Marksville High School

Marksville High School in Marksville, LA, serves 640 students in grades 7 through 12 and is part of the Avoyelles Parish school district, with a high percentage of students (78.59%) from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Marksville High School consistently ranks as the lowest-performing school in its immediate area, with academic proficiency rates significantly below district and state averages. In the 2025-2026 school year, only 42% of students were proficient in mathematics (compared to 53% district-wide and 62% statewide), and just 48% were proficient in English Language Arts (compared to 64% district-wide and 70% statewide). This gap is even more pronounced when compared to nearby high-performing schools like Bunkie Magnet High School and LA School for Ag Science, which achieve proficiency rates 20-30 percentage points higher in most subjects. A major factor driving these low scores is chronic absenteeism: 32.4% of students are chronically absent, far exceeding the district average of 26.1% and the state average of 22.5%, and notably worse than Avoyelles High School (27.0%) and LA School for Ag Science (22.0%).

Despite these challenges, there are signs of progress. The school's graduation rate has risen from 80.0% in 2018-2019 to 91.8% in 2023-2024, well above the state average of 83.5%, and the dropout rate is remarkably low at 1.3%. However, the high chronic absenteeism rate suggests that while students are staying enrolled, many are not attending class regularly, which undermines academic achievement. The school's overall state ranking has improved from the 4th percentile in 2015-2016 to the 14th percentile in 2025-2026, indicating modest recent gains. For parents considering this school, the key takeaway is that while Marksville High School faces significant academic and attendance challenges, it is making strides in keeping students on track to graduate.