{"id":3931,"date":"2026-03-19T10:09:40","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T16:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/?p=3931"},"modified":"2026-03-19T10:09:40","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T16:09:40","slug":"state-board-of-education-approves-new-mississippi-strategic-plan-for-pre-k-through-grade-12-education","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/2026\/03\/19\/state-board-of-education-approves-new-mississippi-strategic-plan-for-pre-k-through-grade-12-education\/","title":{"rendered":"State Board of Education approves new Mississippi Strategic Plan for Pre-K through Grade 12 Education"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEWS RELEASE\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

For Immediate Release: March 19, 2026<\/p>\n

State Board of Education approves new <\/strong>Mississippi Strategic Plan for Pre-K through Grade 12 Education<\/strong><\/p>\n

JACKSON, Miss. \u2013 The Mississippi State Board of Education (SBE) today approved the Mississippi Strategic Plan for Pre-K through Grade 12 Education<\/u><\/em><\/a>, which updates the current strategic plan to incorporate new priorities for education while ensuring the state builds upon its historic academic achievements.<\/p>\n

The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) developed this Strategic Plan after gathering broad stakeholder input including a survey and focus group interviews with approximately 100 Mississippians in fall 2025. Participants represented a cross-section of the education community and included students, teachers, principals, superintendents, legislative representatives, business leaders, community college and university representatives, and education stakeholder group leaders.<\/p>\n

The updated plan reflects Mississippi\u2019s ongoing commitment to building a world-class education system that equips every student with the knowledge and skills to succeed in college, careers, and life in Mississippi and the world. Goals 1-5 in the updated plan reflect the same priorities as the original strategic plan, and a new goal has been added focused on whole child support.<\/p>\n

Updated Strategic Plan Goals<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Every child has access to a high-quality early childhood program and is prepared for kindergarten<\/li>\n
  2. Every student develops strong literacy and mathematics skills in all grades<\/li>\n
  3. Every student graduates prepared for success in college, career, or military service<\/li>\n
  4. Every school and district\u00a0demonstrates\u00a0strong academic outcomes and continuous improvement<\/li>\n
  5. Every school is fully staffed with qualified, effective\u00a0teachers and leaders<\/li>\n
  6. All students attend schools and districts with safe, engaging, and supportive environments<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Additional actions in the updated plan include promoting consistent school attendance, integrating technology and career learning from pre-K through grade 12, developing school and district leaders, and providing a system of support for low-performing schools and districts.<\/p>\n

    The updated Mississippi Strategic Plan for Pre-K through Grade 12 Education<\/u><\/em><\/a> will officially take effect on July 1, 2026, though MDE will start working immediately on creating and implementing initiatives to advance the goals of the updated plan.<\/p>\n

    \u201cMississippi students have earned national recognition for their gains over the past decade, proving that high expectations, strong instruction, and a commitment to equity improve outcomes,\u201d said Dr. Lance Evans, state superintendent of education. \u201cThe work ahead builds upon that momentum and demands the same focus and dedication of teachers, school leaders, families, community partners, and policymakers working together with a common purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n

    View the updated Strategic Plan: mdek12.org\/mbe\/strategicplan<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

    Find all MDE news releases at mdek12.org\/news<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    ###<\/p>\n

    Jean Cook, APR
    \nChief of Communication
    \n601-359-3515
    \n    jcook@mdek12.org<\/a><\/p>\n

    Shanderia Minor
    \nPublic Information Officer
    \n601-359-3515
    \n    sminor@mdek12.org<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    JACKSON, Miss. \u2013 The Mississippi State Board of Education (SBE) today approved the Mississippi Strategic Plan for Pre-K through Grade 12 Education, which updates the current strategic plan to incorporate new priorities for education while ensuring the state builds upon its historic academic achievements. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3931"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3931\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3932,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3931\/revisions\/3932"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdek12.org\/communications\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}