The top reported proficiency rate is 59% in Math. The lowest is 33% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Richton High School
Richton High School sits on Elm Avenue in the small Perry County town of Richton, part of the Hattiesburg metropolitan area but far removed from its bustle. The town is predominantly residential and rural, with limited commercial activity and a population that has been declining over recent census cycles. The school district is one of the town's primary local employers, and civic buildings like the town hall sit within the same compact town limits, so the school functions as a community anchor in a place where there is not much else. Housing here is genuinely affordable by any standard. Typical home values run well below the statewide benchmark and far below national figures, with a price-to-income ratio that makes ownership realistic for working families. No rent data was available, which limits the picture for families who would lease rather than buy.
The school serves grades seven through twelve with an enrollment that is modest for its grade band. The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Black minority and very small Hispanic and multiracial representation. A little more than half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not reported, so those populations cannot be characterized here. Similarly, the payload did not include a graduation rate, course access details, discipline data, staffing breakdowns, or attendance figures, so those dimensions are left out rather than estimated.
On the most recent Mississippi Academic Assessment Program results, math stands as the school's clear academic strength. Seventh-grade math proficiency is solidly above the midpoint, and eighth-grade math is also strong, with a clear majority of tested students reaching proficient or above. The district brief notes that Richton's math proficiency exceeds the state average, consistent with these school-level numbers. Science proficiency for eighth grade sits in a middling band, with fewer than half of tested students proficient but a reasonable showing for a small rural school. English language arts is the softer area. Both seventh- and eighth-grade ELA proficiency rates fall below the math results by a wide margin, with only about a third of students reaching proficient. A parent considering this school may want to look into how reading and writing instruction is supported across grade levels, particularly as students transition into high school coursework.
The district as a whole earned a B rating on the Mississippi Succeeds Report Card for the most recent year, with both the elementary and high school carrying that same mark. The district also reports a student-teacher ratio below the state average, which suggests smaller classes than many Mississippi public schools offer. Those two factors together paint a picture of a district performing reasonably well within its rural context, especially in math.
What this school offers is a small, close-to-home secondary education in a town where housing costs are low and the school is a central institution. The academic pathway appears strongest in quantitative subjects. The peer environment is drawn from a single small community, which can mean continuity and familiarity through all six grades housed under one roof. The setting is rural and quiet, with no walkability or transit data available and limited commercial life in town, so families are making a deliberate choice about place as much as about school. ELA outcomes are the area most worth questioning, and the absence of graduation rate and program data means a family would need to ask the school directly about advanced coursework, career pathways, and post-graduation plans to round out the picture.
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