Biloxi Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Paul A. Tisdale is advising faculty and staff to secure classrooms at the close of school today to prepare for as much as three to five inches of rain Sunday or Monday.

Tisdale has posted storm advisories on the district’s staff-only intranet and has advised principals to be prepared to activate the district’s Connect-Ed service to notify parents of any school schedule changes that may become necessary.

The school district plans to continue monitoring weather reports throughout the weekend.

Biloxi First plans to offer more than three dozen grants averaging about $500 each to Biloxi public schoolteachers this year for classroom projects.

“The average is $500,” says Ann Denison of Biloxi First, “but over the years we’ve awarded $3,600 for a project where a group of teachers who pooled their nominations to get a system for morning announcements, and we also bought some sound equipment for the auditorium where several teachers filed a joint application."

Biloxi First announced two new named grants – honoring longtime Harrison County Supervisor Bobby Eleuterius and longtime Biloxi community leaders Ruth and Skeet Hunt – during the Biloxi school board meeting this week.

Deadline for teachers to apply for 2008 named grants is Sept. 22.

To read more about Biloxi First, including an online application for teachers, click here.

To see photos of the Biloxi First presentation and other images from the Biloxi school board meeting this week, click here.

The Biloxi school board this week was presented a sampling of possible perspectives, furnishings and landscaping for the new courtyard that will be created as part of the new wing at Biloxi High School.

To look at the different perspectives being considered by the board, click here.

To see the overall look of new wing, click here.

Indians football: The Biloxi junior varsity and varsity football squads will compete in the Brandon jamboree this evening. Varsity team members, in a tradition that was resurrected last year, gathered for a game-day breakfast this morning at the high school. To see the complete schedule for 2008 and to read season-ticket information, click here.

Y’all vs. Us: The Biloxi Touchdown Club is now selling copies of “Y’all vs. Us,” a book about high school rivalries that was produced by the Mississippi High School Activities Association.

Back-to-school night: Biloxi High will host Back-to-School Night on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the cafeteria. Parents will be able to visit classrooms and meet teachers. Back-to-school nights have been at Jeff Davis and Gorenflo Elementary schools. You can learn more about each school by clicking on the school’s name on the left side of the school district web site.

City storm info: The City of Biloxi plans to relay storm information as necessary throughout the weekend. To sign up for the free e-mails, click here.