Petal Elementary 3-4

As a mid-tier K-5 school in Petal, Mississippi, Petal Elementary 3-4 instructs 636 students from grades 3 through 4, overseen by Petal School District. By comparison, Mississippi's public schools average about 446 students each, so Petal Elementary 3-4 sits 43% bigger than that benchmark.

Petal Elementary 3-4 is one of 5 schools operated by Petal School District, a district that enrolls 4,253 students overall.

Demographically, Petal Elementary 3-4 logs that 69% of the student body identifies as White. Beyond that, the school records 16% Black, 8% Hispanic, 7% multiracial. By comparison, Forrest County as a whole is about 57% White, so the school skews meaningfully more White than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Petal Elementary 3-4 has 48 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 13.3:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 15.9:1 average. Roughly 60% of students at Petal Elementary 3-4 qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. By comparison, Forrest County runs at roughly 79%, so the school's eligibility rate is lower than the surrounding baseline.

Around the school, ACS estimates for Forrest County put median household income runs about $53,640, about 31% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 16%. Petal Elementary 3-4 is one of 21 public schools in Forrest County (combined enrollment of about 10,857 students).

The closest other public school is Petal High School, roughly 0.1 miles away. 4 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius.

The campus sits in a suburban setting.

Over the past 7-year window. Petal Elementary 3-4's enrollment has edged down 4% since 2018, when it stood at 664 (now 636). Over the same period, the White share edged down from 75% to 69%. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 16.6:1 in 2018 to 13.3:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Petal Elementary 3-4 community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.