Mississippi is still struggling to educate its children effectively. A study from Kids Count this year found that 79 percent of the state’s fourth graders are not proficient readers. But some of the solutions to the problem may be found at The University of Mississippi.
Susan McClelland, interim chair of teacher education, said she thinks poverty in Mississippi contributes to educational issues.
“I think one of the problems Mississippi faces is the issue with generational poverty, which leads to lower achievement in high school,” McClelland said.
Generational poverty is defined as poverty in a family that affects at least two generations, and according to the 2012 census, Mississippi has 7 percent more citizens living below the poverty line than the national average. The state is also nearly 9 percent behind the national average when it comes to people holding bachelor’s degrees.
McClelland, who has worked in state public schools as a teacher and has worked at the district level as well, said the drive for education starts at home with high expectations.
“Parents who don’t set those expectations, (their children are) not going to have the same opportunity to achieve higher education,” McClelland said.
When motivation from home is lacking, teachers can be the changing influence, according to McClelland.
“When you have a teacher that truly believes, I think that’s where teachers are life-changing,” she said.
Ole Miss places a significant number of teachers in Mississippi schools every year, each with an opportunity to change students’ lives. In addition, the university is working to make more money for higher education available to those Mississippi high school graduates who need it.
Laura Diven-Brown, director of financial aid at The University of Mississippi, said that while a lot of students are receiving merit-based scholarships, she’d like to see more need-based funding.
“We have a public service to offer, which is that we want to help educate the citizens of Mississippi,” Diven-Brown said.
She went on to point out that, traditionally, even state grant programs are merit-based.
One of the ways the university is helping students from families with adjusted gross incomes under $30,000 is the Ole Miss Opportunity scholarship. The scholarship provides a combination of federal, state, institutional and private scholarships to guarantee coverage of base tuition, standard room and board and a meal plan for the year.
This year’s scholarship amounted to $14,272 per person, with next year’s amount rising above $15,000.
Currently 354 students receive the Ole Miss Opportunity scholarship. The counties with the highest numbers of recipients are DeSoto with 34, Hinds and Lafayette with 20 each and Panola with 17.
“I think a lot of these students wouldn’t have the opportunity to come here without some of these funds,” Diven-Brown said. “I think in order to change these family dynamics, if you can get someone a college degree, then their children might have a better opportunity to get a college degree, too.”
To help these students from an earlier age, McClelland said it’s important to connect education with the community.
“I think the more we study about the needs of impoverished areas, the more effective we can be in educating those children,” McClelland said.
Patrice Guilfoyle, director of communications for the Mississippi Department of Education, said the effect poverty has on education can’t be solved by one entity.
“It will take a collaborative effort among various groups to address the impact of poverty on learning, including the MDE, school districts, communities, elected officials and parents,” Guilfoyle said.
