NATCHEZ — The upcoming ninth graders at Natchez High School will stand out in their first year in high school, not just for their academic or athletic accolades, but for the new school uniforms they will be donning.

Ninth graders will wear gold polo shirts to help them establish their own identity as students of Natchez High’s separate ninth-grade academy, said Sekufele Lewanika, principal of the ninth-grade academy.

“We’re separating them to try to help give them their own identity here at the high school,” Lewanika said. “We’re giving them a different start to help get them going in the right direction.”

NHS Principal Cleveland Moore said the choice for gold shirts was a no-brainer, since it aligns with the blue and gold Natchez High colors. The ninth graders’ gold shirts, he said, will help school faculty identify the students on campus.

“We’ll be able to immediately recognize that they’re new and help familiarize them with the school and provide them with a nurturing environment,” Moore said.

Jared Wiley, who will be in the ninth grade next year, said he likes the new gold shirts for the ninth grade academy. He said he thinks being separated from the older students at NHS will help the ninth graders focus on their studies.

“I think it will help us stay out of trouble,” he said.

The ninth-grade academy is part of the Natchez-Adams School District’s decision earlier this year to reorganize the district’s schools.

The purpose of the ninth-grade academy, according to a pro and con sheet the administration designed for the board to review, is to provide a successful transition to high school, decrease drop-out rates and create an opportunity for “belonging.”

The establishment of the ninth-grade academy, Moore said, is based on research that says a successful ninth grade year leads to a higher graduation rate.

“Research shows that if you have a successful ninth-grade year, you have a much, much higher chance of graduating,” Moore said.

The high school will be using the education teaming concept to help guide students, Moore said. The school will have two ninth-grade teams of core class teachers to help the students.

“The teams of teachers can better assist and better serve the student population in the ninth grade,” Moore said.

Upcoming ninth-grader Taylor Fry said she likes the new gold shirts, but she said she is not too excited about being separated from her upperclassmen friends next year.

“I think it’s going to be a good thing, but I don’t like that we’re going to be separated from the other grades,” Fry said. “I have friends in other grades, and I would like to talk to them while I’m at school. I don’t think I’m really going to be able to see them or take upper classes with them.”

Fry said she has not decided whether being separated from the older students will help or hurt the ninth grade.

“It may help us being separated to get a feel of the school by ourselves, but it may not help us,” she said. “I’m just going to wait and see.”