Summary:
ZIP code 39209 contains six schools — five elementary schools and one high school — serving 2,887 students across grades PK-12, with every school reporting 100% free/reduced-price lunch eligibility, reflecting very high economic need throughout the area. Five of the six schools belong to Jackson Public Schools, while Ambition Preparatory Charter School operates as its own charter district. No middle schools exist within the ZIP code, meaning students must leave the area for 7th and 8th grade.
Among elementary schools, John Hopkins Elementary School stands out as the strongest overall, exceeding the state average in 5th grade science (72.1% proficient) and posting the highest math scores among local elementary schools. Ambition Preparatory Charter School shows strong 3rd grade results that nearly match state averages in both ELA and math, though achievement fades sharply by 6th and 7th grade. Timberlawn Elementary School is the most improved school in the area, with 4th grade math jumping from 11.6% to 36.7% proficiency and its state ranking climbing from the 9th to the 22nd percentile. By contrast, Pecan Park Elementary School remains stuck near the bottom of state rankings, and Clausell Elementary School has declined sharply, falling from the 28th to the 1st percentile, with math proficiency as low as 11.1% in 3rd grade.
The biggest concern is Provine High School, the ZIP code's only high school, which ranks dead last among all 224 Mississippi high schools, with a 74.9% graduation rate and test scores far below state averages. Chronic absenteeism is a major issue across the area, averaging 30.8% versus the state's 23.9%, and is highest at Clausell (43.8%) and Provine (39.1%). Interestingly, Provine has the lowest student-teacher ratio (10.6) yet the worst academic ranking, while Ambition Prep has the highest ratio (20.8) and some of the strongest early grades — suggesting attendance, school climate, and instructional quality matter more than class size alone.
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