Bovina Elementary

Bovina Elementary is a PK–6 public school in Vicksburg, MS, serving 340 students in the Vicksburg Warren School District. Despite being a 100% free/reduced-price lunch school, Bovina is an academic powerhouse: it currently ranks 10th out of 377 Mississippi elementary schools, placing it in the 97th percentile with a 5-star rating. That puts it far ahead of every nearby school in the district—for example, Bowmar Avenue ranks 119th, Beechwood Elementary 164th, and Warrenton Elementary 201st. Bovina is 109 ranking positions ahead of its closest same-district competitor, making it the clear anchor of a district that otherwise sits right at the state median.

Test scores tell the same story. On the 2025–2026 MAAP exams, Bovina outperforms its district average by 20 to 40 percentage points in nearly every grade and subject. For example, 3rd grade math proficiency is 85.3% at Bovina, compared to 42.5% districtwide and 48.8% statewide. In 5th grade science, 93.6% of Bovina students are proficient, versus 64.9% for the district and 71.5% for the state. Even Bovina’s lowest score—6th grade ELA at 65.6%—is still 20.8 points above the district and 17.6 points above the state. The school leads its nearby peers in almost every category; the only exception is 6th grade math, where Redwood Elementary posted 77.1% versus Bovina’s 75.0%, though Redwood’s overall ranking (188th) is far less consistent.

What makes Bovina especially remarkable is its consistency. The school has ranked in the top 16 in Mississippi every year since 2021–2022 and has earned 5 stars every year since 2018–2019, climbing from 54th in 2015–2016 to its current top-10 position. Its student-teacher ratio of 15.2 is unremarkable, suggesting the success comes from instructional quality and school culture rather than class size. One area for growth is chronic absenteeism: at 18.8%, it’s much better than the district rate of 29.2% and the state rate of 23.9%, but higher than Bowmar’s 9.8% and Beechwood’s 10.5%. If Bovina can improve attendance further, especially in the upper grades where its edge narrows, this already exceptional school could climb even higher.