Category: Future of Schools

Editor’s Note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate Mississippi’s population of students who identify as English Language Learners (ELLs) has grown in recent decades, reflecting a nationwide trend. During the 2000-2001 school year, ELL students made…

Editor’s Note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate As most districts welcomed students back to school in August, districts on a balanced academic calendar were already going into their second month of the school year. The…

Editor’s Note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate Mississippi’s high school graduation rate has steadily risen over the past five years, which would typically be a cause for celebration. But in this case, the rise in…

Editor’s Note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate In early 2021, the Mississippi Department of Education released its first-ever social-emotional learning (SEL) standards. The release of these standards was a positive step towards increasing attention on…

Editor’s Note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate Mississippi experienced a steep decline in public school enrollment during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many schools have yet to experience the full consequences. Since enrollment is directly tied…

By Toren Ballard I Director of K-12 Policy This fall, Mississippians received two widely divergent narratives about the state of public education post-COVID: On September 29, the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) released school and district accountability grades for the 2021-2022 school year, showing unprecedented improvement: 87% of districts were rated “C” or higher, up…

Editor’s Note: This blog post is a part of a new ongoing series of posts dedicated to K-12 education policy in Mississippi. *** By Grace Breazeale I K-12 Policy Associate As school districts take steps to recover from pandemic learning loss, they should not underestimate how rising rates of chronic absenteeism may hinder this progress. During…