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Teach For America and the Retention Problem
Schools across Mississippi struggle to keep teachers, which educators and experts say is due in part to low salaries and an overall inability to keep Mississippi's most promising young adults in the state.
Opponents of Charter Schools Ready for Quick Judgment in Lawsuit
In a small room in the Jackson office of the Southern Poverty Law Center, challengers to the state's funding portion of the charter-school law spoke out about the negative impact they believe the schools have on their children's lives.
Youth Judge Fights School-to-Prison Pipeline
Just a few years ago, sagging pants and disrupting instruction at school were almost certain to land a kid in front of Jackson County Youth Court Judge Sharon Sigalas. At that time, Sigalas says the school districts under her jurisdiction were in a pattern of sending kids to her for what she calls "minor violations."
Raining Paper Cats and Dogs
Inside Cassandre Connolly's Siwell Middle School art class on a recent Thursday morning, it was raining paper cats and dogs.
Jackson Elementary School Ranked Best In State
SchoolDigger.com, a popular school-ranking website, has rated Davis Magnet International Baccalaureate Elementary School the best elementary school in the state of Mississippi.
Public-School Rankings Present Concerns for Districts, Families
Even though Davis Magnet International Baccalaureate Elementary School in the Jackson Public School District is ranked an A by the Mississippi Department of Education—and the best elementary school in the state by SchoolDigger.com— principal Dr. Kathleen Grigsby says it is too early to celebrate.
State Fund Mismanagement Threatens Afterschool Programs Like Shoestring
A month after the Mississippi Department of Education announced it would slash 21st Century Community Learning Center grants, kids at Operation Shoestring, a nonprofit afterschool program in Jackson, still make time to learn and play.
Minding the Equity Gap: How Majority-Black Clinton District Earns Its ‘A’ Rating
The October 2016 release of Mississippi's accountability ratings for each public-school district reveals wide racial disparities.
Experts: Silencing Teachers 'Probably Legal,' But May 'Chill' Rights
Retired Ridgeland High School band director Keith Moffat says the Mississippi Legislature is part of the reason he no longer works in the public-school system.
Durant Superintendent Not Allowed to Speak on His District’s Consolidation
Thanks to SB 2494, authored by Senate Education Committee Chairman Sen. Gray Tollison, R-Oxford, Dr. Robinson's school district is up for involuntary consolidation with the neighboring Holmes County School District.
Education Bill Roundup
The 2016 Mississippi Legislature is steamrolling ahead with bills affecting public education. Here are a few for consideration.
JPS Elementary Student Hosts Reading for World Read Aloud Day
Eight-year-old North Jackson Elementary School 3rd grader Josiah Calvert already has plans to attend the University of Mississippi.
Stayin’ Alive: House, Senate Education Bills to Watch
The webpages for Senate and House Education Committee legislation resemble a text-heavy graveyard of the bodies of bills snuffed out prematurely.
Donald Trump's Education Platform: Stop Common Core, Abolish U.S. Department of Education
This evening, Madison Central High School plans to open its doors to a rally for presidential candidate Donald Trump, which might be as much educational involvement the public has seen from Trump's campaign since it began.
Helmick: ‘Private’ Charter Schools Drain Public Schools
When the Jackson Free Press sat down again with Joyce Helmick, president of the Mississippi Association of Educators, she repeatedly called charter schools "private charter schools."
Amendment Hijacks Parent Involvement Bill: 'Not About Teachers'
Rep. Gregory Holloway, Sr., D-Hazlehurst, helped mold the Parent Involvement and Accountability Act, which would "grade" parents in C, D or F districts on their involvement in their children's education.
Doing Juvenile Detention Right ... Finally
After a long fight against oppressive juvenile-justice policies and negligent practices in Mississippi, 2012 was a watershed year for juvenile rights in Mississippi.
Clergy, Bomgar Call for End to Mass Incarceration, Private-Prison Reform
Rep. Joel Bomgar, R-Madison, stood with an interdenominational Christian group of clergy Wednesday at the Capitol, saying that mass incarceration serves none of his beliefs as either a Christian or as a Republican.
Chief Phyliss Anderson
President Barack Obama has appointed Phyliss J. Anderson, the first-ever female tribal chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, to serve on the National Advisory Council on Indian Education.
'Save Our Children Act' Amendments Appear in More Bills
Sections of Rep. Omeria Scott's failed Mississippi Save Our Children Act have ended up into another education bill as an amendment weeks after it was added to the already-controversial Parent Involvement and Accountability Act.