Jennifer Lee Williams (third from left), a senior elementary education major at the University of Mississippi, works with children on reading skills in Southaven Elementary School. The university's School of Education and Center for Excellence in Literacy Instruction worked with partners across the state to help boost literacy skills among elementary students. Photo by Kevin Bain/Ole Miss Digital Imaging Services
Literacy center, School of Education and statewide partners make early reading success the new normal
The dramatic improvement in Mississippi’s early literacy rates has grabbed national attention, spotlighting the work of statewide partnerships to bring about the “Mississippi Miracle.”
Following sweeping policy changes, the University of Mississippi‘s Center for Excellence in Literacy Instruction and School of Education joined forces with entities across the state. Angela Rutherford, the center’s director, partnered with the Mississippi Department of Education to help implement rigorous standards, educator preparation and community involvement.
In 2013, the Legislature passed the Literacy-Based Promotion Act, which requires third grade students to pass a year-end reading assessment to be promoted to fourth grade. Amendments require K-3 students to have individualized reading plans if testing identifies them as struggling readers.
“The legislation is focused on prevention because we don’t want kids to be retained,” Rutherford said. “But we also don’t want to promote them to fourth grade when they’re not able to read, because we know they transition from learning to read and write to using reading and writing as tools for learning, and if they don’t have those basics skills, then they’re going to struggle.
“Also, the legislation is a way to hold adults accountable (to the students).”
In 2025, almost 85% of third graders passed the third grade reading assessment and almost 64% of kindergarten students met their target score at the end of the spring 2024. Additionally, the National Assessment of Educational Progress ranked the state ninth in fourth-grade reading and first for improvement in reading and math scores.
“It’s not just one piece of legislation that led to the incredible outcomes for our state,” said Kim Benton, former Mississippi Department of Education deputy superintendent and chief academic officer. “It was really a number of initiatives that simultaneously came together like having these different threads unite creating a beautiful tapestry.”
The preventive process begins in public kindergarten, where teachers screen students for literacy skills and develop individual reading plans, if needed. Research indicates that the earlier a child receives intervention, the better.
The legislation also provided a means of support to teachers in the classroom and those learning to become teachers.
To prepare future elementary teachers, colleges updated their curricula to include the science of reading, a body of research that reveals how the human brain learns to read. This research base informs teachers how reading and writing develop in children and why they may have difficulty. That knowledge equipped elementary education candidates to teach reading in their own classrooms.
Such instruction has garnered recognition. The National Council on Teacher Quality gave Ole Miss’ reading instruction efforts an A grade, Rutherford said.
The state also implemented a new requirement for elementary licensure specific to reading instruction to ensure teachers are trained to teach young students literacy foundational skills.
One of those teachers is Carlee McAnally, who holds a UM bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in early childhood development.
“The Ole Miss School of Education prepared me to be part of Mississippi’s success by equipping me with the knowledge, practical experience and confidence to make a positive impact in the classroom,” said McAnally, a pre-K teacher at Lafayette Elementary School.
“Through rigorous coursework, field experiences and student teaching, I learned how to create engaging lessons, differentiate instruction and support the diverse needs of my students.”
Student teaching benefited her and her students the most, she said.
“It gave me the opportunity to apply what I learned in my coursework to a real classroom while receiving guidance and feedback from my experienced mentor teacher,” McAnally said. “The hands-on experience has had the greatest impact on my teaching because it prepared me for the daily realities of the classroom.”
McAnally fosters a love of reading in the classroom through small-group instruction, songs, games and picture books to make learning fun.
“Overall, providing the foundations of literacy in the classroom is about giving students the essential tools they need to become confident, capable readers and lifelong learners,” she said.
Teachers already in classrooms received support from Mississippi Department of Education literacy coaches, as well as professional learning opportunities. Also, communities and community members play a role in Mississippi student success.
The Center for Excellence in Literacy Instruction launched Mission Acceleration, an AmeriCorps-funded program where college students volunteer as reading tutors within elementary schools’ after-school programs.
Recent Ole Miss graduate Edward Hunter (BA 26), of West Point, volunteered with Mission Acceleration.
“My parents raised me with the belief that knowledge and education are things that can never be taken away from you,” Hunter said. “I wanted to bring that same appreciation and love of learning to young people, especially during a time when the value of education is often being questioned.”
He built relationships with local elementary students and families.
“The greatest impact I believe I had was helping students develop confidence in themselves and recognize that learning is a lifelong journey,” he said. “The experience gave me hope for the future and reminded me of the importance of investing in our young learners.”
Ole Miss also houses the Campaign for Grade Level Reading, which helps communities support students and families to build reading skills and improve school readiness, school attendance and summer or out-of-school learning.
The education school and its literacy center were valued partners in the statewide effort, Benton said.
“They brought incredible expertise and were always willing to walk alongside and in meaningful partnership, keeping in mind that the purpose we were working toward was helping the children of Mississippi,” she said.
“We want our children to be college- career- and employment-ready, and it all starts with that ability to read.”
The “miracle” has become the standard throughout Mississippi due to the concerted efforts and is expanding into grades four through eight.
“It is now Mississippi’s culture; it’s just how we do things,” Rutherford said. “The Literacy-Based Promotion Act helped the state enter into a new era where for the first time across the state, we are all on the same page.”
By Marisa C. Atkinson
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