The mission of James B Edwards is to develop contributes to a multicultural society by providing a safe and nurturing learning environment, which maximizes individual potential through collaborative efforts of teachers, students, parents, and community members.

James B.Edwards Elementary School,located in Mt.Pleasant, South Carolina (near Charleston,SC), opened its doors in the fall of 1981 with only seven classrooms being utilized for grades 1 and 2. Construction was still underway when theschool opened. The overcrowded conditions at Whitesides Elementary resulted in the construction of James B. Edwards Elementary. Construction was completed in the spring of 1982, and the remainder of the school's population moved into its new building at that time.
The population of students at JBE increased from 325to 1050 students.   In 1990 part of our school was rezoned to Belle Hall Elementary.  Presently our school's population is near 600.

Francine Mitchell
Welcome to the James B. Edwards webpage! We have wonderful students, faculty, parents, and community supports. This is my second year as principal at James B. Edwards. My teaching career began in Michigan where I taught first grade. We relocated to Nassau, Bahamas where I taught for four years and also served as assistant principal. I have lived in Mt. Pleasant since the summer of 2000. Prior to coming to James B. Edwards, I taught at Charles Pinckney Elementary and was the assistant principal there for five years.
My husband and I are the proud parents of three children. My oldest daughter is attending our alma mater, The Ohio State University. Our other two children are students at Wando High School.
It is a pleasure working at James B. Edwards  with our excellent staff,fantastic students, and supportive parents. Please let me know if I can answer any questions you may have concerning James B. Edwards.
 The faculty is made up of over 40 certified teachers with the majority holding advanced degrees.

JAMES B.EDWARDS - AN AWARD WINNING SCHOOL!
James B. Edwards has received several recognition awards over the years.  They include:
• Palmetto's Finest Award
• Inviting School Award
• SC Exemplary Writing Award (1993-1996)
• Environmental School of the Year (1992-1993)
• SC Chapter of the National School Public Relations AssociationAward of Excellence for Web page",(1997 & 2000)
• Phoenix Award for excellence in Conservation and Environmental programs for students (1998-1999)
• SC State Board of Education Volunteer Award.  Using the theme, “Metamorphosis,” a grant was awarded for an ambitious plan (James B. Edwards Elementary Butterfly Project) that included the  study of butterflies, construction of a butterfly garden, publication of a butterfly brochure and a matching grant for Internet access networking.
• Second place, SCIway's K-12 Web Design Contest.  The "Carolina Shores Alphabet Quilt" website was  created by the entire second grade at James B. Edwards  The website shows the quilt, stories and illustrations.  (2001)
• Showcase Technology School" (2002 - 2006)
• South Carolina State education Oversight Committee recognizes James B. Edwards for accomplishments to close South Carolina’s achievement gap through the exemplary 2002 Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test (PACT) performance of historically underachieving students. (2003)
• Member,"The Society of 1824", a philanthropical organization of the Medical University of SC  (1992 - present)
• Centurion Award" at the Society of 1824 dinner for reaching the 100 - 500,000 dollar levelin donations from our children to the Medical University.   Masterminds is an annual project held in conjunction with the Medical University of South Carolina's Children's Hospital. This program serves as a fundraiser for the hospital and as math enhancement for the students.  (2004)
• Palmetto Gold Award Winner - The Palmetto Gold and Silver Awards Program was established by the Education Accountability Act of 1998. As an important part of the education accountability system in South Carolina, the Awards program is designed to recognize and reward schools that attain high levels of absolute performance and schools that attain high rates of improvement. (2002 -03,  2003 - 04,  2004 - 05,  2005 - 06)
•AYP (Annual Year Progress - 17 of 17 criteria) - met 2009 - 2010 !!