JACKSON'S 2,000TH

Jackson Public Schools are on the grow. The district welcomed its 2,000th elementary student recently. That compares to 1,700 students just three years ago.

This growing student base is a tribute not just to an excellent school system, but to the community at large. Jackson continues to enjoy robust commercial and residential growth.

Total enrollment in the Jackson system is 3,825 students, just 600 shy of the Cape Girardeau Public Schools.

Before the construction of Orchard Elementary in 1990, University of Missouri researchers studied the district and predicted the student base would reach 4,000 by the year 2,000. In 1994, the Jackson district has only 175 to go.

This accelerated growth has created some overcrowding. The district, including its outlying school buildings, is operating at capacity. A new middle school, which will house sixth- and seventh-graders, should be completed in 1995.

Overcrowding is an inconvenience, but it is only a temporary one. And growth is the kind of predicament many school districts and communities would gladly welcome.