Hollandale School District

The Hollandale School District in Hollandale, MS, includes three small public schools serving grades PK-12 with very high poverty levels, yet several subject areas and attendance rates exceed state averages.

Within the district, Simmons High School is the clear standout, with a graduation rate of 91.7% (above the state's 89.2%) and strong proficiency in Algebra I, U.S. History, and Biology. It also has the smallest class sizes (10.6 students per teacher) and has rebounded to a 2-star rating. Simmons Junior High offers bright spots too: 7th grade ELA proficiency (41.2%) beat the state, and it has the lowest chronic absenteeism (19.4%) among the three schools. Sanders Elementary is the lowest-ranked school but shows promise in 5th grade science (65.2% proficient, up nearly 20 points in one year) and 4th grade ELA, where it outperformed the state. Overall, these schools face real challenges—especially in math and English at some grade levels—but they are not uniformly low-performing.

Parents should know that subject strengths vary widely within each school. For example, Simmons High students excel in Algebra I (68%) but struggle with English II (27.7% vs. state 49.3%). At Simmons Junior High, 7th graders beat the state in ELA while 6th graders lag far behind in the same subject. Sanders Elementary has severe math gaps (4th grade proficiency is just 10.3%) but relatively strong science. Because enrollment is small, rankings can swing from year to year as cohorts change. Encouragingly, all three schools have chronic absenteeism below the state average, and near-universal free/reduced lunch eligibility has not prevented pockets of academic success. If you're comparing schools, Simmons High leads in overall performance, while Simmons Junior High has the best attendance and one strong grade-level cohort.