Education

Lawmakers Move to Drop Common Core Standards

Lawmakers made moves Thursday to change Mississippi’s academic standards and method of statewide testing.

Special Ed Bills Duke It Out

Two bills aimed at improving the educational experience for students with special needs—from opposite ends of the political spectrum—are making the rounds this Legislative session.

Miss. House Passes Pair of Low-Impact Common Core Bills

The Mississippi House is moving forward with a pair of bills that may immunize its members against controversy over Common Core State Standards, but appear likely to have little effect over what's taught in classrooms.

Behind the Wall

The Mississippi Legislature voted last week to place an alternative to a citizen-driven initiative on the ballot this fall for the first time in Mississippi history under the state's initiative-process law.

Tate Reeves Proposes Changes to Tax Code, MAEP, Hospitals

Talk around the Capitol suggests that because it is an election year, nothing substantial will get done. But it's clear that the state leadership has a different idea.

Miss. Board of Education Pulling Out of 'Common Core' Testing Group

The state Board of Education voted Friday to withdraw from the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for Colleges and Careers on Jan. 25.

Miss. Plans $1.47 Million in Reading Grants for 34 Schools

With thousands of Mississippi third-graders at risk of flunking this year because they can't read at a basic level, State Board of Education members are likely to vote Friday to award $1.47 million in grants to help 34 public schools meet the reading requirements.

Dems: Education 'Booby Trap' on November Ballot

House Concurrent Resolution 9, which passed the House 64-57 Tuesday, passed the Senate 30-20 Wednesday—virtually a straight party-line vote in both chambers.

Alternative to School Funding Measure Going on Miss. Ballot

The Mississippi ballot this November will list two education funding measures.

Have Legislators Thwarted Chance to Bring Funds to Cash-Strapped Mississippi Schools?

Students in this rural district ride to school on aging buses, then sit in 20-year-old portable classrooms or decrepit buildings reading outdated textbooks. The district of 1,009 students has only two teaching assistants to help in classrooms, and Superintendent Billy Joe Ferguson makes an annual salary of $18,000.

Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Change'

The way Snowden and the Republican leadership are trying to ram the alternative amendment through, it's clear that they're opposed to adequate school funding, no matter what the constitution says or the people want.

Born To Fight

What would have been a calm first week of the legislative session turned into an explosive debate on the floor of the Mississippi House of Representatives the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 13.

Legislature Explodes in Fight Over Public Education

The first big legislative fight of the year exploded in the Mississippi House of Representatives this morning as Democrats attacked a Republican alternative to a statewide ballot initiative that, if it passes in November, would require adequate state public-education funding.

Obama Proposes Publicly Funded Community Colleges for All

President Barack Obama on Friday proposed to bring the cost of two years of community college "down to zero" for all Americans, an ambitious nationwide plan based on a popular Tennessee program signed into law by that state's Republican governor.

Miss. School Rating at Bottom, but Preschools Get Good Mark

Mississippi again ranks last in the nation in school performance according to an influential evaluation released Thursday, but the state ranks near the top in a new measure of how many students are participating in preschool programs.

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