Charter School Bill Clears MS Senate; House Inches Forward; Thigpen on Statewide Radio Thurs. Morning

After two hours of heated debate Tuesday afternoon, the Mississippi Senate passed a bill to allow the creation of charter schools in our state. The vote was 29-14. Eight senators did not vote.

On Thursday morning at 7:05, MCPP President Forest Thigpen will be a guest on the Paul Gallo Show on SuperTalk Mississippi. He will be discussing the Senate bill and the House action described below. Find a station or listen online at www.supertalk.fm.

Today, the House took a minor step by approving 75-43 a provision that will allow the state to contract with charter school organizations to run failing schools which are taken over by the state under a new procedure.

The provision was approved as an amendment to House Bill 1043, a bill that will require the state to fire the faculty and staff of a public school which fails three years in a row. Under the bill, the failing school's teachers, but not administrators, could re-apply for their positions once new leadership is named. Under the amendment described above, that new leadership could include a non-profit organization which has operated a successful charter school in another state.

The House bill is NOT a charter school bill. It simply allows the state another option in running schools taken over by the state.

The Senate bill IS a charter school bill, and its passage by the Senate is a significant step toward giving charter schools a chance in Mississippi. That bill will now go to the House, where passage is uncertain.

We'll keep you posted as important charter school legislation progresses.

Mississippi Center for Public Policy's mission is to advance the ideals of limited government, free markets, and strong traditional families by influencing public policy, informing the media, and equipping the public with information and perspective to help them understand and defend their liberty.

Mississippi Center for Public Policy's vision is for Mississippi to be a place where entrepreneurs are free to pursue their dreams, parents are free to direct the education and upbringing of their children, government functions according to the principles that enhance freedom, and all Mississippians are free from dependence on government for their daily needs.

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