Mississippi is one step closer to passing sweeping education reforms that could, for the first time, bring state-funded pre-k to the state. On Wednesday, the House and Senate passed legislation that would provide $3 million to partially fund voluntary preschool programs for 4-year-olds beginning in the 2014-15 school year.
Children at a child care center in Mississippi. (Photo by Kim Palmer)
Advocates of early education in the state have been surprised by the state’s introduction, and subsequent passage, of pre-k legislation. Mississippi is the only state in the South—and one of 11 in the nation—that does not currently fund pre-k.
In December, Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant released his budget proposal for the year, focusing heavily on education but leaving out funding for pre-k, except for a promising private program. Bryant has previously stated that he believes parents are responsible for educating their young children.
While the pre-k bill sailed through the House, the Senate debated the early education legislation, questioning the pre-k bill’s author, Sen. Brice Wiggins, about the effects the legislation would have on church programs and current pre-k teachers. The bill would raise the required qualifications of pre-k teachers and assistants, mandating that they have at least a bachelor’s degree or an associate degree, respectively.
During the debate, Wiggins reminded lawmakers that Mississippi is behind most states in passing preschool legislation, and encouraged skeptics to consider the benefits of pre-k. “ We don’t want [kids] to just be babysat,” Wiggins said, referring to the fact that about 85 percent of children in the state currently attend some form of day care or preschool in the state. “The idea is that if they’re going to be there, that we educate them,” he added.
Passage of the bill could have important implications for children in Mississippi. The state has a large and mostly unregulated system of day care and pre-k programs, and there is no guarantee of quality.
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The Hechinger Report has been taking an extended look at education in the state, with a focus on pre-k.
Research has shown that the first five years in a child’s life are the most critical for learning. Often, children who begin school unprepared and behind their peers never catch up. In Mississippi, one out of every 14 kindergarteners and one out of every 15 first-graders were deemed unprepared for the next grade-level, according to the Southern Education Foundation, costing the state over $2 billion between 1998 and 2008 in remediation costs.
The pre-k bill would offer matching funds during the first phase of the program to approved programs that can raise half of their program costs. To receive funding, school districts or licensed childcare and Head Start centers must meet a variety of requirements beyond those required to get licensed. Programs must adopt a research-based curriculum, serve at least one meal a day that meets national dietary requirements, and hire qualified teachers.
Some advocates worry that the bill will not actually serve the state’s neediest children. Unlike legislation in every other Southern state but Alabama, the bill does not prioritize giving seats to low-income children or those with limited English proficiency. And the process to get licensed can be challenging for daycare centers in rural areas that may struggle to raise half the funds, or that lack the capacity to handle the paperwork and demands of licensing.
“It’s going to benefit the communities that have the resources, and leave behind the communities that don’t have the resources,” Carol Burnett, founder and director of Mississippi’s Low-Income Child Care Initiative, told the Southern Education Desk.
The Senate is expected to vote today on a House-Senate agreement of a charter school bill, which passed the House on Tuesday. The bill would allow charter schools to open in low-performing districts, and give school boards in high-performing districts veto power over the schools. Some have expressed concern that, like the proposed pre-k legislation, this bill will not actually help the students most in need. They wouldn’t be allowed to cross district lines to attend charter schools, which could make it hard for schools to attract the numbers and types of students required by the bill.
Legislators are also expected to vote today on other bills backed by Gov. Bryant, including a teacher merit pay pilot program and a literacy bill that would keep most third-graders from advancing to fourth grade if they’re not reading at grade level.
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