The top reported proficiency rate is 49% in English language arts. The lowest is 45% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Southeast Lauderdale Elementary
Southeast Lauderdale Elementary sits on Long Creek Road in Meridian, Mississippi, serving pre-kindergarten through fourth grade as part of the Lauderdale County School District. The school draws from a community rooted in railroad history. Meridian grew as a junction town at the crossing of two major rail lines and was once the largest city in Mississippi during a railroad-driven era. The economy has since diversified into healthcare, military, and manufacturing, with Naval Air Station Meridian, Key Field, and Ochsner Rush Health among the region's anchor employers. Peavey Electronics is also headquartered here. Downtown Meridian holds cultural institutions like the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience, the Riley Center, the Meridian Museum of Art, and the Meridian Symphony Orchestra. The city's population has declined from its earlier peak, and the areas outside the downtown core are largely car-dependent. The school itself sits on a separated campus along Long Creek Road, away from the downtown concentration of civic and cultural buildings.
The enrollment is sizable for an early-grade school, with a racial composition that is majority white with a substantial Black minority and small representations of Hispanic, multiracial, and other groups. A clear majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school in a lower-income context typical of many communities in this part of Mississippi. Information on English learner enrollment and individualized education program counts was not available, so those population shares remain unknown here.
On Mississippi's MAAP assessments for the most recent school year, the school's results show a mixed academic picture. Third-grade math proficiency was modest, with roughly a third of tested students reaching proficient or above. Fourth-grade math was markedly stronger, with a clear majority clearing that bar. English language arts followed a similar pattern: third-grade proficiency was moderate, while fourth-grade proficiency was notably higher. The jump between third and fourth grade in both subjects suggests the school's upper elementary instruction is producing stronger outcomes, though the third-grade results, particularly in math, are a softer spot. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, especially how early-grade math supports are structured and what interventions are in place for students who enter below grade level. No trend data across multiple years was available, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent improvement, decline, or stability. Participation rates were also not reported.
Because the school serves only through fourth grade, there is no graduation rate, no AP or career-pathway data, and no college-readiness information to report. Those measures apply to secondary schools and do not exist for this grade band. Similarly, no course access, discipline, staffing, or attendance data was provided, which leaves a gap in understanding the school environment beyond what test scores and demographics convey. No civil rights data was included in the available material.
The housing market around the school is affordable by state and national standards. Home values in the school's zip code sit well below the Mississippi statewide benchmark and far below national figures, which keeps ownership within reach for many local families relative to broader markets. Rents are also modest. The price-to-income ratio for the area is low compared with the national picture, suggesting that for households with steady employment at the area's major employers, housing costs are not as dominant a share of income as they are in many parts of the country. Recent home value movement has been essentially flat.
The Lauderdale County School District brief turned up little on recent parent-relevant changes or strategic initiatives, so there is nothing to report on that front. Families considering Southeast Lauderdale Elementary have a school with a broad community context, affordable housing, and assessment results that strengthen in the upper elementary grades while third-grade outcomes remain a point worth asking about.
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