Yale graduate returns to Jackson to teach at high school alma mater. Read his story here

Just over four years ago, Jeffrey Caliedo, a Murrah High School senior at the time, found out he was getting a full scholarship to Yale University. Now, Caliedo is once again walking Murrah's halls, this time as a teacher.

In 2020, Caliedo left his hometown of Jackson to set off for the Yale campus in Connecticut. In the four years since, Jackson remained at the forefront of Caliedo's mind. He knew even in high school one day he would return to the area as a teacher.

The journey back to Jackson

In December 2019, the Clarion Ledger spoke to Caliedo , 17 at the time, who had recently received the news that he was going to Yale on a full scholarship.

Caliedo was one of 1,000 finalists that year who earned scholarships through the QuestBridge program, a nonprofit aiding low-income, high-achieving students.

Graduating in May 2020 meant Caliedo was part of the first class of students to finish high school during the COVID-19 pandemic. Caliedo, valedictorian of his class, gave a live-streamed speech on graduation day to an empty room.

In June 2024, Caliedo, a newly graduated Yale alumnus, attended a Jackson Public Schools job fair. By July, Caliedo had gone through the application process and accepted a job at Murrah.

Caliedo now teaches English to Murrah freshmen students, six classes in total. The job fulfills Caliedo's goal of giving back to his beloved community.

Sitting in his desk with pictures of his high school and college careers decorating the classroom wall behind him, Caliedo told the Clarion Ledger how good — and also crazy — it feels to come full circle.

"Giving back and being a part of your community is a momentous occasion, and it has leaps and bounds of effects on people more than you know," Caliedo said.

Read the 2019 interview: 'It was something that felt like a dream': JPS student earns full ride to Yale

Student to teacher in four years

As a senior at Murrah, Caliedo credited JPS and his teachers for helping him earn the scholarship. In August 2024, Caliedo, 21, is now friends and colleagues with some of those same teachers.

The transition from student to teacher in the same school has been interesting to say the least, Caliedo said.

"I've been joking actually with a lot of my old teachers about how now I see the other side," Caliedo said. "A lot of the concerns that I had as a student are sort of fresh on my mind now, but from a teacher's perspective. So, I'm trying my best to address those as I can moving forward."

Some of those concerns revolve around things students typically dread such as standardized testing. As a student, Caliedo remembers hating the constant testing, but as a teacher he sees the importance of collecting the data.

Caliedo's younger sister is a junior at Murrah, which helps him keep up with students' perspectives. Caliedo drives his sister to and from school.

"That's as current as it gets," Caliedo said. "If I am curious about a sort of student's perspective, I can go directly to her."

Caliedo's experiences at Yale only cemented his desire to return home.

"Coming as a graduate from Jackson Public Schools myself, I knew that I would eventually come back to this district," Caliedo said.

As for teaching English, that decision came after Caliedo took AP literature AP language at Murrah.

"Reading the texts that we did of African American literature for AP lang and AP lit, that's what helped me understand that this is the focus that I want to do as well," Caliedo.

Caliedo graduated Yale in May 2024 with degrees in English and African American studies. His time in Connecticut helped Caliedo understand outside perspectives of Mississippi.

"I think some people really have this idea that we're just a lot more backwards or behind than we really are, which is a little jarring sometimes, because I know where I come from," Caliedo said. "I don't think about my community that way at all. People would be surprised that we weren't on dirt roads half the time. And, when I told them, 'No, I actually come from Jackson, which is the capital and is a city,' they were even more surprised."

Bringing Mississippi with him and dispelling misconceptions was a point of pride for Caliedo.

"(When you) come from a school in Mississippi — a public school — people would sort of equate that with your intelligence in a way that was really insulting sometimes for me," Caliedo said. "It was actually a motivational force for why I would want to work harder or prove these people wrong… to prove to myself that I was able to sort of bring a uniquely Southern Mississippi perspective to a predominantly white Northern school."

Shifting Mississippi education

Mississippi is just one state of many throughout the nation facing growing teacher shortages. Generation Z teachers like Caliedo are even less common in recent years. Caliedo said the shortages were in the back of mind when deciding to go into teaching.

"I've quickly learned the extent to which teaching and education extends beyond the classroom," Caliedo said. "I think if we want to address the shortage of teachers nationally and with Gen-Z specifically, we have to be ready to accommodate that often overlooked commitment and effort."

Another factor supporting Caliedo's decision to return to Jackson is the state of Mississippi's education. Historically, Mississippi has ranked last or close to last in that category. Caliedo hopes to shift the state's traditional approaches to teaching. That means more student-centric teaching and more real-world applications. Individualized learning is already growing in Mississippi schools, Caliedo said.

"Really focusing on students as whole individuals rather than just data sets is something that really speaks to me when it comes to teaching," Caliedo said. "It makes students more apt to learning, and, at the same time, those real-world connections sort of give students incentives to really materialize and understand what they are learning."

The best part of teaching so far, Caliedo said, has been the relationships he is forming with students.

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What's next?

The future is bright, but remains unwritten for Caliedo.

Eventually, Caliedo wants to continue his education to get a master's degree, and he's considering going for a doctorate to become an English professor.

Wherever his journey takes him, Caliedo will always credit his success to his Jackson roots.

"I don't like to lock myself into anything, but Mississippi is always home for me," Caliedo said. "Even if I am away, I'll never be too far."

Got a news tip? Contact Mary Boyte at mboyte@jackson.gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Yale graduate returns to Jackson to teach at high school alma mater. Read his story here