The Lauderdale County and Meridian Public school districts maintained their accountability ratings, or letter grades, from the previous school year, according to the 2023-2024 accountability ratings released by the Mississippi Department of Education on Tuesday.

The Lauderdale County School District received an A-rating for the third year in a row, Superintendent John-Mark Cain told members of the Meridian Rotary Club at a Tuesday luncheon.

“This is the third year in a row for that; we are excited about it. It’s not easy,” Cain said. “It happens because we have good teachers, we have families that support us, the community supports us.”

“We’re fortunate to have, I think you would say, one of the top school districts in Mississippi,” said Cain, noting county schools enrollment has topped 6,000 students just this year for the first time since the 2019-2020 school year. “We continue to grow, continue to get better each day. That’s what we strive to do.”

The Meridian Public School District, meanwhile, maintained its overall C-rating, but saw significant increases in proficiency across the board in English language arts, math and science, as well as noteworthy improvements in college and career readiness metrics and a double-digit performance increase among the English Language Learner subgroup, according to a release from the school district.

“I applaud our students, teachers, staff, parents and community for their hard work in helping reach these gains,” said MPSD Superintendent Amy Carter. “Moving forward our focus remains on sustaining this momentum, improving even further, and ensuring every student is set up for success in academics and life.”

The Mississippi Department of Education uses an A-F performance rating to annually assess schools and districts based on state test performance, individual student growth, participation rates and graduation rates. The results were officially released by the state department on Tuesday.

In the 2024 report, Lauderdale County was among the top 25 school districts in the state with nine schools graded an A: Clarkdale High and Clarkdale Elementary, Northeast Elementary and Northeast High, Southeast Elementary and Southeast High, and West Lauderdale High, Middle and Elementary schools. Southeast Middle School was rated a B, and Northeast Middle School maintained a C grade.

“This achievement is a testament to the dedication, hard work and commitment of our students, teachers, parents, administrators and school board. Their unwavering focus on academic excellence and student success continues to propel our district forward,” Cain said in a released statement Tuesday afternoon.

Meridian schools made several notable gains in the metrics, according to its news statement released Tuesday.

Parkview Elementary School gained an impressive 23 points to maintain its B-rating as a high-performing school, and Poplar Springs Elementary gained 26 points to go from a C grade to a B-rated school. West Hills Elementary maintained its B rating, while Crestwood Elementary, an A-rated school the previous year, received a successful, or C, grade. Meridian High School also maintained its C rating. George Washington Carver Elementary and Northwest Middle School were both rated D. Magnolia Middle School gained 40 points to improve its overall rating from a D to a C.

The 2023-2024 school year was the first year students from TJ Harris Elementary and Oakland Heights Elementary were consolidated into the student bodies at Crestwood Elementary and the newly reopened George Washington Carver Elementary.