Opportunities for Preschool in Mississippi Mississippi Department of Education

Mississippi’s application proposes tripling the number of children in the state’s high-quality preK 

program; improving the quality of preK educators through training and professional development; 

increasing the number of highly qualified preK educators and ensuring comparable pay; developing 

greater state capacity for implementing program standards; implementing a comprehensive early learning 

assessment system; providing families of eligible children access to services essential to engagement; and 

strengthening the coordination programs serving children birth through third grade. MDE’s objectives are 

as follows: Objective 1: Revise the current teacher requirements. Activities: (1) Convene Early 

Childhood Education Task Force to establish a list of essential knowledge and skills, (2) Submit

recommendations to Licensure Commission for approval and (3) Upon approval, provide guidance to all

teacher preparation programs. Objective 2: Develop and adopt a process for approving coursework 

based on standards aligned with the approved list of knowledge and skills. Activities: (1) Utilize the 

task force-created list of essential knowledge and skills, (2) Develop and adopt an official coursework 

review process. (3) Develop a list of pre-approved courses at each Mississippi college or university.

Objective 3: Develop and adopt a process for approving training programs. Activities (1) Adopt a 

process for approving training programs, (2) Approve training programs that meet the standards, (3) Work 

with the Early Years Network to approve the PreK Credential, (4) Create a Teacher Summer Institute

Objective 4: Examine whether to promote, amend, or eliminate any preK license as well as whether 

and how to encourage one or more universities to offer the B-K program. Activities: (1) Conduct a 

needs assessment, (2) Convene Task Force to analyze results and make a recommendation, (3) Partner 

with higher education officials to determine the feasibility degree programs that support license. 

Objective 5: Develop and implement a professional development plan for collaboratives. Activities:

(1) Collaborate with the Early Years Network to determine professional development needs, (2) Create a 

professional development plan for preK teachers, (3) Hire regional coaches. Objective 6: Increase the 

number of teachers becoming a “master teacher” and encourage collaboratives to use them as part 

of professional learning communities. Activities: (1) Determine process for tracking teachers meeting 

the master teacher qualification, (2) Ensure each collaborative has at least 1 master teacher, (3) Support 

collaboratives in utilizing master teachers for professional development, (4) Encourage master teachers to 

achieve National Board Certification. Objective 7: Examine the appropriateness of using the Praxis II 

alone to earn a preK license or supplemental endorsement. Activities: (1) Convene Task Force to 

examine issues pertaining to early childhood education degrees, (2) Submit recommendations to 

Licensure Commission, (3) Implement a transition plan. Objective 8: Increase the pool of highly 

qualified preK personnel. Activities: (1) Provide support to the (T.E.A.C.H.) program, (2) Provide 

scholarships to the Early Years Network’s PreK Credential, (3) Provide stipends to the Summer Training 
Institute, (4) Publicize supports. Objective 9: Ensure comparable pay for preK educators in grantfunded classrooms. Activities: (1) Provide salary subsidies for grant-funded programs. Objective 10: 

Revise the Guidelines to meet all the requirements of the Preschool Development Grant and 

implement a transition plan. Activities: (1) Review and revise the Guidelines to align with grant, (2)

Establish a Committee of Practitioners to review proposed Guidelines, (3) Adopt the revised Guidelines. 

Objective 11: Staff an Office of Early Childhood Education at MDE. Activities: (1) Hire staff.

Objective 12: Adopt and implement a CELAS. Activities (1) Procure tools to fulfill the remaining 

components of a CELAS, (2) Provide the tools for no cost to grant-funded and state-funded 

collaboratives, (3) Provide training and technical assistance. Objective 13: With MDE and Early Years 

Network support, collaboratives will leverage existing services and resources to provide parents the

five essentials of family engagement. Activities: (1) Complete a needs assessment of local community 

resources, (2) Require collaboratives to hire a Director of the Collaborative, (3) Identify and leverage 

local partners who can provide the five essentials family engagement, (4) Establish a parent advisory 

committee. Objective 14: Develop a stronger partnership between MDE’s Office of Early Childhood 

Education, MDHS’s DECCD, MDHS’s Foundations for Families Unit, and Excel by 5. Activities:

(1) Establish meetings, (2) Establish clear, mutually agreeable goals for coordination of tasks, (3)

Coordinate program services, (4) Use the results of the needs assessment to coordinate services. MDE 

expects all state- and grant-funded preK programs to demonstrate the following outcomes: (1) By 2018-

2019, 75% of children in the state preK program will enter Kindergarten ready to succeed in school, (2)

50% of students in a selected high-need community will have access to high-quality preK programs, (3)

PreK programs will receive support to increase classroom quality, (4) High-quality preK programs will 

increase their collaboration with other early childhood education programs and related services. MDE 

plans to coordinate with the following organizations: Center for the Advancement of Youth; Early Years 

Network, Mississippi State Extension; MS Department of Human Services; MS Head Start Association, 

MS Head Start Collaboration Office; MS State Department of Health; National Strategic Planning & 

Analysis Research Center, MDE Offices of Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education (K-5), 

Federal Programs, Professional Development, Special Education; and State Early Childhood Advisory 

Council. The following is a list of school districts/nonprofit subgrantees: Ocean Springs, Okolona, Moss 

Point, Agape/Canton, Hazlehurst City, South Pike, Leake, Lumberton, Jackson Public, Meridian, 

Clarksdale, North Panola, Yazoo City, Greenwood, Forest Municipal, Picayune, Nettleton, Poplarville 

Separate, South Panola, Columbia, Vicksburg- Warren, Starkville/Oktibbeha, Humphreys, Holmes, Perry,

Quitman Co., Prek4ward/Gulfport/Harrison, Claiborne, Marshall, Sunflower, Wayne, Simpson, Quitman

Municipal, Greene, Cleveland, Hancock, Itawamba, Pontotoc Co., and Lamar.