State Board of Education Changes Accountability Formula, Dropping Writing Scores
The Mississippi State Board of Education has altered the "business rules" used to calculate school accountability ratings, removing writing scores worth 12 points per school, the Vicksburg Warren School District's superintendent told trustees.
At the district's regular Board of Trustees meeting Aug. 28, 2026, the superintendent, Dr Holloway, said "recently there have been more changes to the accountability system." He told trustees that about a week and a half earlier, "the state board of education... changed the business rules to make modifications in how the accountability ratings are... calculated."
The superintendent said the board "took writing off," which he described as accounting "for 12 points per school, which is a pretty significant amount of points." He said "there will have because of this, there will be adjustments for this year's scores," and that the state board is expected to detail those adjustments in October, adding, "but I'm not going to hold my breath and wait on that."
Any change to the statewide accountability formula affects every district's rating, since the ratings rely on state-produced data underlying Mississippi's education agenda. That the state board can retroactively remove criteria worth 12 points, and the timing and scope of the promised October adjustments, have not been independently confirmed against the Mississippi Department of Education's own records.