The top reported proficiency rate is 32% in Science. The lowest is 18% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Jefferson County Upper Elementary
Jefferson County Upper Elementary, located on Highway 33 in Fayette, Mississippi, is a now-closed school that served the Jefferson County School District. The most recent available state assessment data comes from the final year the school appears to have been operational, so this profile is a retrospective look at where the school stood at the end of its life rather than a guide to a currently functioning campus.
The school served upper elementary grades, with state testing recorded for fifth and sixth grade. Fifth graders were assessed in math, English language arts, and science, while sixth graders took math and ELA. On Mississippi's MAAP assessment, proficiency rates were low across the board. In fifth grade math, only a small fraction of tested students reached proficient or above. Sixth grade math was somewhat stronger but still well below half. English language arts followed a similar pattern, with fifth grade results lower and sixth grade modestly better. Science was the relative bright spot among the reported subjects, with roughly a third of fifth graders demonstrating proficiency. In every subject and grade, the pattern was the same: most students were not yet meeting state proficiency benchmarks. A parent reviewing this record would want to understand from the district what instructional supports were in place during the school's final year and how students were transitioned after closure.
Enrollment and demographic data were not available in the provided records, so it is not possible to describe the school's size, racial composition, free-or-reduced-price lunch rate, or special population counts from the data on hand. The same gap applies to staffing, discipline, attendance, course access, and civil-rights data, all of which were absent. Title I status and magnet status were also unreported. Without these fields, the picture of day-to-day school environment is limited to what the test results and community context can convey.
Fayette is a small, rural town and the seat of Jefferson County. Publicly reported sources describe it as overwhelmingly residential with limited commercial activity. The town has a deep civil-rights history: its City Hall sits on Medgar Evers Boulevard, and Fayette elected Charles Evers as mayor, making him the first African American mayor in post-Reconstruction Mississippi. The community has experienced sustained population decline over several decades, and publicly reported estimates project that decline continuing. No information on new housing developments or commercial growth projects was found. The district brief similarly turned up no specific policy changes, curriculum initiatives, referendums, or tax measures from recent years, so there is little to report on the district's strategic direction during the school's final period.
The housing market in Fayette's zip code is among the most affordable in the state. Typical home values sit far below the Mississippi state benchmark and well below national levels. Recent year-over-year values showed a sharp decline, suggesting a soft local market rather than one under appreciation pressure. For families connected to the area, housing costs are low relative to income, but the declining market reflects the broader population loss the town has been experiencing.
Because Jefferson County Upper Elementary is closed, the most practical question for any family is where students in this grade band now attend school. The Jefferson County School District would be the direct source for information on which campuses absorbed these students and what academic programs and supports are available at the replacement schools. The assessment results from the school's final year paint a picture of a campus where most students were struggling to reach grade-level standards, and understanding how the district has addressed that reality in the years since is the logical next step for anyone evaluating educational options in this community.
See more original research from School Decision →