Best High Schools in Zip Code 38774

Zip code 38774 is home to just one high school, Northside High School in Shelby, Mississippi, a combined grades 7–12 campus with 370 students that serves as the sole educational anchor for the community under the North Bolivar Consolidated district. This school is distinctive for serving both middle and high school students and for having a 100% free/reduced lunch population, making it a high-poverty school that faces significant challenges despite a favorable student-teacher ratio of 12.3.

Academically, Northside High School shows a clear split between its strengths and weaknesses. The strongest performances in 2025–26 were in 7th grade math, where 57.5% of students scored proficient (nearly matching the 57.7% state average), and Algebra I, which posted a 61.1% proficiency rate just 4.9 points below the state. However, 8th grade math proficiency was only 26.6% versus 51.4% statewide, and Biology proficiency was a stark 30.0% compared to 63.1% statewide — the largest single gap in any subject. English II, a graduation requirement, also lagged badly at 25.8% proficiency versus the 49.3% state average. Year-to-year results were highly volatile, with 7th grade math more than doubling from the prior year while Biology and English II fell sharply, suggesting inconsistent instructional outcomes across cohorts.

The school's graduation rate of 73.8% falls a dramatic 15.4 points below the state's 89.2%, while chronic absenteeism of 28.2% exceeds both district (18.7%) and state (23.9%) levels — roughly one in four students is chronically absent. State ranking has swung from the 41st percentile in 2024–25 down to the 15th percentile in 2025–26. Because Northside's scores match the district exactly in every subject, these are systemic issues affecting the entire North Bolivar Consolidated district rather than isolated problems at one school. The bright spots in foundational math suggest targeted interventions in 8th grade math, Biology, and English could build on existing strengths, even as poverty and absenteeism remain major hurdles.