• MCPP’s Douglas Carswell says last week’s education funding reform win shows that when reformers in Mississippi work together, they win. 

Imagine if all the restaurants in your neighbourhood were guaranteed the same revenue even if they managed to serve fewer customers? 

That’s pretty much how Mississippi has been funding public education for the past thirty years, under the so-called Mississippi Adequate Education Funding Formula Program, or MAEP system.

Under MAEP, taxpayer dollars are allocated in a way that suited education administrators and local bureaucrats.  Under the so-called ‘hold harmless’ provisions of the MAEP, they did not need to worry about loss of revenue, even if they lost students and underperformed. 

Last week, the Mississippi legislature finally voted to replace the antiquated MAEP system, with the new Mississippi Student Funding Formula.  HB 4130 passed unanimously in the House, and before sailing through the Senate on a 49-3 vote.

Under the new Student Funding Formula, Mississippi will fund actual students, not a self-serving system.  What does this mean in practice?

Every student will now be allocated a base amount of $6,695.  On top of that base amount, a weighted system will be used to allocate additional funds to each student depending on their individual circumstances.

MAEP treated every child as if they were an identical accounting unit on a bureaucratic spreadsheet.  As every parent knows, each child is different and has different needs.  The new Student Funding Formula recognizes this fact.  Children with special needs, or particularly gifted students, get more, as do those from lower income neighborhoods. 

The new formula has a specific weighting for career and technical education, too, which could be important for future workforce development. 

Also important is the fact that those crony ‘hold harmless’ deals, which reward mediocrity, will be terminated in 2027. 

Early on in this session, Speaker Jason White made it clear that he was 100 percent committed to getting this new funding formula passed.  Both he, and the Chairman of the House Education Committee, Rob Roberson, who authored the bill, deserve enormous credit for getting it though the legislature.  Kudos, too, to Jansen Owen and Kent McCarty.

Frankly, this bill would not have passed without a strong lead from the Governor, Tate Reeves, as well.  He made it clear that he was 100 percent behind this reform, and repeatedly talked about the need to fund students, not a system.

HB 4130 is really important for the future of education reform.  Perhaps, though, there is an even greater significance in its passage through the legislature.

What happened last week shows that Mississippi has leaders that are willing to spend political capital achieving the kind of change our state needs.  Do-nothing intransigence is not so powerful after all. 

When reformers in our state work together, they win. 

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) – A vivid double rainbow was spotted arcing across the South Mississippi sky Monday evening after a gloomy day of showers and thunderstorms. The rainbow was not the only spectacle. As the sun began to sink below the horizon, a brilliant burst of oranges, pinks and reds splashed up against the bottom on the cloud deck over South Mississippi resulting in a show-stopping sunset full of color and awe.

The double rainbow and colorful sunset came after a shelf cloud and mammatus clouds were spotted along the coast.

Along the leading edge of showers and thunderstorms Monday, a shelf cloud was spotted tracking slowly across the coast. Shelf clouds form on the leading edge of thunderstorms. They mark the dividing live between the warm, moist air ahead of the storm and the rain cooled air behind it. The cooler air behind the storm “scoops” up the warm moist air ahead of it. The air cools, condenses into a cloud and is molded into a “shelf” due to the motion of the storm.

After the storms cleared, the upper-level cloud deck remained over South Mississippi. Sinking air above the clouds formed “pouches” in the cloud deck over Biloxi known as mammatus clouds.

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CEDAR RAPIDS — They all showed up and showed out.

The Cedar Rapids Washington girls’ golf team showed the potential of its best lineup.

The Warriors had their top team available and carded a total of 322, winning the title at the Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet on Monday at Ellis Golf Course. Washington topped runner-up Western Dubuque by eight strokes, while Linn-Mar’s Morgan Rupp shot 1-under 71 for medalist honors.

“It’s nice to see them playing their game,” Washington assistant coach Ronnie Blocklinger said. “They’re having fun.”

The Warriors’ Mya Messenger placed third with 76 and Jane Petersen was two shots back for fifth. Messenger and Lily Belle Barker juggle both varsity golf and tennis in the spring, causing some scheduling conflicts.

Everybody was on hand.

“I think we have great potential and we’re firing on all cylinders and at full strength,” Messenger said. “We’ve all been working really hard over the winter.

“It also helps that we’re a tight-knit group. We’ve brought everyone in and all were firing today on our A-Game.”

Good camaraderie and strong chemistry also play a big part in success. The relationships extend beyond rounds, putting greens and driving ranges. Petersen said her best friends are on the team and most of the golfers have fun together on the course.

“It’s not just best team score-wise,” Petersen said. “I think we have a great team connection. I love the girls.”

Messenger, listed as the team’s No. 3 golfer, led Washington this round. She tallied three birdies, including the Nos. 11 and 16 holes for an even-par 36 on the back nine.

Attention to her short game allowed her to perform well, despite the chilly and windy conditions.

“I know my teammates and I have been out weekends and after practice and stayed late to focus on our short game — our putting and chipping,” Messenger said. “I really worked hard on that and focused on that today to convert on a lot of birdie putts and getting up and down better than I have been.

“I got up and down a lot on the back nine. I had a couple birdies that helped my round. I gave myself a little cushion to where if I did bogey I wouldn’t have too much stress.”

Washington placed all four of its scorers in the top 15 of the individual standings. In addition to Messenger and Petersen in the top five, Barker posted an 83 for 12th and freshman Shaylin Munson rounded out the foursome with an 85.

“At this point, I think we can make a run for state,” said Petersen, who was the Class 4A state runner-up last season. “It’s just really exciting to have four scores and a fifth, if we need it, which is amazing.”

Linn-Mar’s Morgan Rupp is MVC Super Meet medalist

Rupp shared medalist honors with Messenger at the MVC Super Meet a year ago. She was the only golfer to break 75, sinking an 8-foot putt on her final hole and breaking par.

“The difference between even par and 1-under is quite a bit,” the Lions’ 2023 4A state champion said. “It feels like it’s more than one stroke, at least. I told myself to make this. End with a birdie and you’ll feel better about your round.”

It was the second of bookend birdies to her round. She birdied No. 16 to start the meet. She added two more on the front, notching birdies on the Nos. 5 and 9.

Rupp won by four strokes over Iowa City Liberty’s runner-up Isabella Pettersen. The field had eight of the top 25 ranked golfers, according to Bound’s combined adjusted averages.

“I feel like this is a really good win for me,” Rupp said. “There are a lot of really good players in this meet. The field is stacked. I’m proud of the score I put up.”

Mississippi Valley Conference girls’ golf Super Meet

At Ellis Golf Course

(Par 72)

Teams – 1. C.R. Washington 322, 2. Western Dubuque 330, 3. Dubuque Wahlert 339, 4. Cedar Falls 340, 5. Linn-Mar 344, 6. C.R. Xavier 363, 7. Iowa City High 374, 8. Iowa City Liberty 375, 9. Dubuque Senior 381, 10. Waterloo West 390, 11. C.R. Prairie 406, 12. Iowa City West 415, 13. Dubuque Hempstead 417, 14. C.R. Kennedy 470, 15. C.R. Jefferson 471

Individuals – 1. Morgan Rupp (LM), 71, 2. Isabella Pettersen (ICL), 75, 3. Mya Messenger (CRW), 76, 4. Molly Ratchford (CF), 77, 5. Jane Petersen (CRW), 78

C.R. WASHINGTON (322): Messenger 76, Petersen 78, Lily Belle Barker 83, Shaylin Munson 85

LINN-MAR (344): Rupp 71, Gabby Mercure 90, Jayden Schumacher 91, Riya Anand 92

C.R. XAVIER (363): Mehar Julka 80, Meehar Julka 89, Lauren Kram 95, Josie Kramer 99

CITY HIGH (374): Haleigh Nelson 84, Hannah Cronk 92, Tully Campion 97, Olivia Neuzil 101

I.C. LIBERTY (375): Pettersen 75, Leona Rupp 91, Ella Burns 104, Sydney Hested 105

C.R. PRAIRIE (406): Kylie Wachtl 80, Morgan Burhans 96, Malian Armour 115, Millie Manternach 115

I.C. WEST (415): Whitney Noeller 101, Gretchen Van Iddekinge 102, Sophie Bodin 105, Lily Schmid 107

C.R. KENNEDY (470): Ellie Nurre 85, Aliya Ballard 117, Audrey Ingraham 130, Paige Maas 138

C.R. JEFFERSON (471): Ava Erger 104, Rachel Johnson 113, Peyton Kindrade 125, Kiyaree Cooper 129, Aiyana Moeller 129

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