Mississippi Education Policy Fellowship

OVERVIEW

For 25 years, the MS-EPF has been bringing individuals together to advance equitable policies for Mississippi’s students. Housed at the Social Science Research Center at MSU, MS-EPF creates meaningful opportunities for Fellows to come together to learn about education policy. 

MS-EPF Fellows are professionals who have a direct interest in education policy from early childhood through higher education and workforce development. This includes administrators, educators, and higher education professionals, as well as individuals from non-profit, community-based, and business organizations and social service agencies.

Over an eight-month commitment, Fellows concentrate on three program strands: policy, leadership, and networking.

Through program activities, Fellows:

• develop a deeper understanding of current local, state, and national education policy design and implementation 
• learn about rural education contexts and the unique policy needs of rural educational settings, like those in most of Mississippi
• build knowledge and skills to engage in effective advocacy, including the skills to engage with the people and institutions that shape policy
• strengthen leadership skills and build capacity to work in collaborative settings
• build networks of diverse professionals to advance their work and the work of education advocacy.

The MS-EPF requires a significant commitment of time and energy. Participation involves monthly in-person meetings. The program tuition, as well as travel costs for the in-person meetings and the trip to DC, are typically paid by the Fellow’s sponsor but may also be paid by the individual. With the understanding that maximum benefits are achieved through full participation in all meetings and the national seminar, the fellow and the fellow’s sponsor (if applicable) agree that the fellow will participate fully in the program. More than two absences from meetings and events listed as “core events” and/or failure to attend the D.C. visit may result in dismissal from the program. 

• What is MS-EPF? 
  •  MS-EPF is an eight-month program housed at Mississippi State University. MS-EPF brings together education leaders and stakeholders from around the state to discuss education policy and cultivate a statewide and national network of education policy leaders. 

• Who should participate in MS-EPF?
  • The program is available to professionals interested in education policy and advocacy. The program is particularly targeted at leaders in the context of education and human services. Past MS-EPF Fellows include school and district leaders, educators, higher education and community college faculty, non-profit leaders, social service agency leaders, business leaders, and community members. 

• What are the requirements? 
  • Fellows commit eight months to an intensive professional development experience concentrated on three program strands: policy, leadership, and networking. They attend monthly sessions to deepen their knowledge of education policy but remain in their full-time positions and use their work environment as the context for examining important leadership and policy issues. 

• How do Fellows benefit? 
  • Fellows learn about specific education policy issues, policy-making and implementation processes, the intersections of local, state, and national policies, and how effective leaders function in the education policy environment. Participation in MS-EPF opens doors for Fellows to network and collaborate with state and national education leaders. Upon program completion, Fellows gain access to a rich national alumni network. The  MS-EPF program focuses on rural education contexts and implications for policy and advocacy. All but a handful of Mississippi’s school districts are classified as rural by federal guidelines, and our rural context impacts state and national policymaking for everything from college attendance, the role of the school in the community, workforce preparation, teacher shortages, and more. These issues are discussed with a focus on opportunities for rural students from early childhood through higher education. 

• How does Mississippi benefit? 
  • With the implementation of the fellowship programming, the MS-EPF cultivates strategic leaders who can advocate for and create sound public policy to improve education. Ultimately, MS-EPF seeks to improve the chances of Mississippians to succeed. 

• What is the Fellowship programming like?  
  • MS-EPF is comprised of site-level activities and national programming. MS-EPF meets one day a month from September to April.  MS-EPF also includes a multi-day visit to Washington, DC, in Spring 2026. Fellows participate in engaging meetings that include opportunities to meet state and national elected officials. Fellows build leadership and advocacy skills through a variety of learning experiences and develop relationships with other state education leaders to support their future work.

• How do I apply? 
  • You can apply for the 2025-26 cohort at Application, https://forms.gle/at1vWHgUW6713Jue7.

• What is the financial investment? 
  • The program tuition for the MS-EPF is $2,150. There are also additional expenses for travel and lodging for in-person MS-EPF meetings.

Devon Brenner (EPF ’04-05)  
Director, Social Science Research Center, and Professor, Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education, Mississippi State University 

Devon Brenner is director of the Social Science Research Center at Mississippi State University and a professor of teacher education in the MSU College of Education. Brenner was previously an Education Policy Fellow in the office of U.S. Senator Thad Cochran in Washington D.C. and an assistant vice president in the MSU Office of Research and Economic Development. Brenner is currently president-elect of the National Rural Education Association and policy brief editor of The Rural Educator, an academic journal about rural education. Her research focuses on rural teacher recruitment and retention and rural education policy, and she is co-author of the textbook Teaching in Rural Places: Thriving in Classrooms, Schools, and Communities. Brenner has served as co-coordinator of the Mississippi EPF program since 2016.

Dana Franz
Director of Academic Quality and Professor, Office of Institutional Research & Effectiveness

Dana Franz, PhD (Texas A&M University), is the Director of Academic Quality in the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness and Professor of Secondary Education, Mathematics in the College of Education. Dr. Franz’s research focuses on recruitment and retention of mathematics education teachers and preparation of secondary mathematics teachers. She is currently the Co-PI on the NSF-funded Noyce collaborative research grant Teacher Preparation for Rural Teacher Persistence and Retention (TPR)2, and co-leader of the Mathematics Teacher Education Partnership: A Networked Community of Institutions across the US studying the recruitment and preparation of secondary mathematics educators. Dr. Franz’s new appointment to Academic Quality is a direct result of her expertise in teacher professional development and program improvement.

2024-25 Fellows

Phone: 662-325-7127

Email: ms-epf@ssrc.msstate.edu

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5287

Mississippi State, MS 39762