Education

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Education

Two well-documented problems hinder the ability of Mississippi’s students to complete secondary education. First, the public education system fails to properly identify and accommodate special education needs; second, Mississippi’s education system is consistently under-funded. According to the 2000 Census, only 29 percent (371,323) of Mississippians are high school graduates.

To address the issue of special education, MCJ is implementing a three-part strategy to bring the state into full compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEIA.) This law guarantees a free appropriate public education for all students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment; it also provides for the identification and evaluation of students with disabilities. MCJ will work with advocates, organizers and families to obtain special education services for exceptional children, develop and publish information regarding the rights of children with disabilities and devise strategies to encourage schools to respond to exceptional students’ needs.

It is widely recognized that Mississippi’s state-level education funding is indicative of public perceptions and attitudes. The state education funding statute, the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP,) has only once received full annual funding since becoming law in 1994; public apathy to annual amendments delaying full funding have become the norm. Recently, however, momentum for full-funding has begun to take hold. MCJ is committed to initiating, participating and successfully concluding a public campaign to emphasize the necessity of quality public education for all.