State auditor says MDE fails to publish required afterschool evaluations
The Mississippi Office of the State Auditor says the Mississippi Department of Education has not published federally required evaluations of its afterschool programs for more than two years, even as millions in federal grant funds continue to flow to nonprofits and school districts.
The auditor’s analysis found that in fiscal year 2024 the nonprofits and districts reviewed spent more than $11 million in Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant funds to provide afterschool care. Under federal rules, subgrantees must collect and submit performance data to MDE, which is then required to complete an annual statewide evaluation and submit it to the federal government.
The report says MDE has not published the required statewide report since November 2022. “As we have seen on the news in Minnesota and here at home during the welfare scandal, making sure that these taxpayer funds are monitored is critical,” State Auditor Shad White said in a statement. “We will continue to highlight any weaknesses we see in the programs providing money for afterschool or childcare centers.”
The auditor’s office also raised concerns that some subgrantees may have hired external evaluators who were not independent, creating potential conflicts of interest; in one instance a grantee hired an individual who worked for the nonprofit arm of the organization being evaluated. Analysts also said attendance data grouped student participation in multi-day and multi-hour increments, so a student who attended one day or a few hours could be counted the same as a student with perfect attendance.
The report is the second in a series examining taxpayer-funded childcare programs in Mississippi. The full report is available on the State Auditor’s website under the “Reports” tab by searching “afterschool.” This is a developing story and will be updated as more details emerge.
