This news deserves its own post. The Mississippi State Legislature doubled its investment in state-funded pre-K to $16M. This is an historic step that ensures educational excellence for Mississippi kids. Pre-K has been a founding policy area for us. When we helped pass the original law in 2013, we hoped that within 10 years 25%…
Read More
With the passage of HB 852, Mississippi public school teachers are poised to receive a much-anticipated raise for the 2021-2022 school year. If signed by the Governor, HB 852 will adjust the minimum salary schedule for certified teachers to provide a raise of $1,110 for those in their first three years of teaching (bringing the…
Read More
Last year, the legislature proved its commitment to early education by ensuring per-pupil pre-K funding was enough to promote quality. The legislature raised the pre-K rate from $4,300 to $5,000 per child, a difference of $700 total and $350 in state funds. Because the pandemic interrupted the session, the legislature made this change directly in…
Read More
The 2021 legislative session has now come to a close. There are still certain bills that are awaiting the Governor’s signature. We will continue to update this post accordingly.
Read More
In partnership with Mississippi Teach Plus, we are inviting all Mississippi teachers and teacher advocates to join us THIS WEEK and NEXT (thanks to Mother Nature’s winter storms we are adding another week!) in showing support for at least a $3,000 pay increase for Mississippi teachers. We are calling on the legislature to make a…
Read More
During the most unique year in recent memory, the 2020 legislature proved its commitment to early education by ensuring per-pupil pre-K funding was enough to promote quality. Because the pandemic interrupted the session and sidelined many general bills, the 2020 legislature made the funding change directly in the budget bill. We were thrilled with this…
Read MoreThis op-ed originally ran in the Clarion-Ledger on February 5, 2021. It was written by Toren Ballard, our director of K-12 policy at Mississippi First. Both current and aspiring public school teachers in Mississippi are increasingly faced with a dilemma: pursue a meaningful career educating the next generation of Mississippians–or earn a paycheck capable of…
Read More
