Mississippi's Next Education Miracle

by Shabbos Kestenbaum

August 14, 2026

Townhall

Mississippi might not be the first state Americans think of for education excellence. But recent Nation's Report Cards reveal a surprising shift in approaches to student learning. In 2013, Mississippi had ranked 49th in fourth-grade reading. But educators, legislators, and parents partnered to turn things around by recognizing what works: phonics. Mississippi's fourth-graders now rank 9th in the nation — it's the best rate of improvement in the country.

Something of the same is underway right now concerning another kind of literacy. Recent studies expose one-third of American adults can correctly answer at least four of five basic financial literacy questions regarding inflation, interest rates, bond prices, mortgages, and investment risk. Generation Z is not at all better — perhaps because they tell pollsters they consume most of their knowledge about money from TikTok.

Mississippi students can read; now the Magnolia State hopes students can learn personal finance. The J.P. Wilemon Jr. Financial Literacy Act starts students on a financial literacy journey as young as middle school. Students are now required to learn budgeting, saving, taxes, credit, insurance, investing, consumer protection, and other essential financial skills.

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