Summary:
The city of Sturgis, Mississippi is home to a single school, West Elementary School, which serves students from pre-kindergarten through 5th grade. This school is part of the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District. While West Elementary School has seen a decline in its statewide ranking over the past three years, dropping from 159th out of 382 Mississippi elementary schools in 2021-2022 to 242nd out of 390 in 2023-2024, it maintains a relatively even racial distribution with 50.82% White and 48.63% African American students.
Academically, West Elementary School's performance on state assessments (MAAP) is generally below the district and state averages across grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2023-2024, the school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts ranged from 36.7% to 45%, compared to the district's 47.2% to 50% and the state's 51.7% to 57.7%. However, the school's 5th-grade science proficiency rate of 66.7% in 2023-2024 matches the district average and is only slightly below the state average of 71.2%. The school's high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, at 98.36% in the 2022-2023 school year, suggests that it serves a predominantly low-income community, which may contribute to the academic challenges.
Despite the school's resource allocation, with a per-student spending of $11,039 for the 2018-2019 school year and a student-teacher ratio of 11.8, which are higher than the national average, the continued academic struggles indicate that simply increasing funding may not be enough to address the underlying issues. A more comprehensive approach, including targeted interventions, teacher development, and community engagement, may be necessary to improve student outcomes at West Elementary School.
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