Brinkley Middle School

Brinkley Middle School is a public middle school in Jackson, Mississippi, serving 354 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the Jackson Public School District, which is ranked 98 out of 130 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger. Brinkley Middle School has a predominantly African American student population, with over 98% of students identifying as such in recent years.

Brinkley Middle School consistently ranks among the lowest-performing middle schools in Mississippi, with its statewide ranking ranging from 233 to 264 out of 243-264 middle schools over the past decade. The school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are significantly lower than the state and district averages, often by 20-30 percentage points. However, the school has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 9.1 to 11.9 over the past three years, and a 100% free and reduced lunch rate, indicating that all students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Despite the low academic performance, Brinkley Middle School spends more per student, $10,727 in the 2018-2019 school year, than some of the higher-performing nearby schools, such as Northwest Middle School and Bailey Middle Apac School.

The persistent low performance of Brinkley Middle School, coupled with its overwhelmingly African American student population and higher per-student spending, suggests that the school is facing significant challenges in improving student outcomes. While factors beyond just student demographics may be contributing to the differences in academic performance, the school's consistent ranking among the lowest-performing middle schools in Mississippi raises questions about the effective allocation and utilization of resources to support student learning.