Best Public Schools in Richland, MS

Richland, Mississippi, is served by three public schools — Richland Elementary (PK–2), Richland Upper Elementary (3–6), and Richland High School (7–12) — all part of the Rankin County School District, a 4-star district ranked 25th out of 134 in the state. Together these schools serve about 1,580 students, and notably there is no traditional middle school, so 7th and 8th graders attend the high school. The city's schools are high-poverty (roughly 73% to 79% free/reduced lunch) and generally underperform their strong district, especially at the high school level.

The biggest concern is Richland High School, whose state ranking collapsed from the 57th percentile (3 stars) in 2024-2025 to the 24th percentile (1 star) in 2025-2026. Declines were broad-based: 8th grade math fell from 62.3% to 45.0% proficiency, 8th grade ELA from 48.3% to 37.0%, English II from 54.8% to 38.5%, and Biology from 61.9% to 47.3%. Yet the school reports a 95.5% graduation rate, well above the state average of 89.2% — a stark mismatch between earning diplomas and meeting academic benchmarks. Meanwhile, Richland Upper Elementary is the most stable school, holding steady at a 3-star rating and the 61st–62nd percentile for three years. It has some strong spots (5th grade science at 77.2%, above the state average) but also sharp drops, like 5th grade math at 42.3% versus the district's 69.5%.

Richland Elementary serves the youngest students and has no test scores, but its early-warning indicators stand out: the highest poverty rate in the city (78.86%) and 18.8% chronic absenteeism. Chronic absenteeism is a citywide issue, ranging from 18.8% to 23.5% across all three schools, above the district's 13.7%. Student-teacher ratios are counterintuitive — the high school has the smallest class sizes (10.3) yet the weakest outcomes, suggesting staffing alone isn't the answer. Overall, Richland's schools face significant economic and attendance challenges within a strong district; Upper Elementary is the most reliable performer, the high school needs urgent attention despite its high graduation rate, and the elementary school is the earliest place to invest in support.