Summary:
Pearl River County School District serves 3,128 students across three schools in Carriere, Mississippi: Pearl River Central Elementar (PK–5), Pearl River Central Junior High (6–8), and Pearl River Central High School (9–12). The district is highly rated, ranking 13th out of 134 Mississippi districts (90th percentile) with a 5-star rating; each school earned 4 stars in the most recent year.
Pearl River Central High School is the district’s standout, ranking 26th out of 224 high schools (88th percentile) after jumping from 69th the prior year. It posts excellent End-of-Course results — Algebra I at 83.9% proficiency (state 66.0%) and Biology at 78.7% — and has the district’s lowest free/reduced lunch rate (54.7%). Pearl River Central Junior High is the most improved school, climbing from the 54th to 77th percentile in one year; its 7th grade ELA jumped 15.7 points and 8th grade science rose 17.5 points, now exceeding state averages in every subject. Pearl River Central Elementar is solid, with excellent 5th grade science (85.3% vs. state 71.5%), but 4th grade math fell sharply from 74.0% to 61.2%, a red flag to watch.
District-wide, math and science are clear strengths, with the junior high’s math average near 64.4% and the high school’s EOC average around 74.1%. However, chronic absenteeism is a major concern — all three schools exceed the state rate of 23.9%, with the high school at 36.2% despite strong test scores. Meanwhile, the high school’s graduation rate (89.8%) is only slightly above the state average, and poverty levels vary by grade, with the elementary school serving the highest share of economically disadvantaged students (66.1%) yet still posting strong early-grade results. The district’s overall 5-star rating masks meaningful variation, from the elementary’s 72nd percentile to the high school’s 88th, but the junior high’s rapid improvement suggests the entire district is trending upward.
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