In accordance with ESSA and in consultation with the U.S. Department of Education (ED), Mississippi will no longer use the apportioning method in calculating graduation rates. In years past, the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) has apportioned out students based on their monthly enrollment during the four-year cohort window. This year, the MDE will assign students to the school/district of longest enrollment during the four-year window. In the case of equal enrollment in more than one school/district, the student will be assigned to the school/district of last enrollment. This change will bring Mississippi in alignment with ESSA language and with the practice of other states, as ED continues to standardize graduation rate measures nationwide.
MDE has communicated this anticipated change during the past two years as the state has prepared for ESSA, and the 2013-2014 cohort will be the first cohort to be utilized in Accountability measures under ESSA. There will be no effect on statewide graduation rates and very minor effects at the district/school level with the change in calculation. Graduation rates and dropout rates for this cohort will be presented to the SBE in February 2018 and used in the 2018 Accountability System.