Best Elementary Schools in Zip Code 38771

Zip code 38771 contains one elementary school, Ruleville Central Elementary, serving grades K–5 in Ruleville, Mississippi, within the Sunflower County Consolidated School District. This is a high-poverty school where 100% of students qualify for free/reduced-price lunch, yet chronic absenteeism is actually lower than both the district and state averages. The school has a 1-star rating and its statewide percentile rank has declined for three straight years, from the 18th percentile in 2023–2024 to the 11th percentile in 2025–2026. With a student-teacher ratio of 14.8, class sizes are relatively manageable, but low test scores suggest that poverty, mobility, or instructional challenges are bigger factors than class size alone.

Academic performance is uneven. Mathematics is the most serious concern: in 2025–2026, only 6.1% of 4th graders were proficient in math, compared to 51.5% statewide, and in 2024–2025, just 4.1% of 3rd graders reached proficiency. Fifth grade math has also remained stuck in the high teens to low twenties over two years. On the other hand, science is a clear relative strength. In 2024–2025, 5th grade science proficiency reached 66.6%, slightly exceeding the state average of 66.3%, and in 2025–2026 it held at 50.0%, matching the district. Large year-to-year swings in ELA and math scores, such as 4th grade math dropping from 38.9% to 6.1%, likely reflect very different cohorts of students and overall instability.

Because there is only one elementary school in this zip code, parents cannot compare schools locally, but they can judge Ruleville Central Elementary against district and state benchmarks. Overall, the school is below average in reading and math across all tested grades, with the gap in math especially wide. English language arts results are somewhat better, particularly in 5th grade, where 43.2% of students met proficiency in 2025–2026. While the steady decline in rankings is concerning, the school shows encouraging signs in science and attendance. For parents, the clearest takeaway is that math instruction needs urgent attention, while the school’s strengths in science and relatively strong attendance provide a foundation to build on.