Enrollment
310
Elementary
DISTRICT 326 · STATE 446
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PICAYUNE SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 280363000699
South Side Upper Elementary
1500 Rosa Street, Picayune, MS 39466 · (601) 798-1105 · Pearl River County
GRADES 03–06ELEMENTARY32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL310 STUDENTS
B+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 74% of Mississippi public elementary schools
- B+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Mississippi public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
14.5:1
21 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 95.5:1 · STATE 15.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
79%
246 students
DISTRICT 79% · STATE 80%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 | 77 | 25% |
| Grade 4 | 85 | 27% |
| Grade 5 | 80 | 26% |
| Grade 6 | 68 | 22% |
Student demographics
54%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · STATE 62% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Picayune School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
MAAP 2024-25 . % Proficient + AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
55.8%
MS avg 45.9% . -3.6pp since 2023
Math
56.3%
MS avg 52.8% . -4.5pp since 2023
What this means: On the MAAP, Mississippi's statewide test, about 56 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 56 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Mississippi schools, those numbers are about 46 and 53. Reading and writing scores are down about 4 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 5 points.
MAAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 55.8% | 56.3% |
| 2023-24 | 59.4% | 60.8% |
% Proficient + Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: MAAP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
64.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
54.5%
based on MS schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+10.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 65% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 55% typical for Mississippi schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Mississippi's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like South Side Upper Elementary
South Side Upper Elementary's state test result (64.6% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Side Upper Elementary this school | 310 | 79.4% | 64.6% |
| South Side Lower Elementary Picayune | 320 | 82.2% | 53.4% |
| Bruce Elementary BRUCE | 316 | 74.1% | 56.4% |
| LT Taylor Intermediate School LUCEDALE | 293 | 74.7% | 55.0% |
| Baldwyn Elementary BALDWYN | 279 | 77.1% | 38.1% |
| Dorsey Attendance Center Fulton | 233 | 82.0% | 53.0% |
Matched among Mississippi elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where South Side Upper Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Mississippi | In Pearl River County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 64.6% | #135 of 428 | #4 of 7 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 56.3% | #177 of 439 ▼ 28 | #4 of 8 ▼ 2 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 55.8% | #147 of 439 ▲ 12 | #3 of 8 ▲ 1 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 310 | #315 of 453 | #8 of 8 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.5:1 | #166 of 408 | #1 of 8 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 54.2% | #133 of 409 | #5 of 8 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 79.4% | #254 of 444 | #3 of 7 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -3.7% | #261 of 296 | N/A |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
310
+41 (+15%) vs 2020
-59% since 1990-91, when it was 760
Student : Teacher
14.5:1
was 15.8:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 310 | 21.4 | 14.5:1 | 79% (246) |
| 2023-24 | 313 | 18.2 | 17.2:1 | 100% (313) |
| 2022-23 | 298 | 20.1 | 14.8:1 | 100% (298) |
| 2020-21 | 269 | 17 | 15.8:1 | 100% (269) |
| 2017-18 | 322 | 16.6 | 19.4:1 | 100% (322) |
| 2015-16 | 292 | 15 | 19.5:1 | 100% (292) |
| 2010-11 | 283 | 13 | 21.8:1 | 82% (231) |
| 2000-01 | 383 | 20 | 19.1:1 | 59% (225) |
| 1990-91 | 760 | 39 | 19.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South Side Upper Elementary.
About South Side Upper Elementary
South Side Upper Elementary is a low-enrollment elementary school in Picayune School District, located in Picayune, Mississippi. Its 310 students are spread across grades 3 through 6. The school's enrollment is 30% smaller than the 446 average for elementary schools in Mississippi.
South Side Upper Elementary belongs to Picayune School District, a district of 8 schools and 3,359 students.
White students make up a majority at South Side Upper Elementary, at 60%. Other students are 31% Black, 5% Hispanic, and 3% multiracial. That is lower than the 80% White share among all Pearl River County residents. The school's diversity index is 54%, meaning two students picked at random have a 54% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
With 21.4 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25, the ratio at South Side Upper Elementary was 14.5:1. On average, elementary schools in Mississippi have 15.9:1, compared with 14.5:1 here. South Side Upper Elementary's free or reduced-price lunch eligibility rate is 79%. Public schools in Pearl River County average 65%.
allk12 grades South Side Upper Elementary a B+. The grade compares the school only with Mississippi public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
The model predicts 54.5% for a school in Mississippi with South Side Upper Elementary's free or reduced-price lunch share. South Side Upper Elementary posts 64.6%.
Pearl River County has these Census figures: the median household income is $58,135, about 17% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 14% of residents are in poverty. In all, Pearl River County has 20 public schools and roughly 8,456 students.
The nearest other public school, South Side Lower Elementary, is about 0.1 miles away. There are 7 more public schools inside five miles. South Side Upper Elementary places 2nd of 8 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
NCES assigns South Side Upper Elementary the locale Town: Distant, meaning in a town some distance from an urbanized area.
Enrollment is up 15% from 2020-21, when South Side Upper Elementary had 269 students, to 2024-25, when it had 310. Over the same period, the student-to-teacher ratio fell to 14.5:1, from 15.8:1.
The discussion area below is open to posts about sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Pearl River County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
57,458
Census ACS
Median income
$58,135
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
17%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
14%
Below federal line
Schools in county
20
8,456 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Picayune School District
- Picayune Memorial High SchoolHigh · 940 students
- Picayune Junior High SchoolMiddle · 465 students
- West Side ElementaryElementary · 444 students
- Roseland Park ElementaryElementary · 370 students
- Nicholson ElementaryElementary · 324 students
- South Side Lower ElementaryElementary · 320 students
Other schools in Picayune
- Picayune Memorial High SchoolHigh · 940 students
- Picayune Junior High SchoolMiddle · 465 students
- West Side ElementaryElementary · 444 students
- Roseland Park ElementaryElementary · 370 students
- West Hancock ElementaryElementary · 349 students
- Nicholson ElementaryElementary · 324 students
Nearby schools
- South Side Lower Elementary0.1 mi · 320
- West Side Elementary0.6 mi · 444
- Picayune Junior High School0.8 mi · 465
- Picayune Memorial High School0.8 mi · 940
- Roseland Park Elementary2.0 mi · 370
- Early Head Start Nicholson2.8 mi · 186
Frequently asked questions
About South Side Upper ElementaryHow large is South Side Upper Elementary?
South Side Upper Elementary enrolls approximately 310 students in grades 03-06.
Is South Side Upper Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
South Side Upper Elementary is an elementary school covering grades 03-06.
How many teachers does South Side Upper Elementary have?
South Side Upper Elementary employs 21 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.5:1.
What is the student diversity at South Side Upper Elementary?
Student demographics at South Side Upper Elementary are roughly 60% White, 5% Hispanic, 31% Black, 0% Asian, 3% Two or more.
Is South Side Upper Elementary public or private?
South Side Upper Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Picayune School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.