Imagine a state that ranks last in almost every education ranking. More than half of the third grade students could not read properly. Colleges invested millions in remedial education because too many high school graduates arrived unprepared to read and write in college. Poverty and historic inequality plagued classrooms and socially promoting children who could not read was the norm. That was Mississippi in 2012. Fast forward to today, and the same state has pulled off a stunning turnaround. Fourth-grade reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) skyrocketed from 50th a decade ago to ninth, with gains holding steady through 2024 while the national average fell.
Governor Phil Bryant not only signed the Literacy-Based Promotion Act in 2013, he championed it. He rallied the legislature to pass these transformative policies with bipartisan support. His vision set the tone of no more excuses, no more social promotions, no more settling for mediocrity. The Literacy-Based Promotion Act did more than just require teachers to use phonics instruction; it rebuilt our early literacy system from the classroom up. The law required that every primary and secondary teacher be retrained in evidence-based reading instruction through the LETRS training. The law required reading coaches to be deployed in the lowest-performing districts to provide instruction and daily feedback to teachers. Early childhood programs, such as Mississippi Building Blocks and the Pre-K Collaboratives, were aligned with K-12 goals so that children came to kindergarten ready to learn. For the first time, every district used the same universal screener within the first 30 days of kindergarten.
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Additionally, students in kindergarten, first, second, and third grades were assessed three times per year to ensure that common screener data sets were used to make instructional decisions. Retention alone is not a solution; if a child was still left behind in the classroom after twelve data points and failed the third-grade assessment, the repeat year was intentionally different.
The struggling reader was placed in a completely different experience in the repetitive year of third grade. Repeat students were placed with a highly qualified teacher, received 60 minutes of intensive daily reading instruction in a smaller group, and followed an individualized reading plan developed in collaboration with the family. These interventions were not punishment for children, but targeted remediation designed to change a child’s trajectory before the failure became permanent.
Phonics and the science of teaching reading was a key component, including vocabulary, comprehension, fluency and language development. And we did it all with state funds and our own state innovation, without federal oversight dictating our work.
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Mississippi led its own revival. We have been holding the line for twelve years. Everyone talks about the student outcomes resulting from the law, but few emphasize how a governor’s commitment affects them. Governor Bryant’s leadership sparked the miracle and Governor Reeves is ensuring it continues. Every governor should aspire to be an education governor. Rising to the challenge, funding the solutions and leading without apology.
If other states are looking for our results, remember to think you only have to teach phonics. Build the system. Ask if you:
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• Funded, ongoing teacher training in evidence-based practice, in addition to one-off workshops.
• Embedded coaches in low-performing schools for practical reinforcement.
• Coordinated programs for young children.
• A national screener with mandatory follow-ups and support.
• Intensive remediation that provides daily instruction by expert teachers and small groups.
• Transparent family updates that enable home action.
Mississippi was not successful. If you want results, build the system. Be an educational director, educate teachers, support classrooms, screen children early, involve every family, and ensure that recovery is not just a repeat of the same experience for the child. It’s so much more than just sounds. Doing so makes the so-called miracle a predictable outcome, one that helped transform an entire state’s ability to learn to read.
