The top reported proficiency rate is 38% in Science. The lowest is 12% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Laurel Upper Elementary
Laurel Upper Elementary sits in the heart of Laurel, a small Mississippi city whose identity was forged in the timber boom of the early twentieth century. The school serves fifth and sixth graders as part of the Laurel School District, which covers nearly all of the city. This is a two-year transitional building between elementary and middle school, a narrow grade band that gives it a specific purpose in the district's pipeline.
The student body is small for a school serving two grades. Every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which marks this as a school serving a community facing concentrated economic need. The enrollment is predominantly Black, with a Hispanic minority and a very small number of white students and students of two or more races. Data on English learners and students with individualized education programs was not reported, so those population sizes are unknown here. The school is not a charter and has no reported magnet designation.
State assessment results from the most recent year tell a difficult story. In fifth-grade math, only a small fraction of tested students reached proficiency. Sixth-grade math was only modestly better. English language arts showed more variation: fifth-grade proficiency was meaningfully higher, with roughly a quarter of students clearing the bar, while sixth-grade ELA dropped back to a low level comparable to the math results. Science, tested only in fifth grade, was the strongest subject, with close to two-fifths of students demonstrating proficiency. Across the board, though, most tested students at Laurel Upper Elementary did not meet the state's proficient standard, and the math results in particular are low enough that a parent may want to look into this further with the school and the district. Participation rates were not available, so it is unclear whether all enrolled students were tested. No multi-year trend data was provided, which means there is no way to say from the available information whether these results represent a decline, a plateau, or something else.
The school sits in a community with deep industrial roots. Laurel grew as a lumber town, and the wealth from that era shaped its broad avenues, historic homes, and public parks. Major employers today still reflect a manufacturing and healthcare base, with companies like Howard Industries, Sanderson Farms, and South Central Regional Medical Center anchored in the area. The Lauren Rogers Museum of Art, Mississippi's oldest art museum, stands as a civic landmark. In recent years, the HGTV "Hometown" television series has drawn renovation activity and tourism to the historic downtown, giving the city a modest second wind after decades of population decline that began when manufacturing jobs eroded.
Housing in the school's zip code is inexpensive by any standard. Typical home values sit well below the Mississippi state benchmark and far below national levels, and the data shows a modest year-over-year decline rather than the appreciation seen at the state and national levels. Rent data was not available. For families considering a move to the area, the housing market is accessible, and the price-to-income ratio is low, meaning homeownership is within reach for many households relative to broader national patterns. Whether that offsets the academic concerns at the school is a question only a family can weigh.
Several pieces of information a parent might want were absent from the available data. The school's locale classification, staffing details, course offerings, discipline data, and attendance rates were all missing. Title I status was not reported, though given the universal free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility, the school almost certainly receives federal support for high-poverty populations, but the data does not confirm this. No information on special programs, extracurriculars, or instructional approach was provided. The district brief turned up little on recent parent-relevant changes beyond general district information, so there is nothing to report on strategic shifts or new initiatives.
What the available picture shows is a school serving a high-poverty student population in a small, historically industrial Mississippi city that is working to reinvent itself. The academic results are weak across most subjects and grades, with science as a relative bright spot. Families considering this school should ask the district directly about what supports and interventions are in place, how the school plans to improve proficiency, and what the classroom experience looks like day to day. The data gaps mean much of the story lives with the school itself.
See more original research from School Decision →