Summary:
Zip code 39327 is served by just two schools in the Newton County School District, which is ranked 12th out of 134 Mississippi districts with a 5-star rating. Newton County Elementary School serves grades PK-6 with 882 students, while Newton County High School serves grades 7-12 with 768 students. There are no standalone middle schools or alternative schools in the area, so the high school carries the full 7-12 grade span.
Newton County Elementary School is the academic powerhouse of the area. Ranked 43rd out of 377 Mississippi elementary schools, it beats the state average in every subject and grade tested. Notably, 61.8% of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch, yet 3rd grade ELA proficiency stands at 85.5% compared to the state's 48.5%, and 3rd grade math is 81.0% versus 48.8% statewide. Newton County High School, meanwhile, is the rapid improver. It jumped from 3 stars to 4 stars and from 95th to 59th place in state rankings. Its 8th grade results are exceptional, with 84.9% proficiency in math and 85.8% in science, both more than 28 points above state averages. The high school also posts a 93.8% graduation rate, well above the state's 89.2%.
The clearest weak spot in this otherwise strong system is 7th grade. At Newton County High School, 7th grade ELA proficiency fell to 32.3%, below the state average of 36.7%, and 7th grade math dropped 14.3 points from the prior year. This may reflect the transition from elementary into the high school setting. Chronic absenteeism also differs by campus: the elementary school sits at 14.4%, far better than the state's 23.9%, while the high school is at 21.9%. Overall, these two schools deliver consistently strong academics for a small district, with the elementary school leading on consistency and the high school leading on momentum.
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