The Mississippi Department of Education has received letters from several school districts referencing Mississippi State Board of Education Policy 48.7. This policy outlines the process for the state superintendent to determine if the reason for “an inordinately large number” of student absences is a result of “an epidemic, natural disaster, or any concerted activity discouraging school attendance.”
A school district must notify the state superintendent in writing by December 1 of the current school year of a decrease in attendance and the reason for the decrease in attendance. I know many of you have expressed concerns about the impact of student absences on future MAEP funding. Any information we collect will be shared with lawmakers as they make decisions about school funding in the upcoming 2021 legislative session.
Please email your letters to Dr. Carey Wright, state superintendent of education, and copy Dr. Felicia Gavin, chief financial officer.