jharris@kippsa.org
Principal
Phone: 210-392-5599

Joel Harris is the founding School Director of KIPP University Prep.  In 2009 he completed a one year Fisher Fellowship, a program that prepares individuals to found and lead new KIPP schools. Before coming to KIPP, Mr. Harris was a Graduation Coach at Kingsbury High School (KHS) in Memphis, TN. Under his guidance, KHS reported a 29% gain in Math scores on last year's state assessment test. In 2007, Harris was selected as the first principal of a summer school institute developed in partnership with the Mississippi Teacher Corps and the University of Mississippi. Mr. Harris has taught a variety of subjects at the middle and high school levels in northern Mississippi and Memphis, TN. In May of 2006, Joel received a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Mississippi. He earned his B.A. from Rhodes College (Memphis) in German and History in May of 2003 and completed a Fulbright Teacher's Assistant grant to Germany in 2003-2004.