Since 2021, the Holmes County Consolidated School District has improved from an F in Mississippi’s accountability rating system to a B. It’s just one of many districts that has achieved drastic advancements in recent years and helped propel Mississippi’s education system to record highs.
The Mississippi Department of Education will soon revamp its school accountability model after more than 65% of school districts in the state earned a B or higher on the state’s accountability rating system.
Mississippi law states that “standards for student, school and school district performance will be increased when student proficiency is at a seventy-five percent (75%) and/or when sixty-five percent (65%) of the schools and/or school districts are earning a grade of B or higher, in order to raise the standard on performance after targets are met… .”
The Mississippi State Board of Education set a goal in 2016 for all schools and districts to earn a rating of C or higher. At that time, 62% of schools and districts met that goal. Chief Accountability Officer Dr. Paula Vanderford told the Commission on School Accreditation that during the 2022-23 school year, 70.3% of the districts in the state are rated an A or B. Additionally, 93.9% of Mississippi school districts and 85.7% of schools are rated as a C or higher. MDE officials say it is the largest share of districts rated C or higher since this accountability model began in 2014
“We are currently, as we’ve discussed across the state for quite some time, now engaging stakeholders and looking at revisions to the business rules of the accountability system and incorporating additional components primarily around the readiness index,” Vanderford said in the Sept. 17 meeting.
Much of the accountability formula consists of statewide student assessment data. Vanderford told the Board that the Commission on School Accreditation are looking to expand the readiness component to include what she termed “enroll, employ, enlist.”
“We hope that we will be able to incorporate some work around the ASVAB and even JROTC program completions, etc. in the future,” she said.
The new scoring system would first be reflected in accountability ratings in the fall of 2026.
Executive Director, District and School Performance C. Alan Burrow recognized Ocean Springs School District as the state’s top district. The Petal, Long Beach, Clinton and Bay St. Louis/Waveland districts round out the top five. Beach Elementary in Pascagoula topped the list of elementary and middle schools while Poplarville High School in Poplarville ranked top of the secondary school list.
In total, 27 districts, 130 elementary schools and 20 secondary schools increased a letter grade this year.
Vanderford said there is a decrease in growth which tends to happen as proficiency rates improve. She also noted a decrease in acceleration which she attributed to changes in the model.
“It’s a little bit more challenging for those students at the higher end to meet growth,” Vanderford said. “And then we had a slight decrease in the acceleration component, and that was attributed to the change in the statute that we had that required that all of the measures and accountability for dual credit, IB, industry certification, Cambridge and Advanced Placement, all be weighted equally, rather than all but dual credit being doubled in the model.”
The data presented showed that of 148 school districts, only 2 earned a failing grade on the accountability model; 29 schools earned a F on the scale. Each of the four state-led districts also showed growth or improvement, including Holmes County Consolidated School District which improved from a C last year to a B this year. The school was rated an F when the state claimed control in 2021. Noxubee County School District maintained its C rating for the second consecutive year. The Humphreys County portion of the ASD improved from a D to a C this year and the Yazoo City portion improved to a C from an F in 2023.
“I am incredibly proud of our students, teachers and school leaders for their academic achievements in the 2023-24 school year,” State Superintendent of Education Dr. Lance Evans said in a press release. “This year’s school and district grades are a testament to the quality and success of Mississippi public schools. I am confident we will continue to build upon this success to make sure every Mississippi public school graduate is prepared for a successful future.”
Since 2013, Mississippi has improved its national Quality Counts ranking for K-12 academic achievement from F to C, moving from 50th to 35th. The rapid progress made in the state has garnered national attention.
MDE officials attribute the success to the implementation of higher academic standards, statewide support for teachers, and laws and policies designed to imporve literacy, early childhood education, and advanced learning options for secondary students.