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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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By Rachel Canter I Executive Director Mississippi First has published a public memo to the State Board of Education to support the selection of a new state superintendent. This choice will not only be the most important decision the State Board makes this year; it will also be the most important decision they will make…
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Editor’s Note: This is a personal reflection by Rachel Canter in response to the tragedy in Uvalde. It reflects her thoughts and feelings alone. It was originally published in an email. *** By Rachel Canter I Executive Director There are no sacred spaces left in America. This is the thought I keep coming back to…
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