The top reported proficiency rate is 79% in Science. The lowest is 62% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on West Lauderdale Middle School
West Lauderdale Middle School sits in Collinsville, an unincorporated community stretched along Mississippi Highway 19 in Lauderdale County. The school serves grades five through eight and operates as part of the Lauderdale County School District. Collinsville reads as a quiet, spread-out place. Publicly reported sources describe it as primarily residential with high homeownership, oriented along the highway corridor rather than around a traditional town square. Meridian lies a short drive southeast and likely serves as the regional hub for shopping, healthcare, and employment. Okatibbee Lake sits at the eastern edge of the community, giving residents a nearby recreational amenity. The area has seen slow, steady population growth over recent census cycles, with a more recent estimate hinting at a slight dip. No major new development projects surfaced in available sources. The community is car-dependent by nature, and most residents commute to work.
The school's enrollment is moderate for a middle school across four grade levels. Its student body is predominantly white, with a smaller Black population and very small Hispanic, Asian, and multiracial groups. Just over a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a relatively modest share for the region. Data on English learners and students with individualized education programs was not reported, so those population sizes are unknown here.
On Mississippi's MAAP assessments, West Lauderdale Middle posts generally strong results. Math proficiency is solid across all four grades, with the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades all showing a clear majority of students scoring proficient or above. Fifth-grade math is the weakest link in the subject but still has well over half of tested students reaching proficiency. English language arts follows a similar pattern, though seventh grade stands out as a soft spot where roughly half of students met the proficiency bar. Fifth-grade ELA is the strongest, with a comfortable majority proficient. Science results are the brightest spot in the school's academic profile. Fifth-grade science proficiency is exceptionally high, and eighth-grade science is also strong. A parent might want to look into the seventh-grade ELA dip with the school, since it sits noticeably below the other grades and below the school's own math performance at the same level.
No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent improvement, decline, or stability over time. Participation rates were also missing from the data set. Because this is a middle school serving only grades five through eight, there is no graduation rate to report. That metric simply does not apply to this grade band. The same is true for AP, dual-credit, and career pathway data, which are high-school-level offerings and would not appear for a school of this type. No course access, staffing, discipline, or attendance information was provided, and no programs or extracurricular listings were available. The district brief turned up little of lasting impact regarding recent changes, so there is nothing to relay on that front.
Housing in the school's ZIP code is affordable relative to the national picture. Typical home values sit well below the national benchmark and modestly above the Mississippi state benchmark, with modest year-over-year appreciation. Estimated monthly mortgage costs are quite low compared with national norms, and the price-to-income ratio suggests that homes here remain within reach for working families earning around the area's median income. Rent data was not available for this location. The housing market reads as stable and accessible rather than rapidly appreciating, which fits the community's character as a quiet residential pocket within commuting distance of Meridian.
For a family considering this school, the academic picture is encouraging in math and science and mixed in English language arts. The setting is rural-suburban, car-dependent, and community-oriented, with affordable housing and a stable residential base. The missing program, staffing, and discipline data limits a fuller picture of school climate and offerings, so a parent would want to ask the school directly about extracurriculars, support services, and how the seventh-grade ELA results are being addressed.
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