Summary:
Bentonia, Mississippi, is served by a single elementary school, Bentonia Gibbs School, which enrolls 380 students in grades PK–5 within the Yazoo County School District. This school is the only one in the city, so all local educational data for Bentonia comes from this one campus, which serves a predominantly high-poverty population—99.21% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Bentonia Gibbs School stands out for its favorable conditions: a low student-teacher ratio of 12.3 and a chronic absenteeism rate of 20.8%, which is notably better than the district's 31.7% and the state's 23.9%. Academically, its strongest subject is 5th grade science, with 69.1% proficiency in 2025–2026, slightly above the district and near the state average. However, math is a persistent weakness—2025–2026 math proficiency across grades 3–5 was 37.0% versus the state's 50.0%, and 5th grade math was especially low at 28.5%. The school has been rated 2 stars for three consecutive years, ranking in the 33rd percentile in 2025–2026 after a brief improvement to the 40th percentile the prior year. Proficiency levels show large year-to-year swings, particularly in math, such as 3rd grade jumping from 21.1% to 44.7% while 4th grade dropped from 61.5% to 37.7%.
For parents, the picture is mixed: Bentonia Gibbs School has good attendance and small class sizes, and it outperforms its district in science, but it generally mirrors the district's overall performance, which sits well below state averages in ELA and math. The school's ranking percentile (33rd) matches the district's, reflecting a school that is representative of a lower-performing district. Since there are no secondary schools in Bentonia, students must continue their education elsewhere within the Yazoo County School District after 5th grade. The most urgent focus should be on improving elementary math, while maintaining the school's relative strengths in science and attendance.
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