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.
Public Education Forum's programs Mississippi Scholars and Tech Master has an impact statewide. Find a location in your county.
Tech Master Waiver
The Public Education Forum Board agreed to a waiver on the following Tech Master Standard to recognize students with the Tech Master designation.
Students who completed a 2 year CTE program during the 2019-2020 school year as a sophomore or junior and who will be graduating either in 2021 or 2022 were unable to take their MS-CPAS state test/national certification assessment due to COVID-19 shutting schools down. This is a requirement for students to be selected as a MS Tech Master.
Also, we will use the waiver for any CTE completer who graduates in 2021 or 2022. This will take care of all of the students who were impacted by last year’s canceled CPAS testing.
About The Public Education Forum:
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." The Mississippi Scholars Program is managed by the Public Education Forum and began in 2003.
What is Mississippi Scholars?
The Mississippi Scholars Initiative is an education program managed by the Public Education Forum of Mississippi, which utilizes business leaders to motivate students to complete a rigorous course of study in high school. This course path gives students a boost – not just for college but for life. The Initiative pairs trained local business leaders with classes of 8th grade students. These leaders present the students with a powerful presentation, which provides the rationale for the recommendation that students take more rigorous courses.
Mission Statement
To encourage and motivate all high school students to complete a defined, rigorous academic course of study that prepares them for successful transition to college, university coursework or vocational and technical training necessary to enter today's competitive job market.
Background
The Initiative is managed by the Public Education Forum of Mississippi, an affiliate of the Mississippi Economic Council. The Initiative was established in November 2003 and launched with two pilot school districts – Hattiesburg and Indianola. The Mississippi Scholars Initiative started as a part of the national State Scholars Initiative (SSI) network.
Mississippi Scholar Don Holmes was the speaker at the second Mississippi Scholars event held at Summit Baptist Church. Don is an English major at the University of Southern Mississippi and was elected Student Government Association attorney general in 2012. The Chamber banquet honored 166 area Mississippi Scholars high school graduates for their hard work.
Components
- 8th Grade Classroom Presentations
- Incentives
- Senior Recognition
Results
To date, the Mississippi Scholars program has recognized over 500 graduating seniors with the Mississippi Scholars distinction from the two pilot school districts, compared to 24 in 2004. It also has:
- Recruited 88 districts and more than 160 high schools to join the Mississippi Scholars network.
- Trained more than 1,500 volunteers to conduct State Scholars presentations.
- Recognized over 20,000 graduating seniors with medallions or cords for completing the Mississippi Scholars Course of Study.
- Delivered presentations and State Scholars materials to more than 25,000 students.
Click here for a list of approved courses that can be substituted for Mississippi Scholars Credit
Please Use Only One of These Options for Your Report
Use this form to let us know how many Mississippi Scholars graduates your school district has! We use this form to determine the number of medallions, certificates, and medals we send each district for use in their awards ceremonies and graduations.
Mississippi Scholars End of the Year Report PDF
OR
Mississippi Scholars End of Year Report Electronic Form
Please only submit one of the options above. If you have submitted a request previously, please do not resubmit your information.
Click Here to submit a question regarding your already-submitted form.
Implementation for the Mississippi Scholars program is not difficult! The program is designed to be community sponsored and business led.
The local school district and business community must fully support the program and encourage students to participate by signing up for the Mississippi Scholars Course of Study.
PURPOSE
Develop a program under the Mississippi Scholars umbrella to encourage students to pursue and perform well in a tech-prep course of study, recognizing their achievements at graduation, as the Mississippi Scholars program currently recognizes those who pursue a college-bound course of study, with a particular emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
IMPLEMENTATION
Use the Mississippi Scholars distribution channel and network to quickly ramp up the Mississippi Scholars Tech Master program. Curriculum - The Mississippi Department of Education Basic 21 Carnegie Unit Career Pathway Curriculum using 4 electives was used as the foundation for the curriculum along with feedback from the Tech Master Council to develop the requirements.
RESULTS
In 2014, 285 students from the seven pilot counties earned the distinction of Mississippi Scholars Tech Master graduate. There were 50 graduates from Bolivar County, 13 from Panola County, 29 from Union County, 61 from Madison County, 10 from Lincoln County, 19 from Jones County and 103 from Jackson County.
Please Use Only One of These Options for Your Report
Use this form to let us know how many Mississippi Scholars Tech Master graduates your school district has! We use this form to determine the number of medallions, certificates, and medals we send each district for use in their awards ceremonies and graduations.
Tech Master End of the Year Report PDF
OR
Tech Master End of the Year Electronic Form
Please only submit one of the options above. If you have submitted a request previously, please do not resubmit your information.
Click Here to submit a question regarding your already-submitted form.
Implementation for the Mississippi Scholars Tech Master program is not difficult! The program is designed to be community sponsored and business led.
The local school district and business community must fully support the program and encourage students to participate by signing up for the Mississippi Scholars Tech Master Course of Study.