Summary:
Zip code 38921, located in Charleston, Mississippi, is served by exactly one elementary school — Charleston Elementary School — which enrolls 316 students in grades PK through 4 and is part of the East Tallahatchie School District. Nearly every student at this school (99.05%) qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, making it a very high-poverty school. Because it is the only elementary school in the zip code, its results are identical to the district's results in every tested grade and subject.
Charleston Elementary has consistently ranked at the bottom of Mississippi elementary schools, placing 357th out of 377 schools in the 2025-2026 school year, which puts it in the 5th percentile with zero stars. Proficiency rates on the MAAP state tests are roughly half the state averages across all subjects. In 3rd grade math, only 19.4% of students scored proficient compared to 48.8% statewide, a 29.4-point gap. In 4th grade math, the gap was 28.4 points (23.1% vs. 51.5%). ELA gaps were somewhat smaller but still large: 26.9% vs. 48.5% for 3rd grade and 27.0% vs. 52.4% for 4th grade.
There are some encouraging signs. Chronic absenteeism at 23.8% is essentially equal to the state average of 23.9% and far better than the district rate of 36.9%, which is remarkable given the school's poverty level. Year-over-year, 4th grade ELA improved by 3.6 points, and 4th grade math improved by 1.8 points. However, 3rd grade math dropped sharply by 5.6 points. Overall, this is a high-poverty school facing significant academic challenges, but its attendance record is a relative strength that could serve as a foundation for future improvement.
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