The top reported proficiency rate is 33% in Math. The lowest is 23% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Williams-sullivan Middle School
Williams-Sullivan Middle School sits along Highway 51 in Durant, a small rural town in eastern Holmes County, Mississippi. It serves grades six through eight as part of the Holmes County Consolidated School District, the product of a consolidation that merged the former Durant school system with the county district. The school draws from a community that is largely agricultural, with a population that has been declining for decades. Publicly reported sources describe considerable unemployment among residents who remain, and state and local officials have pursued redevelopment efforts, including the restoration of the town's historic brick train depot as a heritage tourism anchor. Interstate 55 connects to the area via an interchange a few miles west of town.
The school is small for its grade band, with an enrollment that supports roughly two or three class sections per grade. Nearly every student identifies as Black or African American, and the entire student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which reflects the deep economic disadvantage carried by the community the school serves. Information on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not reported, so those population shares remain unknown.
On state assessments, the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program, results from the most recent school year show proficiency rates that are generally low and uneven across grades and subjects. In math, the strongest showing comes in seventh grade, where close to half of tested students reached proficiency. Sixth and eighth grade math results were considerably lower, with roughly a quarter to a third of students meeting the bar. English language arts followed a different pattern, with the weakest results in seventh grade and modestly higher rates in sixth and eighth. Eighth grade science proficiency landed in a similar moderate range. These results suggest a school where academic outcomes are mixed and where a substantial majority of students are not yet meeting grade-level expectations. A parent concerned about these numbers may want to ask the school directly about its instructional supports, intervention strategies, and plans for improvement.
Several pieces of context that would help a parent evaluate this school were not available. No multi-year trend data was provided, so it is not possible to say whether performance is improving, flat, or declining over time. Participation rates for state testing were missing across all grades and subjects. Data on staffing, course access, discipline, attendance, and school climate was not included. The school's Title I status, locale classification, and magnet designation were also absent. No program offerings, extracurriculars, or specialized academic pathways were listed, and no neighbor comparison or county-level positioning set was provided to place the school against nearby peers. Because this is a middle school serving grades six through eight, no graduation rate applies.
The housing market around Durant is very affordable compared with state and national benchmarks. Typical home values in the school's zip code sit well below the statewide figure and far below national levels, and recent data shows a notable year-over-year decline in values. Rental data was not available. The affordability ratio for housing relative to income comes in close to parity with national norms, meaning local wages, while low, track roughly with local home prices. For families considering the area, this means housing costs are unlikely to be a barrier, but the broader economic context of limited employment and population decline shapes what the community can offer beyond the school itself.
Families evaluating Williams-Sullivan will want to weigh the closeness and familiarity of a small rural middle school against the reality of low proficiency rates and limited publicly available information about programs and supports. The school's seventh grade math results stand as a relative bright spot within an otherwise challenging academic picture. Asking district leadership about academic improvement plans, available student services, and enrichment or intervention options would help fill in the gaps that the available data leaves open.
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