CANTON, Miss. (WJTV) – The Canton community is shaken up after a middle school teacher was killed during a head-on collision by a suspected drunk driver.

Gluckstadt police said the wrong-way crash happened on Saturday, June 22 on Interstate 55 North near the Gluckstadt exit. Police said Tyra Small-Jackson, a teacher at Nichols Middle School, was extricated from her car and died from her injuries.

Police identified the suspected drunk driver as Jordan Leah Sullivan, of Louisville. She was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Police said Sullivan is being charged with aggravated DUI at this time, pending toxicology results.

As of Monday, June 24, Sullivan remains in the hospital. Gluckstadt police said Sullivan had a prior DUI arrest.

Yotunga Grant, assistant principal at Nichols Middle School, said Small-Jackson worked at the middle school for more than 10 years. She was selected as the school’s 2023-2024 Teacher of the Year and received numerous awards during her tenure in the district.

“She made sure that I didn’t have to want for anything here in Nichols Middle School, so that was just her. That was her as a person. That was her as an educator. That was her, she was part lovable person alone, and this is how she lived her life. It’s just how she lived her life. Her work speaks for her. Her every, every accolade that she has received, she deserves whole heartedly,” said Grant.

“Her beautiful spirit will forever live on in the memory and the hearts and minds of the countless lives she touched. We are thankful for Mrs. Small-Jackson’s years of distinguished service to the Canton Public School District. She dedicated her life to making sure her students felt loved and prepared for the next level. She will be truly missed,” officials with the Canton Public School District said.