According to the Pew Research Center, the United States has fallen severely behind other industrialized countries in terms of education. Statistics from the Program for International Student Assessment show students across the United States are mediocre in their performance and understanding of science, mathematics, and reading compared to Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Canada and others. If the United States is to keep its position as a major world power, more needs to be done to ensure students receive the best education possible.

Compared to the rest of the United States, Mississippi currently rates below average in regards to education. Mississippi has traditionally had a much lower graduation rate compared to other states, and many schools in the area suffer from high dropout numbers. However, according to a statistical report by the Mississippi Department of Education, the state has been slowly improving over the past few years and has almost caught up with the national average. 

The national average graduation rate is 83.2 percent.

Over the past years, Mississippi managed to climb from a 73.7 percent graduation rate in 2012, to an average 82.3 percent graduation rate in 2017. In addition, the dropout rate dropped from 16.7 percent in 2012 to 10.8 percent in 2017, according to the report.

On Tuesday, the Poplarville Board of Alderman gave special recognition to the Poplarville Municipal Separate School District as well as Pearl River Community College for their outstanding academic achievements. As stated at the meeting, the Poplarville School District attained the highest graduation rate in Southern Mississippi, at 95 percent, while Pearl River Community College was recently rated as one of the best community colleges in the United States, with an overall ranking of 28th in the nation.

Schools around Mississippi and Pearl River County should continue to strive for greatness. If they do, Mississippi’s educational programs could soon become the best in the nation.