School funding up $240M statewide
Legislature’s new formula started July 1
By Jeremy Pittari
Magnolia Tribune
Starting July 1, a new funding formula went into effect for Mississippi’s K-12 public
education system. Some school districts will receive millions in additional funding under
the new formula that replaces the former Mississippi Adequate Education Program, or
MAEP.
The idea for the new funding structure, called the Mississippi Student Funding Formula,
was to ensure that the school districts in most need received additional monies.
The increased local district allocations outlined below range from thousands to more
than $18 million and include increases to educational funding as well as increases to
teacher pay, health insurance and state retirement contributions in PERS.
Total increased funding statewide comes to just under $240 million.
The top five districts receiving the most in increases include Jackson Public School
District at $18.3 million, Desoto County Schools at $15.8 million, Jones County School
District at $8 million, Lamar County School District at $7.9 million and Picayune School
District at $5.8 million.
Districts that will see lesser increases include Coffeeville School District with $26,120,
West Tallahatchie School District at $32,056, South Delta School District at $33,838,
Baldwyn School District at $38,586, Quitman County School District at $42,158 and
North Bolivar Consolidated School District at $42,741.
The new funding formula has a weighted system that focuses on poverty levels, special
education needs, sparsity in population and other factors.
One of the notable weights in the new system addresses children categorized as living
in poverty. Those students may not have the same opportunities due to living in single
parent homes or homes where the parents have a limited education.
For instance, MAEP previously provided a 5 percent weight for low-income students.
Under the new formula, a low-income student will draw a 30 percent weight, good for an
additional $2,008 on top of the base student cost, which is $6,695 in the first year.

The base student funding will be increased in 2026, 2027, 2028 based on inflation.
Beginning in 2029, and once every four years thereafter, the State Board of Education
will recommend a new base student funding amount based on a new “objective formula”