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South Side Upper Elementary

Q: Is South Side Upper Elementary a good school?

South Side Upper Elementary ranks 146 th of 383 Mississippi elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 3-6

146^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 383 Mississippi Elementary Schools

Better than 62% of Mississippi elementary schools

Summary

South Side Elementary School is a public elementary school serving grades 3-6 in Picayune, Mississippi, with 313 students. It is part of the Picayune School District, which is ranked 61 out of 130 school districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

South Side Elementary consistently outperforms the Picayune School District and the state of Mississippi in standardized test scores across grades and subjects. For example, in 2024-2025, 52.7% of 3rd graders at South Side were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 44.3% for the district and 49.4% for the state. However, the school faces challenges with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 23.9% to 30.2% over the past few years. Additionally, all students at South Side qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high-poverty student population.

When comparing South Side Elementary to other schools in the Picayune district, it generally outperforms them on test scores, particularly in math and science. However, the nearby West Side Elementary and Roseland Park Elementary schools have stronger ELA performance in some grades. Interestingly, the schools in the neighboring Hancock County School District, such as East Hancock Elementary and Hancock North Central Elementary, significantly outperform South Side Elementary and the Picayune district on test scores, despite having similar free/reduced lunch rates.

310

Students ?

14.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,768

Per pupil spending ?

79.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1500 Rosa Street
Picayune, MS 39466

(601) 798-1105

District: Picayune School District

Students who attend South Side Upper Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Picayune Junior High School
High:	Picayune Memorial High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

59.7%

African American:

31.3%

Hispanic:

5.5%

See top rated Mississippi elementary schools

Compare South Side Upper Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 47th percentile in 2014 → 62nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 15 percentile points since 2014

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Picayune School District

✓Above the Mississippi median (62nd percentile)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school57%

District avg48%

Mississippi avg53%

146^th of 383

Mississippi public elementary schools ?

Top 38%▲ up 5 pts since 2015

From top 43% (2015) to top 38% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Mississippi Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 4Elementary Schools in the Picayune School District

61^st of 130Picayune 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Mississippi percentile	Rating
2025	63.0	146 of 383	61.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	72.1	101 of 390	74.1%	★★★★☆
2023	62.9	135 of 377	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.9	168 of 382	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	60.9	150 of 397	62.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.9	155 of 404	61.6%	★★★☆☆
2017	54.4	174 of 406	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2016	57.0	166 of 394	57.9%	★★★☆☆
2015	51.7	174 of 402	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2014	49.3	210 of 394	46.7%	★★☆☆☆
2013	42.6	248 of 408	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	40.1	258 of 414	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2011	37.7	286 of 418	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	43.3	245 of 403	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2009	42.9	238 of 392	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2008	35.3	270 of 394	31.5%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Mississippi (2024-2025) ?

Science75%+8 vs state

Mathematics55%~ state avg

English Language Arts54%+3 vs state

★

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Schools Near South Side Upper Elementary

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MAAP English Language Arts (2025)				MAAP Mathematics (2025)				MAAP Science (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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 Mathematics 3rd Grade	MAAP Mathematics 4th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 5th Grade	MAAP Mathematics 6th Grade	MAAP Science 5th Grade	Total
South Side Upper Elementary	Public	3-6	1500 Rosa Street	Picayune	39466	Pearl River County	Picayune School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 798-1105	310	21	14.4	79.4%	185 (59.7%)	97 (31.3%)	17 (5.5%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.9%)	63	146^th of 383 public elementary schools	61.9%		72.1	101^st of 390 public elementary schools	74.1%	45	52.7	58.3	51.3	53.4	45.9	68.4	53.4	50.7	74.6	$9,768
South Side Lower Elementary	Public	PK, KG-2	400 South Beech Street	Picayune	39466	Pearl River County	Picayune School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 799-0683	320	19	17.0	82.2%	184 (57.5%)	101 (31.6%)	23 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (3.8%)								(n/a)										$9,726
West Side Elementary	Public	K-6	111 Kirkwood Street	Picayune	39466	Pearl River County	Picayune School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 798-3625	444	26	16.9	74.1%	267 (60.1%)	110 (24.8%)	36 (8.1%)	8 (1.8%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (4.7%)	40.9	228^th of 383 public elementary schools	40.5%		46.8	213^th of 390 public elementary schools	45.4%	15	45.2	58.0	46.4	51.1	31.5	60.0	25.0	51.1	41.0	$10,055
Roseland Park Elementary	Public	K-6	1610 Gilcrease Street	Picayune	39466	Pearl River County	Picayune School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 798-6824	370	18	20.3		210 (56.8%)	106 (28.6%)	35 (9.5%)	9 (2.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.4%)	39.1	239^th of 383 public elementary schools	37.6%		36.4	257^th of 390 public elementary schools	34.1%	18	29.8	58.2	50.0	41.9	38.6	60.5	31.3	28.0	60.5	$11,030
Nicholson Elementary	Public	K-6	1887 Hwy 11 South	Picayune	39466	Pearl River County	Picayune School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 798-6309	324	22	14.6	84.6%	154 (47.5%)	84 (25.9%)	69 (21.3%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.6%)	33.3	265^th of 383 public elementary schools	30.8%		40.2	246^th of 390 public elementary schools	36.9%	19	46.9	34.7	43.1	28.5	59.2	46.9	15.7	37.1	56.8	$10,841
Pearl River Central Elementar	Public	PK, KG-5	116 Alphabet Ave	Carriere	39426	Pearl River County	Pearl River County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(601) 799-4519	1,414	84	16.8	66.1%	1,191 (84.2%)	43 (3.0%)	107 (7.6%)	3 (0.2%)	5 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	65 (4.6%)	67.4	125^th of 383 public elementary schools	67.4%		68.1	116^th of 390 public elementary schools	70.3%	9	48.0	58.8	56.9		62.0	74.0	50.4		75.0	$9,417
West Hancock Elementary	Public	K-5	23350 Highway 43	Picayune	39466	Hancock County	Hancock School District	No	No	No	Yes	(228) 586-6054	349	26	13.4	75.1%	305 (87.4%)	13 (3.7%)	16 (4.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.7%)	73.3	91^st of 383 public elementary schools	76.2%		79.2	66^th of 390 public elementary schools	83.1%	25	60.4	57.1	54.9		62.0	65.1	62.8		88.3	$13,554
Hancock North Central School	Public	PK, KG-5	6122 Cuevas Town Road	Kiln	39556	Hancock County	Hancock School District	No	No	No	Yes	(228) 255-7641	404	29	13.9	69.8%	380 (94.1%)	6 (1.5%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.5%)	83.7	50^th of 383 public elementary schools	86.9%		85.3	44^th of 390 public elementary schools	88.7%	6	60.0	67.8	65.7		74.3	85.8	59.7		88.1	$12,517
East Hancock Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4221 Kiln Delisle Rd.	Kiln	39556	Hancock County	Hancock School District	No	No	No	Yes	(228) 255-8372	633	30	20.7	48.5%	549 (86.7%)	17 (2.7%)	32 (5.1%)	8 (1.3%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	23 (3.6%)	91.8	18^th of 383 public elementary schools	95.3%		94.1	11^th of 390 public elementary schools	97.2%	7	66.9	77.0	70.3		83.0	93.6	81.5		88.0	$11,019

Frequently Asked Questions about South Side Upper Elementary

What schools do graduates of South Side Upper Elementary attend?

Students who attend South Side Upper Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Picayune Junior High School
High : Picayune Memorial High School

How many students attend South Side Upper Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 310 students attended South Side Upper Elementary.

What district is South Side Upper Elementary in?

Picayune School District

What is the racial makeup of South Side Upper Elementary?

Students at South Side Upper Elementary are 60% White, 31% African American, 5% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races.

Is South Side Upper Elementary a good school?

South Side Upper Elementary ranks 146^th of 383 Mississippi elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate South Side Upper Elementary!

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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.