Summary:
Zip code 38824, covering the Baldwyn, Mississippi area, is served by two public schools—Baldwyn Elementary (grades K-4) and Baldwyn High School (grades 5-12)—which together form the Baldwyn School District, a small K-12 system with a combined enrollment of 739 students and no separate middle school.
The two schools are a study in contrasts. Baldwyn High School is the clear standout, ranking 35th out of 224 Mississippi high schools (84th percentile, 4 stars) after a dramatic jump from 135th the previous year. Its End-of-Course exam scores now exceed state averages in Biology (81.8% vs. 63.1%), Algebra I (75% vs. 66%), and English II (57.4% vs. 49.3%). However, this success is uneven: grades 5-8 proficiency is mostly below state averages, and the graduation rate of 76.5% is well behind the state's 89.2%. Meanwhile, Baldwyn Elementary is a major concern, ranking 308th out of 377 elementary schools (18th percentile, 1 star) and declining for three straight years. Its proficiency rates are far below state averages across all tested subjects.
The most alarming gap is early math: only 25.5% of 3rd graders and 37.7% of 4th graders are proficient, versus state averages of 48.8% and 51.5%, respectively. Reading scores are also weak, with roughly a third of elementary students proficient. On the positive side, both schools have better chronic absenteeism rates (13.8% elementary, 18.7% high school) than the state's 23.9%, despite high economic need—77.1% of elementary and 70% of high school students qualify for free/reduced lunch. The district's overall 3-star rating masks this internal divide. For parents, the key takeaway is that Baldwyn High School is a rising school with strong upper-level coursework but a graduation-rate red flag, while Baldwyn Elementary needs serious attention in foundational math and reading to set students up for future success.
Thank you for your feedback!