Summary:
Zip code 38957 in Sumner, Mississippi, is home to a single elementary school, R.H. Bearden Elementary, which serves grades K-6 and enrolls 251 students in the West Tallahatchie School District. This is a high-poverty school where 98.8% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, yet it has shown meaningful academic momentum over the past three years, climbing from the 12th to the 32nd percentile in state rankings while improving its star rating from 1 star to 2 stars.
The school's most impressive strength is sixth-grade mathematics: 74.2% of 6th graders scored proficient in 2025-2026, far exceeding the state average of 52.7%, and the prior year's 79.2% proficiency rate was similarly outstanding. Modest success is also visible in 5th grade math, where 47.3% of students were proficient, nearly matching the state rate of 49.6%. Chronic absenteeism is another positive sign, with a 20.9% rate that beats both the district (31.8%) and state (23.9%) averages. R.H. Bearden Elementary has also posted consistent year-over-year gains in English Language Arts across every grade, including a 15.3-point jump in 5th grade and a 10.0-point jump in 4th grade.
Despite these gains, challenges remain. ELA proficiency still trails state averages at every grade level, with 3rd grade at just 26.5% versus 48.5% statewide. Science is a clear weakness, as only 47.3% of 5th graders were proficient compared to the state average of 71.5%. Math performance is also uneven by grade: 3rd grade improved sharply but remains far below the state, while 4th grade dropped by nearly 10 points. The standout 6th grade math results suggest a strong upper-grade math program worth examining for replication across other subjects and grade levels as the school continues its upward trajectory.
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