JACKSON — Mississippi Department of Education published new data about graduation rates and dropout rates this week for the 2025 Fiscal Year.. West Lincoln led the four county schools and Brookhaven High School in graduation rates. 

Statewide, the graduation rate is at 89.2 percent, 0.2 percent less than last year, and the dropout rate is 8.5 percent. Graduation rates in this report were determined by students who enrolled in Grade 9 in the 2020-2021 school year. 

Students with disabilities had a graduation rate of 65.2 percent and a dropout rate of 20 percent. The graduation rate was lower than totals in 2023 and 2024 but higher than totals in 2020, 2021 and 2022. 

Of the 204 students enrolled in the 2024 class at Brookhaven School District, 82.8 percent graduated and 11.3 percent dropped out. Brookhaven School District Superintendent Rod Henderson said he was pleased by the school’s progress and growth. 

In the FY2024 report, Brookhaven High School had a graduation rate of 80.7 percent. Henderson said the graduation rate improved by 2.1 percent in a year. 

“We can be proud of it but we also want to see a steady increase and we want to get to 90 percent,” Henderson said. “We can get there with hard work. Reflecting on the hard work of our teachers, administrators, support staff and students, I’m pleased.”

Henderson said to get to 90 percent graduation rate it will take some work. Attendance is one of the keys to success for Brookhaven. He explained absenteeism is a challenge districts around the state face. 

“It will be a steady message of how important it is for students to be at school each day and how important it is to take education seriously,” Henderson said. “We will make sure we are doing all we can to address the needs of our students. We are very pleased with the increase but we will work hard to get towards that goal. If we keep this rate we will be knocking at the door in a few years.”

Lincoln County School District reported 88.2 percent graduation rate with a 2024 class of 186 students. The dropout rate for Lincoln County was 10.8 percent. 

Lincoln County School District Superintendent David Martin was pleased. 

“I’m just proud of where we are. We obviously want to keep working to get better,” Martin said. “We thank the students, teachers and parents for their work. Graduation is a big deal. It takes a community to get these students there.”

West Lincoln led the pack with a graduation rate of 97.5 percent and 2.5 percent dropout rate from a class of 40 students. Enterprise was second best in the county with a graduation rate of 93.8 percent and a dropout rate of 3.1 percent. 

Bogue Chitto finished third in the county with a graduation rate of 87.3 percent and a dropout rate of 12.7 percent. Loyd Star had a graduation rate of 79.7 percent and a dropout rate of 18.6 percent. 

Mississippi School of the Arts, based in Brookhaven, had a graduation rate of 100 percent and led the state. Martin said the Lincoln County School District’s goal is to reach 100 percent graduation. 

“We want to continue to do better. We are always looking at anything we can do to get a little better,” Martin said. “Unless we have a 100 percent graduation rate, there is something we could do better. We would love to see everyone be successful and graduate. It takes a group effort to get there.”