Summary:
Zip code 38851 in Houston, MS contains 4 public schools serving grades PK-12 within the Chickasaw County School District, which ranks 51st out of 134 districts in Mississippi at the 62nd percentile. The schools include Houston Lower Elementary School (PK-2), Houston Upper Elementary (3-5), Houston Middle School (6-8), and Houston High School (9-12), serving 1,740 students total. Roughly 74.5% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, with elementary and middle schools around 78-80% and the high school at 64.65%.
Houston High School is the district's standout, graduating 92.9% of students and beating state proficiency averages in Algebra I (73.6% vs. 66.0%), Biology (68.3% vs. 63.1%), and English II (53.9% vs. 49.3%). Its state ranking improved from 96th to 72nd, but its 43.5% chronic absenteeism rate is nearly double the state average. Houston Upper Elementary earned a 4-star rating, with 5th graders far exceeding state averages in science (88.2% vs. 71.5%), though 3rd and 4th grade math and ELA scores dropped sharply in the latest year. Houston Lower Elementary School stands out for 11.5% chronic absenteeism despite serving the highest poverty population. Houston Middle School is the weakest school at the 46th percentile, posting above-average math but far below-average ELA and science, including 8th grade science at 35.7% vs. 57.8% statewide.
The clearest trend is chronic absenteeism escalating from 11.5% in elementary to 28.5% in middle school and 43.5% in high school — a nearly four-fold increase. Strong 5th-grade results at Houston Upper Elementary do not appear to carry into Houston Middle School, where 8th grade science and ELA proficiency collapse, suggesting the middle school transition is the district's most critical challenge. With the high school outperforming and the middle school falling behind, targeted intervention at Houston Middle School around attendance, ELA, and science offers the greatest opportunity to improve the district's overall trajectory.
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