Paid Leave Policy: Recommendations for Mississippi

Paid leave refers to a public or private program to compensate individuals when they miss time because of illness (paid sick leave), to tend to a newborn child (paid maternity and paternity leave), or to care for family members (paid family leave). As the law currently stands, the federal government provides unpaid leave in certain circumstances under the Family Medical Leave Act. Four states—New York, New Jersey, California, and Rhode Island—offer more comprehensive programs within their states. Mississippi not only offers no paid leave, but has a statewide policy limiting cities and towns from testing out their own paid leave policy with their voters’ approval. Such a procedural hurdle has stifled paid leave efforts in many states

Farm to School in Mississippi: A Step-by-Step Guide to Purchasing Mississippi Products

In a state with rich agricultural resources, lasting traditions of family farming, and a climate conducive to year-long growing seasons, why are Mississippi’s school children eating fruits and vegetables predominantly shipped from other states and countries? Farm to school programs that connect Mississippi farmers with schools offer a promising way to increase fruit and vegetable consumption for students while improving the economic viability of local farms. This step-by-step purchasing guide aims to help school food service directors in Mississippi start to purchase locally grown foods to be served in school meals

Legislative Recommendations for A Statewide Farm-to-School Bill in Mississippi

As states and school districts around the country consider strategies to address childhood obesity, programs that connect schools with local farmers selling fresh fruits and vegetables have emerged as effective means of improving fruit and vegetable consumption. Equally important, these programs spur economic development by creating a market for the sale of produce grown by local farmers, in which individual and governmental “food dollars” can be increasingly spent within the state. In 2010, over 2000 farm-to-school programs were in operation and 25 states had state-level farm-to-school policies

Farm to Institution

In a state with rich agricultural resources and a long farming tradition, why are Mississippi’s institutions serving fruits and vegetables mostly shipped from other states and countries? Connecting Mississippi growers with institutions within the state offers a promising way to increase fruit and vegetable consumption while improving the economic viability of local farms. This step-by-step guide aims to help growers in Mississippi start to sell locally grown foods to be served in meals at institutions around the state, such as hospitals, schools, prisons, and state and local government agencies

Expanding Farm to School in Mississippi: Analysis and Recommendations

“Farm to school” refers to any program that connects K-12 schools with local farmers. “Farm to cafeteria” and “farm to institution” are terms sometimes used for programs that include farm to school components, but might also focus on bringing local produce to other local institutions. Most farm to school efforts concentrate on what is called “farm direct” purchasing, where schools buy products directly from local farmers to serve in the school cafeteria. The business partnerships that develop through farm direct programs often lead to educational activities, with farmers and schools working together to teach students about nutrition, agriculture, the environment, and other subjects. Not all farm to school programs involve farm direct purchasing; food distributors that supply schools can also participate by purchasing locally grown products and making them available to school purchasing officers

Creating a More Efficient and Effective Food Safety System in Memphis and Shelby County

The taste of a fresh-picked peach on a warm summer day is one of life’s simple joys. A store-bought peach can never truly replicate the experience. But in Memphis, getting that peach from the farmer’s tree into the customer’s hand is not as simple as one would assume. The fruit cannot be simply picked from the tree and then sold from the back of a produce truck. Instead, someone wanting to sell these fruits from his truck must obtain a permit and conform to outdated rules, such as the requirement for the truck to remain in motion at all times except when making sales. This restriction is just one example of the many unnecessary provisions in the Memphis Food Code that serve as obstacles to economic opportunity and access to healthy food

Policy Options for Microlender Funding in Arkansas

Very small businesses, otherwise known as “microenterprises,” play vital roles in the local, state, and national economies. As engines of employment, entrepreneurship, and innovation, microenterprises can be highly successful vehicles for inclusive and robust economic growth. However, many such businesses are constrained by lack of access to credit. Microenterprise owners and entrepreneurs may lack the credit or operating history needed to obtain a traditional small business loan at a commercially viable rate of interest, or the loan amount requested may be too small for a traditional lender to consider. Undoubtedly, a great many entrepreneurial opportunities are lost for lack of viable financing

Strengthening the Farm to School Movement in Mississippi: Strategies and Policy Goals

In recent years, Mississippi has seen increasing demand for locally grown food. Many consumers, policymakers, and advocates now see locally grown food as bringing health, economic, and environmental benefits to the local community. “Farm to school,” a means of building relationships between local farms and schools, has become increasingly popular, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption among students and strengthening the local economy. In the last decade, farm to school in Mississippi has gone from a little-known concept to a state-supported approach adopted by school districts across the state. For example, through the Mississippi Department of Defense Farm to School Program, a partnership between Mississippi state agencies and federal agencies, the amount of local produce purchased in Mississippi schools increased by 334 percent between 2013 and 2015 alone

The Impact of Exclusionary School Discipline Policies and an Analysis of Alternative Approaches to Punishment

This report evaluates out-of-school suspension (OSS) in the context of the Clarksdale Municipal School District (CMSD) using research based in positive behavioral systems and alternative approaches to exclusionary punishment. Not only does OSS detrimentally impact suspended students hindering their learning and increasing their risk harmful behaviors, but OSS also has harmful collateral effects on the larger student body, the economy, public safety, and society. This report aims to identify particular problems associated with OSS as well as offer solutions, specifically examining Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS) through a local school case study, discussing effective teacher training for these types of disciplinary programs, and offering forms of alternative punishments that CMSD could consider implementing. While these strategies were designed specifically with CMSD’s conditions in mind, they can be adapted for other schools working to reduce their OSS rates

An Analysis of Programs to Engage At-risk Juveniles for the Clarksdale Boys of Color Initiative

This report aims to assist the Clarksdale Boys of Color Initiative (CBCI) in the development and implementation of programs and strategies to serve at-risk youth in Clarksdale, Mississippi. While this report was created specifically to assist CBCI, this report also aspires to be helpful to programs that are doing similar work in different communities, specifically rural areas within the Mississippi Delta Region (“the Delta). The burgeoning problems facing young men from minority backgrounds are not unique to the Delta, and thus the solutions outlined in this report should be useful to communities around the country working to fight these problems