Mississippi Code Ann. §
37-43-31 contains a provision
whereby five or more school boards may petition the SBE to add a book or series
of textbooks to the state-adopted list. If a district so chooses to petition
the SBE, the following policies and procedures should be adhered to:
A. School districts may petition the SBE to
allow for the requisition of non-adopted textbooks.
1. Five or more school boards may petition
the SBE to add one or more textbooks or series of textbooks to the state
adopted list. The SBE will have sixty days to act upon the petition. If it is
not acted upon in this time period, the petition shall be deemed as
approved.
2. A school board may
petition for the requisition of "new and innovative" textbooks that have become
available since the last textbook adoption in the respective subject
area.
3. Textbooks may be procured
through the petition process from the regional textbook depository. Since
non-adopted textbooks may now be purchased with state funds, it is no longer
necessary to follow the steps of the petition process. However, if the district
or districts should choose to go the petition route, the SBE will consider the
petition for approval.
B. Consideration shall be given to the
following by the local school districts in the submission of petitions under
any of the above-named provisions:
1. Each
district that submits a petition must secure at least one copy of each textbook
included in the petition for review and evaluation purposes. Each district
submitting a petition shall select a committee of no fewer than three
individuals to review and evaluate each textbook or series included in the
petition. These individuals must have expertise in the subject area being
reviewed, and at least two of these individuals must be teachers. Each
reviewer/evaluator shall utilize and submit a copy of the review rubric used to
evaluate the instructional material. Each textbook will be reviewed based on
minimum quality indicators, which include but not limited to alignment to the
Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards.
2. Each district submitting a petition shall
provide a rationale as to why currently adopted textbooks are not sufficient to
meet the needs for the courses for which the non-adopted textbooks are
intended.
3. All textbooks
requisitioned through this process shall be purchased by the petitioning
district. Districts may submit petitions at any time during the school
year.
4. Each school district
submitting a petition for non-adopted textbooks shall receive approval of its
school board prior to submission, and it must state on the petition the date of
such board action.
5. Each district
submitting a petition request shall state on the petition the quantity of each
title petitioned along with information regarding the publisher.
Publishers/vendors having textbooks adopted through the
petition process must be willing to submit a bid, execute a contract and bond
with the state of Mississippi, and provide a stock of textbooks in the regional
depository sufficient to meet all reasonable demands. Consequently, school
districts must initially determine if the publisher whose textbooks are being
petitioned is willing to meet these requirements before submitting a petition.
Each publisher whose textbooks are petitioned must supply one copy of each
student and teacher edition to the MDE Office of Instructional Materials and
Library Media to be used for review purposes. If the textbook is subsequently
approved by the SBE, it will be placed on file for review. Contracts with
publishers/vendors of successfully petitioned textbooks will have the same
expiration dates as all other textbooks in like subject areas.
C. The MDE shall
designate one person, with expertise in the respective subject area(s) for
which textbooks are petitioned, to review the petition and the textbook, and
recommend to the SBE the appropriate action to be taken regarding the addition
of the textbooks to the state adopted list.
D. Districts receiving SBE approval on
petitions will be notified promptly, and action will be taken to add the
requested textbooks to the state-adopted list as soon as possible.
E. School districts considering the petition
process should remember the following:
1. The
petition process requires considerable effort to demonstrate the quality and
alignment of the content.
2. The
petition must be approved by the local school board.
3. The publisher of the petitioned textbook
will need to submit a bid and execute a contract and bond upon approval by the
SBE.
4. State textbook law now
permits the purchase of non-adopted textbooks directly from the publisher
resulting in a timely delivery if this approach is selected over the petition
process.
