Summary:
ZIP code 39092 contains exactly one middle school, Lake Middle School, which serves grades 5 through 8 with 237 students as part of the Scott County School District. Lake Middle School is a high-poverty institution—98.73% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch—yet it demonstrates remarkable academic achievements. The school earned a 4-star rating in the 2025-2026 school year, ranking 67th out of 260 middle schools in Mississippi, after fluctuating from 46th (2023-2024) to 89th (2024-2025) and back to 67th.
The school's strongest subject is mathematics, particularly at the advanced level. Lake Middle School achieved a perfect 100% proficiency rate on the Algebra I End-of-Course exam in 2025-2026, dwarfing the state average of 66%. Eighth-grade math proficiency reached 74.2%—23 points above the state average—and 8th-grade science proficiency hit 74.1%, also well above state levels. However, English Language Arts is a relative weakness, with 5th, 6th, and 7th graders scoring below state averages. The 7th-grade ELA proficiency dropped 13 points year-over-year to 32.5%, while 8th-grade ELA improved dramatically by 28.3 points to 56.4%. The student-teacher ratio is 17.2 to 1, and chronic absenteeism stands at 25.8%, slightly above the state average but well below the district's 33.6%.
Year-over-year trends reveal a school focused on strengthening upper-grade outcomes. Science 8th proficiency jumped 13.6 points, 8th-grade math rose 9.4 points, and 5th-grade science gained 7.9 points. The dramatic swings—both positive and negative—reflect the small cohort sizes typical of a 237-student school, where a handful of students can disproportionately shift percentages. Lake Middle School consistently outpaces its district, often by wide margins, including a 24-point gap in 8th-grade math. For parents, this school represents a compelling case of a high-poverty rural school exceeding expectations in STEM subjects, though ELA in early grades may warrant attention.
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