Can I use Sunflower County's school score to choose a house?

No. Use the Sunflower County school score as a first-pass county screen, then verify the exact district, attendance boundary, transfer rules, and grade pathway for any address you are considering.

Does SchoolsByCounty confirm school attendance boundaries in Sunflower County?

No. SchoolsByCounty publishes NCES and Census-backed public-school records. Attendance zones, magnet eligibility, charter lotteries, transportation, and transfer rules must be confirmed with local districts.

How should parents compare public schools in Sunflower County?

Start with the 13 listed public schools and 1 district entry, then compare similar grade bands and confirm the address-level rules locally.

Sunflower County Schools & Education

Name: Sunflower County, Mississippi Education Data
Creator: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

Sunflower County, Mississippi

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

School Score

7/100

Percentile-style score

Score Band

Lower Signal

Graduation Rate

80.0%

National avg 87.5%

Education Statistics

Graduation Rate

80.0%

National avg 87.5%

State avg 87.1%

Per-Pupil Spending

$5,381

National avg $13,239

State avg $5,954

School Score

7/100

Percentile-style score

State avg 27/100

State Score Position

#79

of 81 counties by score

Education Data Brief: Sunflower County

Measured School Summary

Sunflower County faces educational challenges with a school score of 7/100 and a graduation rate of 80.0%, falling below typical benchmarks.

Funding Context

At $5,381 per pupil, Sunflower County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.

Neighbor Context

Its school score is 73% below the Mississippi average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 7.1 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 10% lower than the state norm.

School Data Brief

How to read Sunflower County before comparing districts

County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.

Local context that changes the interpretation

13 public schools and 1 district are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.

Overall screen

7/100

Lower measured signal. Ranks #79 of 81 Mississippi counties with school score data.

Completion

80.0%

7.1 pts below the state average

Funding context

$5,381

$573 below the state average

School coverage

1 district represented in the county school list.

Start with measured county context

The county-level signal is lower, so review individual schools and local records before interpreting the score. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.

Check the local school mix

Sunflower County has 13 public schools across 1 district, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.

Verify local rules

Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.

View Public Schools Compare Counties

Parent decision brief

What Sunflower County school data means before you move

County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.

Dominant-district county

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT carries most of the listed public-school system, with 13 of 13 schools. Start there, then verify whether your target address sits inside that district slice.

State position

#79

of 81 Mississippi counties with school score data. The county score is 20 points below the state average.

Data confidence

Usable

3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.

K-12 continuity check

These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Elementary to high school visible

2,929 students

Elementary 5Middle 4High 3Other 1

13 listed schools in this county slice.

District reality check

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT is the largest listed district slice, with 13 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.

What the data cannot tell you

NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.

Questions to ask before choosing an address

Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Sunflower County?

Which attendance zones, transfer rules, and transportation policies apply inside the local district?

What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?

If we need a program not visible in the NCES flags, which district office can confirm current offerings?

Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?

Data Story

Sunflower County School Score Trails State and National Medians

Education data brief for Sunflower County, Mississippi.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorPublished Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Lead metric:School score

Sunflower County records a composite school score of 7.2, which is significantly lower than the Mississippi state average of 26.9 and the national median of 50.0. The county's 2,929 students are served by the Sunflower Cty Cons School District, which operates 13 schools, primarily in town locales. The largest of these is Gentry High School, with an enrollment of 488 students. The county’s graduation rate of 80.0% is lower than both the state average of 87.1% and the national average of 87.0%. Funding for these students is $5,381 per pupil, roughly $570 less than the state average and approximately $7,600 below the national per-pupil spending of $13,000. The district includes one alternative school but no charter schools. The average school size in the county is 266 students, reflecting a smaller campus model than many suburban counterparts. Consult the NCES directory for specific district-wide program information.

Sources

NCES Common Core of Data
U.S. Census Bureau ACS

School Overview

Total Schools

in Sunflower County

Reported Enrollment

2,929

13 schools reporting

School Districts

district

Charter Schools

0% of total

School Level Breakdown

Elementary5

Middle4

High3

Other1

1 School District in Sunflower County

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

13 schools

2,929 students enrolled

13 Public Schools in Sunflower County

Sorted by reported enrollment. Every NCES public school remains listed here; no school-level profile pages are included in the current generated coverage for this county.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Search schools

Level

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Showing 13 of 13 matching schools

Public schools in Sunflower County, including district, location, profile availability, grades, type, and enrollment.
School Name	Profile	District	Location	Grades	Type / Flags	Reported Enrollment
GENTRY HIGH SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	10–12	High	488
ROBERT L MERRITT JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	7–9	Middle	410
LOCKARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	KG–3	Primary	371
THOMAS E. EDWARDS SR. HIGH SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	RULEVILLE, 38771Town: Remote	9–12	High	336
CARVER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	4–6	Middle	301
RULEVILLE CENTRAL ELEM SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	RULEVILLE, 38771Town: Remote	KG–5	Primary	269
MOORHEAD CENTRAL SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Moorhead, 38761Town: Remote	KG–8	Primary	215
A W JAMES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	DREW, 38737Rural: Distant	PK–5	Primary	211
RULEVILLE MIDDLE SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	RULEVILLE, 38771Town: Remote	6–8	Middle	150
DREW HUNTER MIDDLE SCHOOL	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	DREW, 38737Rural: Distant	6–8	Middle	102
ROSSER EARLY LEARNING CENTER	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Moorhead, 38761Town: Remote	PK–KG	Primary	76
INDIANOLA ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	KG–12	Alternative	0
INDIANOLA CAREER & TECH CENTER	Record	SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT	Indianola, 38751Town: Remote	10–12	Vocational	0

GENTRY HIGH SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

Record10–12High488 students

ROBERT L MERRITT JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

Record7–9Middle410 students

LOCKARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

RecordKG–3Primary371 students

THOMAS E. EDWARDS SR. HIGH SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

RULEVILLE, 38771 / Town: Remote

Record9–12High336 students

CARVER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

Record4–6Middle301 students

RULEVILLE CENTRAL ELEM SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

RULEVILLE, 38771 / Town: Remote

RecordKG–5Primary269 students

MOORHEAD CENTRAL SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Moorhead, 38761 / Town: Remote

RecordKG–8Primary215 students

A W JAMES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

DREW, 38737 / Rural: Distant

RecordPK–5Primary211 students

RULEVILLE MIDDLE SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

RULEVILLE, 38771 / Town: Remote

Record6–8Middle150 students

DREW HUNTER MIDDLE SCHOOL

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

DREW, 38737 / Rural: Distant

Record6–8Middle102 students

ROSSER EARLY LEARNING CENTER

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Moorhead, 38761 / Town: Remote

RecordPK–KGPrimary76 students

INDIANOLA ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

RecordKG–12Alternative0 students

INDIANOLA CAREER & TECH CENTER

SUNFLOWER CTY CONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

Indianola, 38751 / Town: Remote

Record10–12Vocational0 students

Education Funding Detail

Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure

$5,381

State avg $5,954

Compare Nearby Counties

Review Sunflower County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.

Open Compare

Browse Public Schools

See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.

View Schools

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Mississippi counties have the highest graduation rates?

Holmes County (97.0%), Montgomery County (97.0%), and Quitman County (97.0%) currently lead Mississippi among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.

What is per-pupil spending like in Mississippi?

Across Mississippi counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $5,954. The highest current county values are Choctaw County ($8,216), Kemper County ($7,706), and Franklin County ($7,289). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

How should I read the school score in Sunflower County?

Sunflower County has a school score of 7/100, which is a lower measured signal in this county-level index. This score is calculated from available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data, with school-level records shown separately below.

What is the graduation rate in Sunflower County?

The high school graduation rate in Sunflower County is 80.0%, which is below the national average of 87.5%. This figure is based on NCES district-level data for public high schools in the county.

How much does Sunflower County spend per student?

Sunflower County spends $5,381 per pupil annually on public education, based on NCES district finance data. Current operating spending per fall enrollment, including instruction, support services, administration, transportation, and operations. It excludes capital outlays and debt service in the SchoolsByCounty methodology.

Counties with Similar School Profile

Neshoba County

Mississippi

+1 pts

9/100

School score

Grenada County

Mississippi

-2 pts

6/100

School score

Scott County

Mississippi

+2 pts

10/100

School score

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

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