Summary:
The Moss Point School District is a small Mississippi district of four schools—two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school—serving roughly 1,611 students in a high-poverty area where nearly every child qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. Among the four schools, Moss Point High School stands out as the clear bright spot. It beats state averages in Algebra I (72% vs. 66%) and Biology (76.6% vs. 63.1%), posts a 92.2% graduation rate, and has climbed from the 47th to the 56th percentile in state rankings over the past three years. Its weak spot is English II, where only 37.9% of students are proficient versus 49.3% statewide.
Magnolia Middle School shows the most encouraging signs of growth. Seventh-grade math jumped from 44.9% to 56.2% proficiency, nearly matching the state average, and eighth-grade math rose 13.5 points to 38.9%. However, ELA scores remain low across all middle school grades, with gaps of 11 to 13 points below state averages.
The most concerning picture is at Escatawpa Upper Elementary, where 3rd grade math proficiency sits at just 16.2%—a staggering 32.6-point gap from the state average—and the school's ranking has fallen from the 24th to the 11th percentile in just two years. District-wide, chronic absenteeism is 36.7%, more than 1.5 times the state rate, and no school meets state averages in English Language Arts. Kreole Primary Elementary, serving the youngest students, has the lowest absenteeism rate at 30.4%, though no test data is available for grades PK–2. While the overall district holds a 2-star rating, Moss Point High demonstrates that success is possible even in a high-poverty environment.
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