Report: Mississippi State Department of Education under Carey Wright did not adhere to State Statute Requiring Office of Dropout Prevention @mcps @mocoboe @MdPublicSchools

A Forgotten Program: A Review of the Mississippi Department of 

Education’s Office of Dropout Prevention

The Office of Dropout Prevention has not existed according to statute in over a decade 

Key Conclusions

The Office of Dropout Prevention (ODP) was statutorily mandated to be created by the Mississippi Department of 

Education (MDE) in 2006 to reduce the dropout rate. Auditors determined that:

1. MDE has not adhered to Miss. Code Ann. § 37-13-80 since 2009;

2. MDE maintained inapplicable graduation rate benchmarks when reporting progress to the State Board of 

Education;

3. MDE has been apathetic regarding oversight of a coordinated initiative to reduce the dropout rate;

4. 73% of local school districts’ dropout prevention plans do not meet requirements set forth by MDE;

5. 49% of local school districts’ dropout prevention programs are not being monitored by MDE;

6. 71% of local school districts’ dropout prevention programs are not evidence-based; and

7. MDE does not monitor whether evidence-based programs are implemented as designed to ensure effectiveness.

To reach these conclusions, auditors conducted surveys of local school districts, interviewed officials at MDE and local school districts, analyzed financial and program records, and reviewed internal and leading professional practices, as well as peer-reviewed journal articles regarding dropout prevention...

2020_Office-of-Dropout-Prevention_Report.pdf (ms.gov)