Insights From Mississippi's State Superintendent of Education

Dr. Carey Wright

What was the most important lesson the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) learned from the COVID-19 outbreak and the move to hybrid/online instruction?

I believe the most important lesson we learned from the pandemic is when challenges arise, we can come together as an agency and seek solutions that will help schools and districts.

In March 2020, we worked with the Mississippi State Board of Education to waive policies we thought would cause an undue burden to school districts at a time of an abrupt halt to public education as we knew it.

We waived testing requirements and accountability. We made sure teachers had learning resources and relief from licensure requirements. We increased online professional development for teachers and launched a high-quality instructional materials website and student book selection guidance. We connected schools with sources for personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies.

We also brought together a group of superintendents to develop guidance documents for district leaders around considerations for restarting school in fall 2020, and we encouraged school districts to select the learning environment that worked best for their students and families. They had the option of in-person instruction, virtual learning or a combination of the two.

Overall, we tried to address issues as they arose by pulling together all the resources at our disposal and supporting teachers, leaders and students as much as possible.

What are public education’s biggest accomplishments during this crisis?

As for schools and districts, I believe their biggest accomplishment during this crisis was employing creative solutions to provide students what they needed, whether that was sending school buses to deliver meals to neighborhoods or using them as Wi-Fi hot spots so children could have internet access.

As for the MDE, our biggest accomplishment was developing and implementing Mississippi Connects, a statewide digital learning initiative, to provide technology to every Mississippi public school student. The project, which would have normally taken up to two years to plan and implement, was completed in weeks.

Once funded by the Mississippi Legislature in July, the work began immediately on the ambitious $200 million initiative to put a device in the hands of every student and to improve access to the internet. Executing such a complex statewide technology plan required coordination from all stakeholders — MDE staff, elected leaders, lawmakers, school and district administrators and vendors. The result was device delivery in the first district by Sept. 30.

What are the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on instruction?

I think online learning will be an ongoing part of public education. Through Mississippi Connects, we are increasing online professional development for teachers and administrators to enhance online instruction.

Now that every student has access to a device, we will be actively working with state and federal partners to improve internet access across the state. We realize there are some pockets of Mississippi with little to no connectivity. For me, that is an issue of equity. All students, no matter where they live, should have the resources they need to be successful in school. This is 2021. Access to the internet should be a right for all.

With Mississippi and the nation facing a teacher shortage, we can take this opportunity to expand students’ access to high-quality instruction through online learning. If a school district has trouble finding a chemistry teacher, we could use technology to connect students from that district to a chemistry teacher in another district. Those two districts could work out a salary arrangement that would provide the teacher instructing both classes additional income.

The possibilities are limitless.