The top reported proficiency rate is 42% in Science. The lowest is 26% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Coahoma County School District
Coahoma County School District is a small, rural Mississippi district serving students from kindergarten through twelfth grade across four schools. The district operates Coahoma County Jr/Sr High School alongside three elementary campuses: Friars Point Elementary, Lyon Elementary, and Jonestown Elementary. All four schools are currently open and operating.
The student body is almost entirely Black or African American, with a very small Hispanic presence and a handful of white and multiracial students. This is a district where families, neighbors, and educators share a tightly knit community identity, and the schools are central to civic life in the area.
State testing results from the most recent Mississippi Academic Assessment Program, known as MAAP, paint a mixed picture that shifts noticeably as students move through the grades. In the earliest tested grades, the district shows some genuine strength. Third-grade math proficiency sits near the midpoint, with roughly half of tested students reaching proficient or above. Fifth-grade science is a real bright spot, with a strong majority of students demonstrating proficiency, a result that stands out in the district's profile. Third-grade English language arts also shows a respectable share of students meeting the bar.
The pattern becomes more concerning in the upper elementary and middle grades. By fifth grade, math proficiency drops to about a quarter of students. Seventh-grade English language arts falls to roughly a fifth, and eighth grade is where the sharpest declines appear. Eighth-grade math proficiency is very low, and eighth-grade English language arts is similarly low. Eighth-grade science also drops off considerably from the fifth-grade high. This decline in the middle grades is a pattern a parent may want to look into further with the district, as it suggests students are losing ground just before the transition to high school coursework.
No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these results are improving, declining, or holding steady over time. Participation rate data was also not reported.
The district's enrollment is modest, with students spread fairly evenly across the grade bands. Free or reduced-price lunch counts were not reported in the data we received, nor were individualized education program rates or English learner figures. These gaps mean we cannot characterize the level of economic disadvantage or special-population service from the available information. The district's website and basic federal records confirm its structure and grade span, but we found no publicly reported evidence of recent curriculum changes, property tax referendums, facility investments, or other parent-relevant shifts with lasting impact.
Housing in the area is very affordable relative to state and national benchmarks. The district-weighted typical home value sits well below the Mississippi state average and far below the national figure. Home values across the contributing zip codes, which include Clarksdale as the largest contributor, along with Dundee, Tutwiler, and other areas, have been declining year over year. This means families looking to buy will find low purchase prices, but should also be aware that the local housing market is softening rather than appreciating. Rental data was not available. The broader economic context reflects current national conditions, with mortgage rates in the mid-six-percent range and national unemployment in a moderate range, though local county-level economic figures were not provided.
Several categories of information parents often look for were absent from what we received. No data on course access, Advanced Placement or dual-credit offerings, career and technical programs, staffing levels, teacher qualifications, discipline patterns, attendance rates, or Title I status was available. No locale brief describing the towns and their differences was provided, so we cannot speak to the distinct character of Friars Point, Jonestown, Lyon, or the surrounding areas in the detail we would like. No comparison data positioning this district against its neighboring Mississippi districts was available either. We note these gaps plainly rather than fill them with guesses.
What the available data does show is a small, community-rooted district with some early-grade academic strength, particularly in elementary science, paired with a clear slide in proficiency as students reach the middle grades. The housing market is among the most affordable in the state, though values are declining. Families considering this district would benefit from asking school leaders directly about middle-grade instruction, high school course offerings, and support services, since those pieces of the picture are not visible in the data we have.
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