The top reported proficiency rate is 75% in Science. The lowest is 52% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Lake Cormorant Elementary
Lake Cormorant Elementary sits in a quiet, unincorporated stretch of DeSoto County, Mississippi, roughly a half-hour south of Memphis via US-61. The area is rural and low-density, defined by farm fields, wooded land, and homes spread along highways and country roads. There is no traditional downtown and no public transit. Commercial activity is thin, with a Dollar General and a post office about all that registers on the retail side. What anchors civic life here are the schools themselves, the community center and park off Highway 61, and nearby recreational areas like Hernando DeSoto Park on the Mississippi River and Arkabutla Lake. For a family choosing this school, that context matters: the campus is not just where children learn but one of the main places the community gathers.
The school serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and is part of the DeSoto County School District, one of the larger districts in the region. It is a traditional public school, not a charter or magnet. Enrollment is solid for an elementary in an unincorporated area, and the student body reflects a genuine mix. White students make up the largest share, Black students form the next largest group, and a meaningful portion of children identify as two or more races. A small Hispanic population rounds it out. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which tells you the school is serving a mix of working-class and middle-income families rather than a uniformly affluent population.
On Mississippi's MAAP assessments for the most recent school year, the school's results paint a mixed but largely steady picture. Math proficiency across third, fourth, and fifth grade hovers around the middle, with fourth grade the strongest of the three. English language arts starts lower in third grade and climbs meaningfully by fifth, suggesting students grow in literacy as they move through the grades. The standout number is fifth-grade science, where a clear majority of tested students reached proficiency. That is a genuinely strong result and suggests the school is doing solid work in science instruction at the upper elementary level. Participation rates were not available in the data, and the state did not provide IEP or English-learner counts for this school, so those slices of the picture are gaps a parent might ask about directly.
No multi-year trend data was available, which means there is no clear read on whether these results are improving, holding, or slipping over time. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes such as bond measures, construction plans, curriculum shifts, or property tax moves. That absence does not mean nothing is happening, only that nothing surfaced in the available sources.
Housing in the Lake Cormorant zip code sits above the Mississippi state benchmark but below the national figure, making it relatively expensive for the state though still accessible by national standards. The price-to-income ratio suggests a household earning near the national median would find ownership attainable but not effortless, especially with current mortgage rates in the mid-six range. Rent data was not available. For families already in the area or those drawn to a rural setting within commuting distance of Memphis, housing costs are part of the trade-off: you get space and quiet, but you pay more than in much of the state and you are firmly car-dependent for everything.
Lake Cormorant Elementary fits families who want a rural, outdoors-oriented lifestyle with Memphis accessible for work, healthcare, and cultural amenities. The school's academic results are middling in math, improving in reading, and strong in science. Its student body is diverse and reflects the working character of the community. Parents weighing this option should ask the school about supports for literacy in the early grades, about special education and English-learner services where the data was silent, and about how the school plans to build on its science strength.
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