According to a release, the Community Foundation of Mississippi will use those funds for administrative support for Better Together Commission over an 18-month period. It will also support “robust communication and community engagement.” The funds will not be sent directly to the school district. Jane Alexander, Community Foundation president and CEO, stated that the nature of the work required by the commission requires a lot of collaboration and relationship building. She also said that the funds will not be used to pay for school district expenses. As an alternative to the state taking over school districts, the Better Together Commission of 15 members was announced in October 2017. Gov. Phil Bryant, Phil Jackson, and W.K. Each Kellogg Foundation appointed five members to this commission. Kellogg will pay the costs of the evaluation. The members are responsible for engaging the community and hiring an external entity to evaluate the district. Insight Education Group, a California-based consultant, was recently chosen by the commission to conduct the study. The findings will be presented in November. The next Better Together meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 1, at the Margaret Walker Alexander Library.