Miller-McCoy Academy for  

Leadership:

Dr. Tiffany Hardrick, Co-Founder and Middle School Principal, earned a B.S. in Mathematics at Fort Valley State University, an MBA in Business Administration and an Ed.S. in Community College Education at Arkansas State University, and a PhD in Education
al Leadership from Capella University. Upon completion of graduate degree, Tiffany became the Director of Distance Education at East Arkansas Community College before teaching mathematics at Treadwell High School in Memphis, Tennessee.

Keith Sanders, Co-Founder and High School Principal, earned a B.S. in Elementary Education and teacher certification at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Upon graduating, Keith spent over five years teaching at Cordova and Kirby Middle School in Memphis. He earned his Masters of Education in Educational Leadership from Christian Brothers University.

Inspired by the scholarship and pioneering spirit of Kelly Miller and Elijah McCoy, school founders Tiffany Hardrick, Ph.D. and Keith Sanders, at a New Leaders for New Schools national summit meeting, envisioned a place that embodied these same tenants of success and had the interest of urban males at the core of its operations.  Prior to opening Miller-McCoy Academy in New Orleans, Tiffany and Keith had experienced success as principals in Memphis.  Tiffany increased proficiency in mathematics by 13% and in language arts by 9% as the Principal of Lanier Middle School.   Keith increased proficiency in mathematics by 17% and language arts by 14% as the Principal of Riverview Middle School.  New Orleans and students at the newly formed Miller-McCoy School of Mathematics and Business have gained tried and true urban educational leaders. 

Prepared and supported by New Leaders for New Schools and New Schools for New Orleans, Tiffany and Keith gained the foundational knowledge for urban work that only an organization with a 7% selectivity rate and a proven record of significantly increasing student achievement can provide.  During their New Leaders for New Schools’ training program, Tiffany and Keith identified and studied critical instructional practices that had proved to be successful in other urban schools in maximizing student achievement.

As of 2009, one year after they launched Miller-McCoy, an all male school serving grades 6-12, with a mission to educate urban males and prepare them for college and life beyond, the hard work and due diligence of Tiffany and Keith and their staff has paid off in student achievement. The unyielding belief in urban males has translated into significant gains once again, further cementing the effectiveness of the Miller-McCoy model becoming one of six open-admission schools that are considered academically acceptable by the state of Louisiana.  During the 2008-2009 school year, Miller-McCoy saw dramatic gains in mathematics and language arts on the iLEAP, the Louisiana state assessment.  Sixth graders saw a 29-point percentage increase in math scores and a 34-point percentage increase in ELA from diagnostic results.  Ninth graders had a 21-point percentage increase in math scores and a 33-point percentage increase in ELA from diagnostic results.