CURRENT GRADE: D
In February 2025, a bill that would have established limited school choice was killed in the State House.
Homeschooling is very parent friendly with no oversight requirements and the only reason the state did not receive a failing grade.
Compulsory education is required for ages 6-17.
Education Options
- Dyslexia Therapy Scholarships
- State approved programs may receive state funding for students with dyslexia.
- Speech-Language Therapy Scholarship (Nate Rogers)
- Funding for private school for a qualifying student in K-6 with a speech-language need.
- Equal Opportunity for Students with Special Needs Act
- Offers parents with special needs children the option of withdrawing their child from the public school system and receiving a designated amount of funds to help defray the cost of private school tuition or other specific allowable activities.
- Only 515 students in 2023 and 2024 were provided benefits.
Homeschooling Laws
Here are state requirements for homeschooling:
- An annual home school certificate of enrollment must be completed.
- There is legislation moving through the Mississippi legislature in 2025 that would allow home school students to participate in extra-curricular activities in public schools.
Religious Exemptions:
There is no standard procedure by which a parent can receive a religious exemption to homeschool.
The First Amendment states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Many argue that a religious conviction to provide a home-based education is constitutionally protected and a state religious exemption law is not a requirement to be able to homeschool on religious grounds.
It should be noted that the U.S. Supreme Court in Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) established that “Under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, a state law requiring that children attend school past eighth grade violates the parents’ constitutional right to direct the religious upbringing of their children.” (The case involved a challenge of a 16-year-old student to be exempt, so the scope was limited)
