H. W. Byers High School (5-12), Holly Springs MS

Original Research by School Decision on H. W. Byers High School (5-12)

H. W. Byers High School sits on Highway 72 east of Holly Springs, the county seat of Marshall County, Mississippi. It is part of the Marshall County School District and serves grades five through twelve, combining middle and high school under one roof. The enrollment is modest for its grade span, and the student body is predominantly Black, with a white minority and a smaller Hispanic share, plus a few students of two or more races. Every student in the building qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which reflects the broader economic context of the area.

Holly Springs is a small, historic town with antebellum architecture, a courthouse square, and Rust College, a historically Black college that anchors part of the community. Manufacturing here includes plastics, filtration equipment, and windows, and cotton remains part of the regional economy. The town sits roughly an hour southeast of Memphis along Interstate 22, which gives residents access to a larger metro for work, shopping, and services. Publicly reported sources note that Holly Springs has experienced population decline over several decades, tied to agricultural mechanization, the Great Migration, and postwar industrial relocation to bigger cities. A destructive tornado also struck Marshall County in recent years, damaging many structures. No major new housing developments surfaced in the search. Housing values in the school's zip code sit well below both the state and national benchmarks, making this one of the more affordable corners of Mississippi for families looking to buy. The price-to-income ratio is favorable compared with national norms, though current mortgage rates mean monthly costs still require careful budgeting.

On state assessments, the most recent Mississippi Academic Assessment Program results show a mixed but generally modest picture. English language arts performance is middling across the tested middle grades, with seventh grade standing out as the relative bright spot and a fair share of students reaching proficiency there. Math results are weaker. Fifth and eighth grade math proficiency is quite low, while sixth and seventh grade land closer to a middle range. Science results are the strongest area, with close to half of tested students reaching proficiency in both fifth and eighth grade. These are results that a parent may want to look into further with the school, particularly in math, where the lowest grade levels show very few students meeting the state bar.

Several categories of information were not available in the data provided. The state testing results cover only grades five through eight, which is expected because Mississippi's high school end-of-course assessments were not included in this dataset. No graduation rate was reported, which aligns with the absence of high school assessment data here rather than signaling anything about the school's outcomes. We found no data on advanced course offerings, career or technical programs, dual-credit pathways, staffing ratios, attendance, discipline, or special-population counts such as English learners or students with individualized education programs. The school's Title I status and locale classification were also missing. A parent considering this school should ask the administration directly about what the high school grades offer in terms of diplomas, career pathways, and college preparation, since the data does not give a picture of that side of the building.

The district brief for Marshall County School District turned up no recently reported parent-relevant changes, so there is little to relay about strategic initiatives, facility upgrades, or program shifts. This absence may simply reflect limited public reporting rather than a lack of activity.

What the available data does convey is a small, rural-adjacent combined school in an affordable, historically rich town with deep community roots but limited economic momentum. Families drawn to Holly Springs for its low cost of living and proximity to Memphis would find a school where science results outpace other subjects, English language arts holds its own in the middle grades, and math is the area most in need of attention. The full high school experience is not visible in this data, so a campus visit and direct conversation with school leaders would be the next practical step for any family weighing this option.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

80-89%Cohort of 35 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

241 schools plotted. 29 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 512%

School 12% · District 22% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 30 pts below state median

Grade 629%

School 29% · District 26% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 22 pts below state median

Grade 733%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 19 pts below state median

Grade 810%

School 10% · District 26% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 34 pts below state median

English language arts

Grade 526%

School 26% · District 35% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 34% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median

Grade 740%

School 40% · District 31% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median

Grade 831%

School 31% · District 29% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median

Science

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 41% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 20 pts below state median

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 45% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median

This schoolMARSHALL CO SCHOOL DIST, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.