MSMS prides itself on being accessible to students from all over the state. Room and board fees are waived for students who are considered financially disadvantaged by the state. However, despite MSMS having a financially affordable reputation, hidden fees remain rampant in the form of necessary school supplies. The most notable charge is buying a calculator and a laptop, both necessary for attending MSMS. 

The TI-84 is well known among MSMS students for its role in rigorous math and science classes. However, the TI-84 has one large drawback: the price tag. 

Retailing at approximately $120, the TI-84 is recommended by MSMS to purchase prior to enrolling. Because of the exorbitant price, many students are unable to afford the calculator and have to make the difficult decision of whether to purchase it.

Junior Minh Nguyen said due to the retail price of the TI-84, he recommends purchasing a secondhand calculator to get a better deal. 

“For that much lower price, other people should just buy these calculators used, and they all run the exact same regardless,” Nguyen said. 

Junior Sasha Harvey said although the TI-84 is good in quality, there is still a chance it could break, leading to another extravagant fee. 

“Although it might seem that they last five to six years, my calculator did break, so that’s something to put into consideration. Although it might say it will last a long time, that’s not always the reality of the situation,” she said. 

Contrary to popular belief, MSMS math classes are not the main proponents for TI-84 calculators. Most math classes, including Foundations For Higher Math, trigonometry and even calculus, utilize no-calculator assessments. 

Math teacher Lauren Zarandona said she supports tests without calculators to ensure students understand how to solve problems rather than just getting the final answer. Zarandona sympathized with students who had to purchase TI-84 calculators. She said she prefers more affordable options, including older models of the Texas Instruments calculators or even a free online graphing calculator such as Desmos. 

“I really like some of the free websites that we can use to supplement the calculator, particularly Desmos. If I can use Desmos, I’ll use that in place of a calculator. If you’ve taken [trigonometry] from me, we don’t use the calculator much because we don’t need it,” Zarandona said. 

However, calculators are not the main financial burden students have at MSMS. Students are highly recommended to purchase laptops for class use. With many students coming from lower-income backgrounds, this purchase is a big sacrifice they have to make. Although laptops can be lent to students for temporary use, this solution is not always reliable. 

Harvey said she wished the school could provide laptops for students who came from lower backgrounds. 

“It would be nice if MSMS at least provided computers for lower-income students. I think they should allow people who are subsidized to a certain degree to use their computers for the next two years so they can save up money to afford for when they go to college,” she said. 

For many students, purchasing an approximately $500 laptop is not feasible due to financial situations. Despite MSMS being open to students from all backgrounds, some necessary purchases are burdensome, which may prevent talented students from applying. 

Mississippi’s average salary is $47,000, nearly $20,000 less than the average U.S. salary, and expecting students to make these purchases is unrealistic.