Students at Columbus High School already learn how to read a pay stub and balance a budget, but by next school year, financial literacy instruction will be a requirement for school districts throughout the state.
A portion of a new state law, which went into effect July 1, requires the State Board of Education to incorporate financial literacy into curriculum for grades 6-8 starting with the 2027-28 school year. The law also adds a financial literacy graduation requirement for high schoolers.
Superintendent Craig Chapman said Columbus Municipal School District is preparing to work with the Mississippi Department of Education to ensure teachers providing financial literacy instruction in 2027 receive the necessary training.
“Our goal is not simply to meet the requirements, but to ensure financial literacy instruction is delivered with fidelity and provinces students with practical knowledge and skills they can use beyond the classroom from high-quality financial literacy instruction,” Chapman wrote in an email to The Dispatch.
The financial literacy component – J.P. Wilemon Jr. Financial Literacy Act – was tucked into Senate Bill 2294, which also includes new math and literacy initiatives for younger grades, as well as future requirements for computer science and civics instruction.
The financial literacy, according to the legislation, would include instruction on financial division making, tax obligations and withholdings, personal budgeting and cash-flow management, various types of financial services like credit cards, consumer rights and fraud avoidance and postsecondary education financing, among others.
Students in Hattie Petty’s financial literacy course at CHS are already learning some of those skills. Petty said the class starts off with students learning how to calculate their wages and read pay stubs. They also practice personal budgeting and learn how to use savings and checking accounts, credit cards and student loans – all taught through various real-world projects, Petty said.
“My goal is to make sure that my students are knowledgeable about what it means to be financially responsible and be ready to take on their own finances by the end of the semester,” she said.
Chapman said implementing the financial literacy requirement on the middle school level will require an intentional approach to curriculum, scheduling and instructional planning.
“As we move forward, the district will take an in-depth look at our current curriculum and instructional offerings to determine how they align with the new financial literacy initiative,” he said. “An important part of this process will be identifying and securing curriculum resources for the middle school that are aligned with the financial literacy instruction already provided at the high school.”
Superintendent Sam Allison confirmed Lowndes County School District offers some financial literacy instruction for high schoolers, but he declined to comment further as the district is still in planning stages for the new requirement.
Haley Montgomery, communications director for Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District, said Starkville High School also offers a personal finance course. There is also instruction embedded in other academic opportunities at the middle school level as well, she said, including in the Cyber Foundations and Career Exploration classes taken by seventh- and eighth-graders.
“They typically have students budgeting, researching salaries and college costs related to their interests, and gaining additional basic understanding,” Montgomery wrote in an email to The Dispatch. “Some of our other high school pathways also include financial lessons, so the district already offers pockets of financial literacy instruction throughout 6th-12th grade.”
Montgomery said the district will wait until MDE determines the specific curriculum additions that will come with the new requirement.
“Once we see what MDE determines for the specifics, we can look at how our current offerings align and address any new implementation more specifically,” she said. “… Because the law does not currently include any funding, we hope to be able to expand on what we are already offering to fulfill the requirements.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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