Summary:
Florence, Mississippi, is home to 6 schools serving roughly 3,378 students in grades PK through 12, all part of the highly rated Rankin County School District, which ranks 25th out of 134 districts in the state. The city includes three elementary schools, one middle school, and two high schools, with a mix of academic standouts and schools facing greater challenges.
For parents looking for top academic performance, Florence Elementary is the clear star, ranking 5th out of 377 elementary schools in Mississippi with a 5-star rating. Its students post remarkable scores, with 5th grade science proficiency at 92.9% and math proficiency ranging from 75.8% to 87.1%, while chronic absenteeism sits at just 9.5%, far below the state average of 23.9%. Florence Middle School is also elite, ranked 19th in the state with a 5-star rating, and nearly every 8th grader taking Algebra I is proficient — 98.6% versus the state average of 66%. Florence High School offers a strong graduation rate of 95% and solid Biology scores, though its Algebra I scores lag behind the middle school's exceptional results.
On the other side, the McLaurin schools — McLaurin Elementary and McLaurin High School — serve a higher percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch (about 73-75%) and struggle more with attendance and test scores. McLaurin High's state ranking has been volatile, swinging from #97 to #37 to #88, and despite having the lowest student-teacher ratio in the city (8.6), its outcomes remain inconsistent. Steens Creek Elementary, which serves PK-2, has no test data yet but shows average attendance and the highest class sizes. Overall, Florence's schools show a clear pattern: the Florence cluster excels with top-tier rankings, while the McLaurin cluster faces more obstacles, making school choice within this district an important consideration for parents.
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