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Runnelstown School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

308^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 377 Mississippi Elementary Schools

Better than 18% of Mississippi elementary schools

Summary

Runnelstown School is a small K-5 elementary school located in Petal, MS, serving about 173 students (roughly 29 per grade) as part of the Perry County School District. Despite its Petal address, it belongs to Perry County rather than the higher-ranked Petal School District. It is one of the smallest elementary schools in the area, yet it offers a favorable 10:1 student-teacher ratio. About 75.7% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a high-poverty population, though several nearby schools have even higher poverty rates.

Academically, the school has experienced a sharp decline. After ranking 98th in Mississippi (74th percentile, 4 stars) in 2021-22, it dropped to 307th of 377 schools (19th percentile, 1 star) by 2025-26. The biggest concerns are early literacy and math: 3rd-grade reading proficiency fell to 25% (down from 64.3% in 2022-23), 3rd-grade math to 37.5% (down from 67.8%), and 5th-grade math to just 19% in 2025-26.

Chronic absenteeism is likely part of the picture — at 25%, it is the highest in the surrounding area and above the state's 23.9% rate. On a positive note, 5th-grade science has been a consistent strength, with 71.4% proficiency in 2024-25 versus the state's 66.3%. The contrast with nearby Petal Elementary 3-4 is stark: that school, just 5.6 miles away and part of the Petal School District, posted 61.8% 3rd-grade reading proficiency compared to Runnelstown's 25%. While poverty and absenteeism are real obstacles, they don't tell the whole story — several schools with 100% poverty rates outperform Runnelstown on state tests.

173

Students ?

10.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,902

Per pupil spending ?

75.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

9214 Highway 42
Petal, MS 39465

(601) 544-2811

District: Perry County School District

Students who attend Runnelstown School usually attend:

High:

Perry Central High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

78.6%

African American:

13.3%

Two or more races:

5.2%

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Compare Runnelstown School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 43rd percentile in 2016 → 18th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Mississippi average (37% vs 54% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (18th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 25 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school37%

District avg38%

Mississippi avg54%

308^th of 377

Mississippi public elementary schools ?

Bottom 18%▼ down 25 pts since 2016

From bottom 43% (2016) to bottom 18% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Mississippi Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Elementary Schools in the Perry County School District

77^th of 133Perry County School District among Mississippi districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Mississippi percentile	Rating
2026	23.7	308 of 377	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	35.3	258 of 380	32.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.6	233 of 380	38.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	52.6	169 of 358	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	71.8	98 of 355	72.4%	★★★★☆
2021	52.4	179 of 352	49.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	39.0	229 of 354	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	39.1	241 of 351	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	41.5	232 of 406	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2016	42.4	225 of 394	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2015	37.7	240 of 402	40.3%	★★☆☆☆
2014	41.6	246 of 394	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2013	43.9	241 of 408	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	46.5	223 of 414	46.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	50.5	207 of 418	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2010	55.0	181 of 403	55.1%	★★★☆☆
2009	65.1	129 of 392	67.1%	★★★☆☆
2008	62.6	139 of 394	64.7%	★★★☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Mississippi percentile	Rating
2017	41.3	160 of 272	41.2%	★★☆☆☆
2016	52.5	120 of 260	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	33.1	174 of 266	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2014	51.3	128 of 264	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2013	38.2	174 of 269	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2012	36.3	185 of 270	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2011	65.9	89 of 264	66.3%	★★★☆☆
2010	60.1	102 of 255	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2009	46.8	141 of 247	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2008	56.4	119 of 244	51.2%	★★★☆☆

By subject vs Mississippi (2025-2026) ?

Science57%-14 vs state

English Language Arts38%-14 vs state

Mathematics30%-20 vs state

★

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Schools Near Runnelstown School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				MAAP English Language Arts (2026)						MAAP Mathematics (2026)						MAAP Science (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MAAP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MAAP English Language Arts 4th Grade	MAAP English Language Arts 5th Grade	MAAP English Language Arts 6th Grade	MAAP English Language Arts 7th Grade	MAAP English Language Arts 8th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 3rd Grade	MAAP Mathematics 4th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 5th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 6th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 7th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 8th Grade	MAAP Science 5th Grade	MAAP Science 8th Grade	Total
Runnelstown School	Public	PK, KG-5	9214 Highway 42	Petal	39465	Forrest County	Perry County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 544-2811	173	17	10.0	75.7%	136 (78.6%)	23 (13.3%)	2 (1.2%)	3 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (5.2%)	23.7	308^th of 377 public elementary schools	18.3%		35.3	258^th of 380 public elementary schools	32.1%	50	25.0	45.1	42.8				37.5	32.3	19.0				57.2		$14,902
Petal Elementary 3-4	Public	3-4	1179 Hwy 42 E	Petal	39465	Forrest County	Petal School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 584-9400	636	48	13.3	60.1%	436 (68.6%)	102 (16.0%)	49 (7.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	46 (7.2%)	83.2	48^th of 377 public elementary schools	87.3%		83.1	53^rd of 380 public elementary schools	86.1%	5	61.8	65.2					64.9	70.2							$10,680
Petal Primary School	Public	PK, KG-2	60 Herrington Road	Petal	39465	Forrest County	Petal School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 554-7244	1,016	75	13.6	63.7%	678 (66.7%)	193 (19.0%)	90 (8.9%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	49 (4.8%)								(n/a)															$10,067
Richton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	701 Elm Avenue	Richton	39476	Perry County	Richton School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 788-6975	305	23	13.4	63.6%	208 (68.2%)	72 (23.6%)	10 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.9%)	50.7	181^st of 377 public elementary schools	52.0%		38.3	242^nd of 380 public elementary schools	36.3%	61	48.1	50.0	58.3	31.6			44.2	26.3	75.0	76.3			61.1		$10,264
Earl Travillion Attendance Center	Public	PK, KG-8	316 Travillion Drive	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Forrest County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 584-9303	261	27	9.7	96.9%	10 (3.8%)	183 (70.1%)	32 (12.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (13.8%)	23.4	312^th of 377 public elementary schools	17.2%		21.3	319^th of 380 public elementary schools	16.1%	7	41.7	19.2	23.8	40.9	21.1	16.6	50.0	23.0	42.9	27.3	26.4	33.3	42.8	58.3	$13,805
Rowan Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	500 Martin Luther King Drive	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Hattiesburg	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 583-0960	425	26	16.6	99.5%	1 (0.2%)	384 (90.4%)	21 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (4.5%)	77.8	73^rd of 377 public elementary schools	80.6%		72.7	97^th of 380 public elementary schools	74.5%	24	50.0	72.9	61.9				59.3	71.1	66.7				80.5		$12,825
Hawkins Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	901 Ida Ave.	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Hattiesburg	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 583-4311	283	23	12.3	99.6%	9 (3.2%)	175 (61.8%)	78 (27.6%)	2 (0.7%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (6.4%)	36.3	245^th of 377 public elementary schools	35.0%		37.6	247^th of 380 public elementary schools	35.0%	2	22.9	40.6	58.1				25.0	37.6	27.9				90.7		$14,576
Grace Christian Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2207 W 7th Street	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Hattiesburg	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 583-0662	367	22	16.3	100.0%	7 (1.9%)	320 (87.2%)	7 (1.9%)	5 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (7.6%)	64.6	123^rd of 377 public elementary schools	67.4%		66	129^th of 380 public elementary schools	66.1%	6	50.0	64.3	52.8				50.0	71.4	50.9				76.4		$12,446
Woodley Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2006 O Ferrell St	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Hattiesburg	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 583-8112	422	27	15.8	100.0%	43 (10.2%)	248 (58.8%)	112 (26.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (4.5%)	74	92^nd of 377 public elementary schools	75.6%		74.5	85^th of 380 public elementary schools	77.6%	7	75.8	59.7	50.7				88.9	65.3	50.0				78.3		$11,339
North Forrest Elementary School	Public	K-6	702 Eatonville Road	Hattiesburg	39401	Forrest County	Forrest County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 584-6466	209	19	10.8	92.3%	47 (22.5%)	133 (63.6%)	14 (6.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (7.2%)								(n/a)															$15,890

Frequently Asked Questions about Runnelstown School

What district is Runnelstown School in?

Perry County School District

What is the racial makeup of Runnelstown School?

Students at Runnelstown School are 79% White, 13% African American, 5% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 1% Hispanic.

What schools do graduates of Runnelstown School attend?

Students who attend Runnelstown School usually go on to attend:

High : Perry Central High School

How many students attend Runnelstown School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 173 students attended Runnelstown School.

Is Runnelstown School a good school?

Runnelstown School ranks in the bottom 18.3% of Mississippi elementary schools.

Rate Runnelstown School!

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Schools in Petal, MS

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Latest Mississippi data All new data »

2024–25 attendance dataNewOct 6, 2026

2025–26 MAAP test scoresAug 21, 2026

2023–24 school spending dataSep 26, 2025

2023–24 through 2024–25 attendance data & graduation ratesSep 26, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Mississippi Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.