JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi fourth graders have led the nation in gains in reading and math scores, but eighth graders and high schoolers sit near the bottom in certain categories. Lawmakers and educators have drawn up plans to prevent setbacks but need help from parents.

Since 2013, students completing fourth grade have taken Mississippi from 49th and 50th in reading and math scores to ninth and 16th.

“What we see is that students do really well in those earlier grades and then in those pre-teen years, we see some of those grades dip,” State Sen. Nicole Boyd said.

High school scores lag

The biggest drop is with the ACT.

According to ACT.org, in 2024, Mississippi ranked 49th in average scores out of all states and Washington D.C.

Students earned an average of 17.7. Only 17% of test takers met the math and science benchmark and 27% met the reading benchmark.

In total, only 1% of graduates in 2024 statewide took this test.

Eighth graders are also performing below the national average according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, sitting at 41st in reading and 35th in math scores nationally.

“One way that we can change that is provide students opportunities to learn and read things that they’re interested in and not make it punitive,” said Tiffany Cline, director of library services with Jackson Public Schools.

New screening requirements

This upcoming school year, children have more options.

Boyd, who sits on the Education Committee, helped pass a law requiring elementary and middle school students to undergo three math and reading check-ups each year.

The screenings from Senate Bill 2294 place students who fall behind on an individual plan to learn at their own pace with a coach.

“By doing these screeners and really finding out where children are, that will empower parents with more information,” Boyd said. “To really help and assess their kid when they need to have a little bit more support.”

“If we address those issues then, when they get into our upper grades, they are not learning to read; they are reading to learn,” Cline said. “So, now they’re able to comprehend and understand what they’re reading better.”

Summer learning

Summertime can allow children to slip in remembering what they learned last year. Some local students shared how they stay on track for fall.

“We have to read a book for 30 minutes and work on a summer packet for 30 minutes,” Major Marshall said.

“Studying my math problems and making sure I get a good education, get my reading skills up and stuff,” Baleigh Wollfolk said.

“Especially if I practice over the summer, it will be a lot easier to get the work done and understand it more,” Kailee Partee said.

The new tools from state lawmakers will also be available for students taking computer science and personal financial classes in the school years to come in 2027 through 2029.

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• Mississippi state department heads are embracing artificial intelligence to improve government efficiency.
• AI is being used to digitize operations and standardize processes, such as prompting eligibility workers during interviews.
• Officials assured legislators that AI implementation is not intended to replace state employees.
• Department leaders also highlighted that restrictive state hiring processes make it difficult to recruit and retain qualified talent.

Mississippi State Health Officer Daniel Edney had a simple message for legislators when asked about government efficiency in his department.

“I’m thanking God today for AI, because it has brought a lot of solutions to a lot of the problems I’m facing,” he said.

Edney was one of six Mississippi department heads asked to speak with a House committee on government efficiency about the ways that they’re saving time and money in their jobs. Most of the others echoed Edney’s thoughts on artificial intelligence and other kinds of updated technology.

Bob Anderson, the executive director of the human services department, touted that his agency is “about 90% down the path of digitizing” all of its operations and few processes remain on paper. While the department’s systems are “ancient” now, he said, it has executed an agreement with a vendor and will pilot a new system later this year.

“We did this inventory recently and didn’t even realize that in-house, we had something on the order of 40 to 45 processes or tools within our agency that are already using AI,” he said.

The technology will be used next to prompt eligibility workers during interviews to ensure they ask all relevant questions, Anderson said, a much-needed standardizing tool.

“In the 60 or so counties where I’ve looked at their documentation,” he said, “there are about 60 different versions of what the script looked like when one of our eligibility workers sits down with an applicant.”

People concerned about artificial intelligence might wonder: If an AI tool asks all of the questions a human can, why would the department keep their employees around?

Edney promised legislators that they “won’t be laying off anybody at the health department because of AI.” Other department heads asked whether the goal of the committee and overall government efficiency movement was to have fewer state employees who, with the help of AI, could handle more work.

What else could happen next session: Mississippi lawmakers talk school consolidation, closures in state

Increased technology use doesn’t mean maximum savings, said committee chair Rep. Hank Zuber, R-Ocean Springs. Zuber questioned why each agency was using a different type of software and paying an individual licensing fee, suggesting that the state pursue an all-encompassing contract with a single fee.

Beyond a statewide provider contract, Mississippians could also see legislation next session targeting the hiring regulations instituted by the state personnel board.

Edney, Anderson and Child Protections Services Commissioner Andrea Sanders complained that the hurdles built into the hiring process make it difficult to hire and retain qualified employees in their state jobs.

“For us to perform in the way that y’all expect us to perform, we have to have a healthy, well-educated professional workforce at the highest caliber that you can afford to have, and right now, I just can’t do that,” Edney said. “I’m constantly fighting to recruit top-level talent to the health department … What I need is a system that helps me get to where y’all want us to go.”

Anderson agreed with Edney’s comments, asking the Legislature to divorce his department from the strict restrictions of the personnel board.

“We need some flexibility, and what is frustrating at times is that we’ve built our personnel system around this notion that one size fits all,” he said. “One size fits none is really a more appropriate description.”

The slow hiring process combined with lower salaries, Sanders said, means that her department loses out on top candidates who are drawn toward the big paychecks and smooth onboarding that private business can offer them.

It is unlikely that the state will be able to afford much higher pay for its employees given its tight budget now. Margins will likely only become narrower, lawmakers said during the budget negotiation process this session, as the state’s income tax decreases.

Representatives heard suggestions from the department heads for hours on Wednesday afternoon, but it is unclear what they will take from the discussion and turn into bills next year.

Bea Anhuci is the state government reporter for the Clarion Ledger. She has covered Mississippi politics since the start of 2026. Email her at banhuci@usatodayco.com.