The Senate Education Committee has passed a voucher bill that, if enacted, would be a big step toward privatizing public education in Mississippi. That bill could be brought up for a vote of the full Senate as early as tomorrow. Please call your senator as soon as possible. This legislation, SB 2695, is being promoted […]
Senate Ed Committee Passes Voucher Bill Read More »
Legislators had opportunities to provide real help for children with special needs, but instead, chose to focus on legislation that provides our most vulnerable children no assurance of special services at all. Yesterday was the deadline for bills to move forward out of legislative committees. Here is a recap of what legislators could have done,
What Legislators Didn’t Do for Children with Special Needs Read More »
All Mississippi students, including those with disabilities, should be provided a free and appropriate education to ensure that they have every opportunity to lead successful, independent lives. Recently, the education of children with special needs has received a good bit of well-deserved attention. Unfortunately, in most cases, only partial information, some of which has been
The Full Story on Mississippi’s Low Graduation Rate Among Children with Disabilities Read More »
Updated 4/5/2016 Governor Bryant signed Senate Bill 2438 into law, providing for the appointment, rather than election, of all school district superintendents, effective January 1, 2019. The Parents’ Campaign has advocated for this change since 2008. Updated 4/24/2012 There are about 60 school districts in Mississippi in which superintendents are elected. Throughout the US, with
Appointed Versus Elected Superintendents Read More »
MDE has released unofficial* school and district accountability ratings for the 2018-2019 school year. See your school and district ratings. Statewide, student achievement continues to rise, despite chronic underfunding of public schools and a crisis-level teacher shortage. More schools are rated A and B and fewer are rated D and F than in the year
2019 Accountability Ratings Read More »
I’ve often heard posed the question, “If charter schools are so great, why not make all public schools charter schools?” Here’s the answer… Traditional public schools are required to educate any child who lives within the district walks through the schoolhouse door. While charter schools are prohibited from discriminating based upon race, religion, etc., they can –
Why can’t all public schools be charter schools? Read More »
The most recent and extensive study of charter schools (National Charter School Study, CREDO, released June 2013) found that: 25 % of charters performed better in reading than their traditional public school counterparts; 29% of charters performed better in math 19% performed worse in reading than their traditional public school counterparts; 31% of charters performed
The Research on Charter Schools Read More »
A charter school is a school that is funded with public tax dollars and run by a private entity. Charter schools are usually freed from many of the regulations governing traditional public schools. The original intent of charter schools was to provide them freedom to operate, in order to encourage innovation, while holding the charters to
What is a Charter School? Read More »
At a December 12, 2012 joint meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees, members heard a description of a charter school bill proposed by Senate Education Chairman Gray Tollison. The bill, as presented, contains a number of provisions that are extremely worrisome. Similar provisions have contributed to a disproportionate number of charter school failures
House & Senate Ed Committee Members Presented Charter Bill Read More »
For profit language Include in “definitions”:Governing body – means the organized group of persons who will operate a public charter school by deciding matters, including, but not limited to, budgeting, curriculum and other operating procedures for the public charter school and by overseeing management and administration of a public charter school. Include in “creation of a charter school”
