroom. This approach also creates a way for students to find their place in a larger student body, Davis says.
"I feel like it's important for our kids to have a sense of family," she shared, "and so if they have a group within Starkville High that they're a part of, I feel like that helps them be more proud of their school and also helps them want to be more active in the classroom as well."
Outside the classroom, Davis has been instrumental in creating opportunities for younger students through the SPARK ART Intersession Camp and the annual Starkville MSU Symphony Programs for Children. She mentors students majoring in Music Education at Mississippi State University each year, and she has also been a leader in the advancement of music education at the state and regional level through her volunteer roles in professional organizations.
"Earning the Music Citation Award from NFHS has been an incredible surprise and has kind of forced me to reflect on my years and my teaching," Davis said.
This reflection brought to the forefront the importance of giving back and pouring experience and mentorship into younger teachers as well as affirming the value of providing every student the opportunity to experience music education.
"It's been fun to go back and think about the kids I've been able to work with and the colleagues," Davis shared as she recalls students like Jordan Young.
She describes individual encounters when she was able to encourage students to step outside their comfort zone and build confidence and lifelong skills –– whether those skills carry them from the football field to the choir room to the college scholarship, like Young, or from the graduation podium to the job interview. And, Young sees the wide-ranging impact from his own experiences in choir.
"No one is more deserving of this award," Young said. "I always called her the best in the state, but this award solidifies her as the best in the nation, and it's about time!"
"Mississippi music educators do so many great things," Davis said. "Sometimes we don't give ourselves credit for what we do. So with this award, I'm excited to put the spotlight back on Mississippi and on Starkville and to recognize that we are doing things on a national level that are really wonderful –– every day."
