Wicker Commends Mississippi Graduates

Graduation season is in full swing in Mississippi, and our students, parents, and teachers have a great deal to celebrate. Our high school graduation rate hit a state record last year, ranking among the highest in the nation. Meanwhile, dropout rates have fallen every year since 2014. The world is taking notes from our improved reading performance, and, in the most recent Nation's Report Card, Mississippi was the only state where student scores improved in all four reading and math exams.

Mississippi Students Impress

I recently met with a group of Moss Point high school students who embody these incredible trends. Azai Zatiti, Aariyah Davis, and Semir McMillion attend the Career and Technical Education school, where they are gaining skills that have already made a mark on a national level.

The group created an artificial intelligence (AI) tool with direct application for the Mississippi coast. The device, called FishGuard AI, tracks water pH, oxygen, and temperature levels, among other environmental data. The system uses this information to anticipate incoming changes to water quality, which can result in "die-offs," or the unexpected loss of a fish population. That advanced notice is helping Mississippians treat the water and preserve the populations of their fish ponds or oyster reefs-giving our aquaculture industry a leg up.

The group made it to the national finals in Samsung's "Solve for Tomorrow" science and technology competition. For their work, the students won the Employee Choice Award and brought home $50,000 in prize money for their school.

Mississippi Students Serve

Mississippi undergraduate and graduate students are also continuing to impress. Nearly all our public universities boasted increased enrollment in the 2024-2025 year. This January, the state's oldest institution of higher learning, Mississippi College, turned 200. And, like the Moss Point students, those graduating from our universities are eager to use their talents for the good of their communities.

That was clear to me this month as I addressed Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) graduates at the University of Mississippi. While their loved ones watched, full of pride, nine cadets swore the oath to become commissioned officers in the U.S. Air Force.

Much has changed since I took my oath to become a new Air Force second lieutenant on that very same campus. Today, the United States faces threats that are both more complicated and dangerous than any we have seen since World War II. These young people love their country, and they have stepped up to ensure we remain in a world where the United States and our values lead.

Inspiring Rising Generation

Those values will be on full display in a few short weeks, when Americans celebrate our 250th Independence Day. We will all look back on our Founding Fathers, who courageously risked their lives to sign the Declaration of Independence. We will think of Thomas Jefferson, who drafted that famous declaration. And we will remember James Madison, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and, most of all, George Washington. He turned down a chance to rule for life, ensuring that America would never have another King George.

It is our duty to ensure that young Americans learn these foundational stories. This Congress, I-along with a Democrat, an Independent, and another Republican-introduced the Constitution Education Is Valuable In Community Schools, or CIVICS, Act. The legislation would allow primary and secondary schools to receive federal funding only if they include U.S. Constitution programming in their curriculum.

The bill is based on an idea that President Reagan articulated very well. He said that freedom is "never more than one generation away from extinction." America's semiquincentennial is a special opportunity to pass these principles on to the rising generation as they move ahead into the next 250 years.