MSMS Alumni weigh-in on the possible relocation for the school
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Concern continues to grow that The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science will be moved to Mississippi State University.
MSU and Mississippi University from Women are working on proposals for the state Department of Education to house the school.
MSMS has been on the MUW campus since opening its doors in 1988.
Some supporters have been fighting to keep it there since last year’s legislative session.
Now, they know moving the school is a real possibility.
The scenes around The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science look like a normal school day for these residential students.
However, behind the scenes, some supporters are pushing to keep the school on the Mississippi University for Women campus.
The Mississippi Department of Education asked MUW and Mississippi State to submit proposals to house the highly regarded high school.
That information will be passed on to legislators.
“I think it poses a distraction to these students as far as what MSMS stands for,” Tyra Ivory said. “It’ll make it much harder to be able to discipline and give them the focus and attention they need to focus just on academics and being teenagers. I think that is going open up a whole can of worms that many people have not thought about.”
“The process behind this move is not to be fair,” Sabrina Bailey said. “The Mississippi Department of Education gave MUW and MSU just 18 days to submit proposals, far too little time for a thorough decision. This is not a genuine effort to explore options, it’s forced to be relocation.”
The idea of a proposed relocation concerns some MSMS stakeholders.
Columbus Mayor Keith Gaskin is a former Executive Director of the MSMS Foundation and a former employee of MSU and MUW.
He said it’s important the school gets as much as support it can receive.
“Also those who have a passion for higher education and have the means to invest,” Gaskin said. “Most university presidents will tell you that their universities are state-located now not state-supported. It’s very difficult for the state of Mississippi to ever be able to support an institution at the level that it needs but that’s why citizens industries, and foundations need to give back generously to these universities. They make a difference in our state and we should be supporting them whole-heartedly.”
The proposals from the universities are due on February 25.
