Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 7 - Education K-12 › Part 24 - Mississippi Public School Accountability Standards 2023 › THE HISTORY OF ACCREDITATION IN MISSISSIPPI

Current through June 25, 2024
Since the early 1900s, accreditation has sought to improve
				schools through the requirements of the accrediting agency. In Mississippi, the
				roots of school accreditation are found in the institutions of higher learning
				and state teachers' associations. It began in 1896 when the University of
				Mississippi published a program of studies for an approved high school. The
				schools that met the University's prescribed program of studies were officially
				listed as affiliated high schools, and the graduates of those schools were
				admitted to the University on the basis of their records (certificates),
				without examination. The list included white high schools in Arkansas,
				Mississippi, and Tennessee, and it was soon recognized as the approved list by
				the other colleges in the state.
In 1918, the effort to regulate the program of studies in
				secondary schools was strengthened in 1918 when the University requested the
				Mississippi Education Association to appoint a committee to classify the
				affiliated high schools. The Association appointed five (5) members to a High
				School Classifying Committee and required this group to establish standards of
				classification, to devise a system for grouping high schools, and to assign
				each high school to its appropriate group. The responsibilities and workload of
				this subsidiary committee of the Mississippi Education Association continued to
				grow, and the need for full-time statewide supervision of high schools soon
				became apparent. This need was met in 1919 when the position of state
				supervisor of secondary schools was created in the Mississippi Department of
				Education (MDE). In May of 1920, the High School Classifying Committee became
				the State High School Accrediting Commission, a standing committee of the
				Mississippi Education Association. The State Supervisor of Secondary Schools
				chaired the first Commission, whose membership consisted of representatives
				from two (2) high schools, the A and M College, Millsaps College, Mississippi
				College, the Mississippi State College for Women, and the University of
				Mississippi. This Commission required high schools to meet eleven (11) minimum
				standards before being accredited and defined an accredited high school as one
				that meets all requirements and, after inspection, has been approved by the
				Commission.
Accreditation of elementary schools was not addressed until
				1926. During that year, the Mississippi Education Association created the
				Elementary School Accrediting Commission to perform the same duties in
				regulating programs for elementary schools that the High School Accrediting
				Commission did for secondary schools. The Elementary Commission consisted of
				ten (10) members, with the newly appointed State Elementary School Supervisor
				serving as executive secretary of the group.
Operating as separate entities, these two (2) Commissions
				regulated the elementary and secondary programs in white schools until 1949
				when they were discontinued by the Mississippi Education Association, and the
				Mississippi Accrediting Commission was formed.
The first efforts to accredit colored schools began in 1935
				when the Mississippi Association for Teachers in Colored Schools organized the
				Negro Accrediting Commission. In 1947, the Mississippi Association for Teachers
				in Colored Schools became the Mississippi Teachers Association, and the
				Commission continued to operate under the renamed Teachers' association until
				1959. During that year, the name was changed to the State Accrediting
				Commission, and one (1) of the first official actions of this group was to
				adopt the existing rules and regulations of the Mississippi Accrediting
				Commission.
1960-1980
The sixties found these two (2) Commissions sharing
				responsibilities for accrediting black and white schools; and, in carrying out
				their duties, both groups made extensive use of officials in the SBE. The
				director of the Division of Instruction and his staff served as liaison
				personnel in distributing, collecting, and processing accreditation
				information. This practice of "separate but equal" accreditation terminated in
				the Summer of 1970 when the State Board of Education (SBE) assumed the
				responsibility, thus adding a legal dimension to a voluntary process designed
				to improve schools.
The accreditation law of 1970 gave the SBE the power and
				authority to prescribe the standards and procedures for the accreditation of
				schools and placed the responsibility for enforcement in the MDE. The law
				further mandated the SBE to appoint a Commission on School Accreditation (CSA),
				whose membership would consist of three (3) representatives from each of the
				five (5) Congressional districts and whose primary purpose would be to
				continually review the accreditation system. Contrary to the general perception
				of the public, the law did not make accreditation compulsory for any school.
				The process continued to be voluntary and open to any elementary, secondary, or
				special school in the state.
In the decade following the passage of the accreditation law of
				1970, the accreditation system continued to emphasize quantitative factors
				(specific resources and personnel) to accomplish as school improvement. The
				provision of adequate resources and personnel was assumed to be a sufficient
				indicator of the quality of the school program, but, as accreditation
				information was evaluated, it was found that the quality of the school program
				was not a direct correlate of the required quantitative factors. However, the
				system was successful in assuring the presence of adequate resources and in
				standardizing the organization and operation of school programs. These
				assurances were not enough to soothe a growing disgruntled public, which was
				constantly evaluating the products of accredited schools - its students.
1980-PRESENT
As the eighties approached, the state was set for reform in
				education and in school accreditation. The public wanted the emphasis on
				accrediting schools to shift from measures of quantity to those of quality. A
				series of significant legislative mandates passed during the past 20 years have
				been instrumental in not only creating the current public school accreditation
				model and accountability system, but also establishing Mississippi as a
				nationally recognized leader in the school improvement and accountability
				movement.
Governor William Winter recognized the need for education
				reform and initiated the accountability movement in Mississippi beginning with
				the Education Reform Act of 1982. This landmark legislation established a task
				force to study and propose a plan to establish guidelines and criteria for a
				permanent performance-based system of school accreditation for all public
				elementary and secondary schools. The legislation created and authorized the
				CSA to establish a system for assuring the quality of school programs in
				Mississippi. This new system, appropriately deemed performance-based school
				accreditation, was based upon measures that focus on the extent to which
				schools help students master defined content and objectives. The law shifted
				the emphasis in school accreditation to the outcomes of education, specifically
				those related to student achievement, and changed the accreditation process
				from voluntary to compulsory for all public elementary and secondary
				schools.
Legislation enacted in 1994 maintained the emphasis on student
				achievement and mandated that the SBE strengthen and expand the
				performance-based accreditation system. The 1994 legislation required the
				system to include: rigorous minimum standards levels above the minimum that
				demand High Performing performance and strict accountability measures for
				districts that fail to meet minimum standards.
During the 1999 Legislative Session, the legislature passed the
				Mississippi Student Achievement Improvement Act of 1999 requiring the SBE to
				create a state-of-the-art school evaluation and improvement system. The act
				required the SBE to implement a performance-based accreditation system for both
				individual schools and school districts. This legislation also required the SBE
				to set annual performance standards for each of the schools in the state and to
				measure the performance of each school against itself, using student growth and
				performance measures. Before new standards and tests were developed, hundreds
				of teachers helped to re-write the curriculum for mathematics and language
				arts.
Legislation passed in 2000 clarified requirements for
				establishing new accountability standards, making accreditation levels
				reflective of student performance at the school level rather than the district
				level. This 2000 legislation required individual school performance
				accreditation levels to be based on two (2) criteria:
(1) meeting an annual growth expectation in
			 student achievement and
(2) the
			 percentage of students scoring at the basic and proficient level. These were
			 identified as the Achievement Model and the Growth Model. This legislation also
			 established an intensive assistance program for schools not meeting the
			 accreditation standards. Support and training for teachers, administrators, and
			 school board members have been and will continue to be offered to local school
			 districts.
In this accountability system, public school accreditation was
				two-fold: Each school district was awarded an accreditation status based on
				compliance with process standards, and individual schools were assigned a
				school performance classification based on student achievement. District
				accreditation statuses were awarded under the new accreditation model in
				October 2001, and individual school performance classifications were assigned
				in September 2003. For the first time, all components of a school - students,
				teachers, principals, superintendents, and school board members - were held
				accountable for student learning.
In 2007, an Accountability Task Force began working on what a
				new accountability system should look like considering the new curriculum
				framework in Language Arts, Mathematics and corresponding assessments that were
				being implemented. Furthermore, the SBE had established three (3) Bold
				Goals:
(1) Reduce the dropout rate to
			 13% by 2013,
(2) Reach the national
			 average on national assessments by 2013, and
(3) Ensure that all students exit
			 3rd grade reading on grade level by 2020. Based on
			 this commitment, the Accountability Task Force and the CSA shaped an
			 accountability system aimed at moving Mississippi schools toward national
			 performance standards.
In the Fall of 2008, the Accountability Task Force began
				developing recommendations to present to the CSA for the revised accountability
				system. The CSA finished these recommendations and submitted for approval to
				the SBE. This accountability system received SBE approval on March 20,
				2009.
This accountability system focused on several key issues.
				First, a performance classification designation would be issued to both schools
				and districts. In addition to an achievement component and a growth component,
				a graduation/dropout component was included for high schools and school
				districts. Another key point for consideration in this accountability system
				was that the performance classification issued to schools and districts should
				differ from the previous labeling system so there could be no comparisons
				between the two (2) models. A final consideration was that the district
				performance classification should be based on the performance of all students
				in the district, treating the district as one (1) K-12 school.
The SBE set a very bold goal of reaching the national average
				on national assessments by 2013. When the SBE passed this accountability rating
				system on March 20, 2009, they took an important step toward reaching that goal
				and made a tremendous commitment to prepare Mississippi children to compete on
				a national and international level. This system placed Mississippi standards on
				par with standards in other states and allowed greater transparency in school,
				district, and state performance.
The Legislature enacted the
Children First Act of
				2009
to create a task force to study and report the status of
				underperforming schools and school districts, enhancement of accountability,
				and sanctions imposed on those schools and school districts. As a result of the
				task force study and recommendation, Governor Haley Barbour approved the
Children First Act (CFA)
on April 8, 2009.
During a session of public meetings and workshops held in the
				Summer of 2012 through the Fall of 2013 the MDE Accountability Task Force
				developed many recommendations. The recommendations of the Accountability Task
				Force are directly aligned with the vision and mission of the SBE. The SBE set
				forth the following vision:
* To create a world-class education system that gives students
				the knowledge and skills to be successful in college and the workforce and
				flourish as parents and citizens. To do so, the state must provide leadership
				through the development of policy and accountability systems so that all
				students are prepared to compete in the global community.
The following Accountability Task Force recommendations support
				the three (3) SBE goals:
* Goal 1: To mobilize resources and supplies to help ensure
				that all students exit third grade reading on grade level.
* Goal 2: To reduce the dropout rate to 13% by 2015.
* Goal 3: To have 60% of students scoring proficient and
				advanced on assessments of the Common Core State Standards by 2016 with
				incremental increases of 3% each year thereafter.
The authority for Mississippi's system of school accountability
				is addressed in Mississippi statutes and rules. The Mississippi Statewide
				Accountability System was based on Federal laws as required under the
				Elementary and Secondary Education Act Flexibility Waiver, Miss. Code Ann.
				§
								37-17-6, and the recommendations
				from the Accountability Task Force and Technical Review Committee which was
				formed in the Fall of 2013. A new Accountability Task Force is created annually
				to continue to review and make recommendations to revise the business rules of
				the Mississippi Statewide Accountability System.
In 2013, the Educational Principles and Practices Task Force
				was created through a mandate from the SBE to review and revise the
Mississippi Public School Accountability Standards
,
2012
. The task force members consisted of 9 (nine) District
				Superintendents, 1 (one) SBE member, and 1 (one) MDE Representative. Through
				the assistance of SEDL's Southeast Comprehensive Center (SECC), the final
				version of the updated Accountability Standards was approved by the SBE in
				April 2014 and became official July 1, 2014, for the 2014-2015 School
				Year.
In October of 2014 the SBE approved accreditation audit
				procedures that may lead to the declaration of a State of Emergency in
				accordance with Miss. Code Ann. §§
								37-17-6 (12)(a) and
				(b) and Accreditation Policy 5.0
				Accreditation Policy 5.0 gives the SBE and CSA the authority to call an on-site
				audit or investigation of a school district at any time. Accreditation Policy
				5.2 also authorizes public school district audits to be conducted in response
				to formal complaints being received by the MDE.
In December of 2014 the SBE unveiled a 5-year Strategic Plan
				for 2016-2020, which sets the roadmap for changing the trajectory of public
				education in Mississippi. The plan detailed five (5) goals to improve
				educational outcomes for every public school student in the state. The five (5)
				goals are:
1. All Students Proficient
			 and Showing Growth in All Assessed Areas
2. Every Student Graduates from High School
			 and is Ready for College and Career
3. Every Child Has Access to a High-Quality
			 Early Childhood Program
4. Every
			 School Has Effective Teachers and Leaders
5. Every Community Effectively Using a
			 World-Class Data System to Improve Student Outcomes
In August of 2016, the SBE updated the plan with a sixth goal.
				The sixth goal is:
6. Every School and
			 District is Rated "C" or Higher
The 5-year plan builds upon the Board's existing priorities of
				improving literacy, particularly among K-3 students, reducing the dropout rate
				and improving overall student proficiency. Embedded in the plan is the Board's
				full commitment to maintaining Mississippi's College- and Career-Readiness
				Standards.
In the Spring of 2017, a Task Force was established to review
				and update Process Standards 29, 30, and 31 as well as their related checklists
				and monitoring forms. Editorial changes were made to the Process Standards
				while the monitoring forms, checklist, and related documents were updated with
				a scheduled release date for the 2017/2018 school year.
In June of 2017 the SBE approved Mississippi's
Every
				Student Succeeds Act
(ESSA) plan, the federal law that reauthorizes
				and modifies the
Elementary Education and Secondary Education
				Act
(ESEA). The SBE adopted the ESEA plan to improve transparency,
				provide support for underperforming schools and districts, increase
				accountability for results, and focus professional training for better quality
				teachers and school leaders to positively impact public education in
				Mississippi.