A Message from Michael Callahan
Executive Vice President/CEO
Electric Cooperatives of Mississippi
Public Education Forum Board Member
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Summer is over and it’s time to send our children back to school. But this year is no ordinary back-to-school time for any of us.
The COVID-19 virus has fundamentally changed the way we live and operate in our communities. As a result, precautions are necessary but that shouldn’t stop all of us from working together to make sure children have access to their education.
Kids need to be back in school. Depending on the school district, that might mean attending in-person classes, taking virtual classes online or a hybrid approach utilizing both methods. The point is, we have to insist that the children in our community have access to obtaining an education. A student’s education doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
Ensuring academic success is up to all of us. Everyone in our schools, parents and members of our community should work together to aid students in gaining the education they deserve.
I have three children. My two oldest are students at the University of Southern Mississippi. My youngest is a senior at Mississippi School for Math and Science. My wife and I both believe strongly in being part of the education system as volunteers. Years ago, I helped coach the junior high football team. My wife is very active in parent/teacher organizations.
Research correlates family engagement with student achievement. And it’s not just students who reap the benefits of parental and community volunteerism in schools.
Volunteers receive recognition and respect from students and staff as well as the opportunity to develop new skills, new opportunities for networking and new friendships.
The volunteer opportunities for parents and community are many – mentoring, tutoring, fundraising, coaching, career education, extracurricular and community service activities and assisting in school offices and classrooms.
There is some role for all of us in the education of our community’s students. You can make a difference. You matter as much as our students.
Remember the mission of the Public Education Forum – committed to excellence in Mississippi’s public schools. That commitment is realized, in part, by the volunteerism we all offer to the education of our children.
The payoff, as you know, is almost incalculable.
The social and economic benefits to both the students and the community are immense with decades of research showing that graduates of primary and secondary school are more likely to find gainful employment, have stable families and be active and productive citizens. Graduates are less likely to commit crime and are less likely to utilize welfare programs.
An education is also the gateway to pursuing one’s dreams. Hard work, determination and an education are the tools to obtain whatever the student sees as their version of the American dream. Maybe it’s college or maybe it’s a career but graduating from high school is the only way to get there.
Even though this year has become more challenging because of the coronavirus, our school districts are ready. Using safety guidelines and protocols from the Centers for Disease Control, the State Health Department and the individual districts, schools have worked tirelessly to be prepared for our students this year.
Mississippi teachers are the heroes of our education system. This year that description is even more apt. Our teachers are taking on their regular responsibilities as well as making sure to create a school atmosphere of safety, warmth and knowledge. I salute all Mississippi teachers for their hard work and perseverance. Our students, families and communities thank you for everything you do for us and for taking on such a crucial role in the education of our children.
Mississippi is a state known for its resilient people. We know how to roll up our sleeves during tough and challenging times. The education of our children is something we all need to strive to ensure for our community.
We are all in this together. We can make a difference. And the “we” includes each one of us. You can make a difference because you matter as much as our students.
This is a different back to school year but one we can all contribute to in an effort to make it a memorable one for the right reasons.
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The Public Education Forum of Mississippi Receives Verizon Grant to Support Mississippi Scholars &
Mississippi Scholars Tech Master Programs
The Public Education Forum of Mississippi recently received a $15,000 grant from Verizon to assist with the Mississippi Scholars and Mississippi Scholars Tech Master programs. The Mississippi Scholars and Tech Master programs positively impact the local community by encouraging and motivating students to be workforce and career ready. Mississippi Scholars is designed to recognize students to pursue and meet specific standards in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). Furthermore, the program targets the middle 50% of students who can do well but need the extra motivation. The Mississippi Scholars Tech Master curriculum is designed to recognize students to pursue and meet specific standards in a tech-prep course of study and reward them for hitting specific benchmarks. Students earn a medallion, certificate, and seals for the high school transcript and high school diploma for each program.
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Two Mississippi Science Teachers Earn
Presidential Awards for Excellence
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Two Mississippi science teachers are among the nation’s best as awardees of the 2020 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). The PAEMST Program is the nation’s highest honor for teachers of mathematics and science, including computer science.
A panel of distinguished mathematicians, scientists, and educators at the state level evaluate all submitted portfolios before making nominations to the national selection committee. National level winners are then selected after a rigorous review process based on, but not limited to, evidence of their instructional practices, professional development outreach and impact, and dedication to improving science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education within their community and state.
The Mississippi awardees are:
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Dr. Shani Bourn
7-12 Science Teacher
Hancock High School
Hancock County School District
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LeShundra Young
7-12 Science Teacher
Germantown High School
Madison County School District
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162 Meridian, Lauderdale County Students Receive
Mississippi Scholars/Tech Master Awards
From Debbie Mathis
Chief Operating Officer
East Mississippi Business Development Corporation (EMBDC)
There was an unusual ending to the Meridian/Lauderdale County MS Scholars/Tech Masters program this year, as COVID-19 prevented recognition of our seniors with the usual celebratory event. The seventh annual recognition event was scheduled for Wednesday, April 29th, at the Meridian Community College Multi-Purpose Center, but was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Arrangements were made with the local high schools and the certificates, medallions and scholarship checks were delivered to their respective campuses for distribution to the recipients prior to their altered graduation programs. Scholarships in the amount of $275 were awarded to each scholar/Tech Master for a total distribution of over $44,000.
Members of the EMBDC Education Committee solicited sponsorships from a diverse group of businesses and individuals. A full-page ad was placed in the Saturday, June 6th, 2020 edition of The Meridian Star thanking our sponsors and congratulating our scholars, which we felt was especially important this year since we were unable to congratulate them in person.
Total number of students recognized = 162 @ $250 each ($40,500)
- 130 MS Scholars
- 83 Tech Masters
- 60 students received both honors, but only received 1 check
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COVID-19 Impact on Philadelphia/Neshoba County
From Tim Moore
Executive Director, Chamber/Main Street
Philadelphia Community Development Partnership
COVID-19 has really impacted all of our small businesses, Philadelphia went three months with the majority of our town closed. During COVID-19, we have seen several businesses that have had to make tough decisions of laying off employees. We had one business that made the decision to close its doors. Also, during COVID-19, our office (Community Development Partnership) kept our businesses up to date with SBA information, CDC recommendations, and MDH recommendations.
Challenges
The challenge we are facing is safety for our students as they begin school. As we are beginning to open up, we are trying to make sure that we don't open up too fast that we have setbacks. We are cautiously optimistic that we are staying safe while getting back to business.
What we have learned?
We have learned that communication is definitely the key to helping the businesses find new and innovative ways to market products.
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Neshoba Central High School Student Jackson Mitchell
Jackson Mitchell, Mississippi Scholars Tech Master recipient, received a $1,000.00 scholarship. During his senior year, he was enrolled in Diesel Technology. He graduated from Neshoba Central High School in May, Diesel Technology School in June, and has taken enough courses to have an Associate’s Degree. The Tech Master program that allows students to excel has been great in Philadelphia, MS and our office has definitely supported these students - to have the first student graduate from not only high school but from college in the same year is amazing for our town.
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Congratulations to Winston County
Mississippi Scholars and Tech Master Graduates
From Mary Snow
Winston County Mississippi Scholars Coordinator
This year, $7000.00 was given to several 2020 Seniors from Winston County who earned the MS Scholars and Tech Master designations.
Kudos to the following businesses who made this possible:
- The Taylor Group
- Jewel Art, Mary and Johnny Snow
- Southern Conveyors & Metal Works
- Bankers Association
- Anonymous
- McCully & Associates
Thank you...thank you!
Congratulations to the following Mississippi Scholars Scholarship winners:
- Maggie Phillips - Grace Christian School - $2000.00
- Logan Hudson - Winston Academy - $1500.00
- Sebastian Gunnin - Noxapater Attendance Center - $1000.00
Congratulations to the following Mississippi Scholars Tech Master winners:
- Emma Rae Fulcher - Winston Academy - $1000.00
- Will White - Nanih Waiya Attendance Center - $750.00
- Naila Walker - Louisville High School - $750.00
“We are so very proud of each of these students. They and all who applied for the scholarships represent the very best in our community. We look forward to watching God's plan unfold in their lives,” said Mary Snow.
Congratulations from the Mississippi Scholars committee:
- Betty Byrd
- Joyce Nance
- B. J. Kelleghan
- Margaret Taylor
- Mary Snow
- Winston County Economic Development District Partnership
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Southwest Mississippi Community College Impact
on the Community and COVID-19
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What impact has COVID-19 had on you and your community? As most people were at the beginning of this pandemic, we were all sent home to work and were able to continue some of our workforce training (online) and closing out our 2019-2020 workforce projects. It was challenging, but we managed to make it through the final semester of the school year. As we made the return back to campus, we were informed that our college would receive 1.75 million dollars in CARES Act funding for reskilling our community in the hopes that these new skills would help the unemployed or furloughed employees find gainful employment, hopefully earning more than they did before the pandemic. With the CARES Act funding, we are able to offer almost all of our workforce training classes free of charge and are able to purchase some much needed equipment to aid in the training process.
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How has COVID-19 affected employment in your community? To be honest, I have had more calls from employers about job openings than we have ever had. One new company, Modern Mill located in the Fernwood Industrial Park is hiring 20-25 people ASAP and we held a Job Fair for them a few weeks ago. These new employees will go through a Basic Manufacturing training and Extruder training before employment begins. Other companies hiring are Gigantic Bag, International Paper, Summit Plastics, just to name a few.
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What resources or support has been helpful to you during this time? Definitely the support of our SMCC President, Dr. Steve Bishop, all the administrators at SMCC, our SMCC board and CMPDD who is facilitating the CARES Act funds. We have also been given much support from Wilkinson County who is excited to get training and Adult Education classes started at the Wilkinson County Industrial Complex which has been provided for SMCC to begin training in Structural Fitting, Truck Driving and free GED classes. Some of the key people helping us in Wilkinson County are the County Administrator, Mr. David Wilkerson, Wilkinson County Economic Development board member, Mr. Marlin Reid, SMCC Board of Trustee, Mrs. Treva Reid and a host of other concerned business people and citizens of that county. We started free Structural Fitting classes Monday, August 17 with 8 students.
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Identify some of the challenges your businesses and schools are facing as a result of COVID-19. Businesses are facing the challenge of people receiving more money on unemployment; therefore, not wanting to return to work, so businesses are having a hard time finding and keeping employees. I believe the schools are handling the crisis head on and making plans to continue business as best we can. Of course, it is new and unchartered territory every day.
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List some of the best practices and new opportunities you have learned. We have learned to rely heavily on the power of social media in getting the word out about the free training that is only available until December 18. We are learning to move as much workforce training as possible to an online format so that we will be able to continue training in case any unforeseen things happen in the future. We have also realized the importance of taking training to the community with the success of Wilkinson County. We would like to continue branching out to offer our training in other communities.
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Mississippi Scholars: Where Are They Going? |
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Chesne Scout Joyner
Kossuth High School
The Kossuth High School Mississippi Scholar graduate was awarded the Centennial Scholarship, Mississippi University for Women's most prestigious full scholarship. She will participate in the Ina E. Grody Honors College and will play on the golf team.
Chesne is the daughter of Paul and Denise Joyner. At Kossouth High School, she was involved in Cheer, Golf, FFA, FBLA, National Honor Society, Mississippi Scholars, Student Government, Spanish Club, Art Club, Math & Science Club, FCCLA, Modern Woodmen, and she is also a Class Officer. Outside of school, she is also a member of Blue Heat All Star Cheer, Coca Cola Junior Golf Tour, Corinth Crown Club, Corinth Junior Civitans, The Alliance Community Development Council, and the Mississippi Tobacco Free Coalition. She also served as junior member of the Community Development Council with Virginia-Boyd.
Chesne plans to major in pre-med biology and minor in Spanish. Following graduation in 2024, she plans to attend medical school.
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Awards and Achievements:
- Kossuth High School Cheer – Co-Captain, State Champions (12th Grade)
- Kossuth High School Homecoming Sweetheart – Modern Woodmen Club (12th Grade)
- Agri-Business Academic Award (11th Grade)
- FFA - State Championship in Conduct of a Chapter Meeting (9th Grade), State Championship in Farm Business Mgmt. (10th Grade), 1st Place at District and 1st Place at Federation in Parliamentary Procedure (12th Grade)
- Kossuth High School Varsity Girls’ Golf Team - MVP Award (10th, 11th Grade); District Individual Medalist (11th Grade), District Individual Medalist Runner-Up (10th Grade); District Champions (10th, 11th Grade); Red Bay Invitational All-Tournament Team (10th, 11th Grade)
Special Scholarships Awarded:
- MUW Centennial Scholarship (includes Study Abroad Scholarship)
- LPGA Goldie Bateson Scholarship
- Modern Woodmen Make An Impact Scholarship
- The Heisman High School Scholarship
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Brooks Anne Milligan
Corinth High School
The Corinth High School Mississippi Scholar will be attending the United States Naval Academy. She has excelled in both academics and athletics. She is interested in the study of oceanography.
Awards and Achievements
Her accomplishments include being Captain of the Corinth High School Tennis Team and leader and founder of the Boy Scouts of America All Female Venturing Crew for 2020. She has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills in her community which includes numerous public service projects.
"I teared up with relief and excitement," Brooks Anne said. "I called my family and there were happy tears all around!"
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Alvin Jones, Jr.
Heidelberg High School
Alvin is a 2020 Mississippi Scholar and STAR Student graduate from Heidelberg High School and was named a 2020 Gates Scholarship recipient. The scholarship is funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and administered by the Hispanic Scholarship Fund and is awarded to 300 student leaders per year.
Alvin is attending Alcorn State University and is majoring in agribusiness management. His parents are Alvin Jones, Sr. and Harlena Jones.
“Receiving this scholarship is one of the proudest moments I’ve had in my life thus far,” he said. “I am from a small town where motivation can be hard to find. I feel that receiving this scholarship will give my community hope and set an example for those that will come after me. I believe that a person’s true character is not displayed by what they do for themselves, but by what they do to help others. I thank God for this blessing.”
Awards and Achievements
He is a member of the National Society of High School Scholars, and has achieved perfect attendance for the past six years. Alvin served as vice president of the Student Council as a junior, is a member of the Beta Club, serves as head drum major for the marching band, and plays the trombone in the concert band.
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Lorne and Annalee Turner
Kossuth High School
Recent Kossuth High School (KHS) grads and twins, Lorne and Annalee Turner, have proven to be doubly talented.
While the son and daughter duo of parents Aundre and Allison Turner of Kossuth has been inseparable throughout their time at KHS, they have been one another’s biggest cheerleaders and most fierce academic competition both pushing to achieve the Mississippi Scholars designation.
Awards and Achievements
This competitive spirit in the area of academics paid off further with ACT scores of 29 for Annalee and 33 for Lorne, and with class rankings of 4th for her and 10th for him out of the 2020 class of 112 graduates.
Scholarships abounded for each of them. Annalee received over $143,000 in scholarships while Lorne’s scholarship offerings totaled over $214,000.
Together they were a winning pair, but graduation from KHS found them at the beginning of a fork in their academic paths and at a “Twindependance Day” so to speak. The brother and sister pair are headed in not only in separate directions but also to rival universities this fall to pursue their academic dreams. Annalee will be double majoring in Business at Mississippi State University where she has been accepted into the College of Arts and Sciences, MBA Venture Program, Day One Leadership Program, Griffis Learning Living Community, and Shackoul’s Honors College.
Lorne will be pursuing a double major in the areas of International Studies and Public Policy Leadership with a minor in German at the University of Mississippi, where he has been accepted into The Croft Institute, Lott Institute, and the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College.
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What is the Public Education Forum (PEF)?
The Public Education Forum is a non-profit, non-partisan education policy research group created by a broad cross-section of business, education and political leaders in Mississippi. Founded in 1989, the Forum is committed to being the leading independent force for public education in the state.
The mission of the Public Education Forum is "Committed to Excellence in Mississippi's Public Schools."
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Get program updates, education information, and resources on the STAR and Public Education Form Facebook Pages! |
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Benefits for Students of Mississippi Scholars and
Mississippi Scholars Tech Master Programs
- Medallion for each program
- Certificate for each program
- Preference given in the hiring process for Mississippi Scholars Tech Master (Ingalls Shipbuilding, Sanderson Farms, United Furniture)
- Designation on high school transcript and high school diploma for each program
- Give back through community service for each program
The ultimate goal is not only to produce a more tech-savvy young workforce but also to foster well-rounded, civic-minded individuals who are job or college ready. MEC encourages communities to partner with their local businesses to offer college scholarships and incentives for Tech Master graduates.
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Thank You for Supporting Mississippi Scholars
and Tech Master!
The Mississippi Scholars program started in 2003 in two counties and two pilot school districts. In 2004, the program recognized 24 graduates with the designation. In 2014, the Mississippi Scholars Tech Master program was created to recognize students in Career Technical Education (CTE) in seven pilot counties.
Combined, both programs have grown and recognized approximately 62,573 high school graduates with the designations compared to 56,000 in 2019. All students are recognized with a medallion, certificate and seals for the high school diploma and transcript for completing the Mississippi Scholars and/or Tech Master Course of Study at no cost to the schools or districts.
Below is an estimated seven-year summary to compare the growth of both programs.
Mississippi Scholars Graduates Seven-Year Summary:
- 2014 - 4,237
- 2015 - 4,325
- 2016 - 4,380
- 2017 - 5,122
- 2018 - 5,717
- 2019 – 4,843
- 2020 – 4,520
Mississippi Scholars Tech Master Graduates Seven-Year Summary:
- 2014 - 285
- 2015-784
- 2016-1,269
- 2017-1,132
- 2018 - 1,709
- 2019 – 1,718
- 2020 – 2,053
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Medallion that is given to
Mississippi Scholars Graduates.
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Medallion that is given to
Mississippi Scholars Tech Master Graduates.
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It pays to get students workforce ready! Here's how: With the new "Success is a Cycle, Are YOU In?" program from Mississippi Scholars, Mississippi Scholars Tech Master, and Get on the Grid! The powerpoint is available at mississippischolars.ms and on YouTube.
Get started today!
For more information on how to get involved with Mississippi Scholars or Tech Master, contact Vickie Powell, Senior Vice President of Foundations.
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Public Education Forum of Mississippi
Mississippi Scholars/Mississippi Scholars Tech Master
248 E. Capitol Street, Suite 940 - Jackson, Mississippi 39201
P.O. Box 23276 - Jackson, Mississippi 39225-3276
Phone: 601-969-0022 - 1-800-748-7626
Fax: 601-353-0247 - 1-888-717-2809
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Mississippi Economic Council - The State Chamber of Commerce |
Copyright © 2018 Mississippi Economic Council. All Rights Reserved. |
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