Public schools in Petal, MS
Petal has 6 public schools with a 2024-25 address in the city: 1 high, 2 middle, 3 elementary, enrolling 4,426 students. They are run by 2 districts and agencies; Petal School District runs 5 of them.
NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: schools open that year with enrollment · method
The 2 districts and agencies that run Petal's public schools
Each district decides who can enroll where; its page holds its schools, spending and teachers.
| District | Schools in Petal | District students, fall 2022 | Spending per student, FY23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petal School District | 5 | 4,392 | $11,258 |
| Perry County School District | 1 | 933 | $15,310 |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: school location city and operating agency; NCES F-33 fiscal year 2022-23: district fall membership and current spending per student. Schools on a city's edge can serve students from outside it.
One high school in Petal, 1,324 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petal High School | 1,324 | 12.8 | 44.6% | Petal |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
2 middle schools in Petal, 1,277 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petal Middle School | 645 | 12.8 | 48.1% | Petal |
| Petal Upper Elementary School | 632 | 12.4 | 49.2% | Petal |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
3 elementary schools in Petal, 1,825 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petal Primary School | 1,016 | 13.6 | 53.4% | Petal |
| Petal Elementary | 636 | 13.3 | 50.3% | Petal |
| Runnelstown Elementary School | 173 | 10.0 | 58.4% | Perry County |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
How Petal's public schools compare with Mississippi's
The median Petal school has 12.8 students per full-time teacher, fewer than the Mississippi median of 13.9. 67% of its schools ran a schoolwide Title I program in 2021-22, against 81% across the state. Its median school enrolls 641 students (state 421).
| Petal | Mississippi | |
|---|---|---|
| Median students per teacher | 12.8 | 13.9 |
| Median school size (students) | 641 | 421 |
| Schools with a schoolwide Title I program (2021-22) | 67% | 81% |
| Schools where every student eats free (CEP) | 0% | 30% |
| Charter schools | 0% | 0.9% |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch program, charter status; the 6 Petal schools and the 844 Mississippi schools open that year with students); Title I status CCD 2021-22. Students per teacher counts 2024-25 teachers and ratios from 3 to 99.
What to look at next in Petal
- Petal School DistrictRuns 5 of Petal's 6 public schools and spent $11,258 per student in fiscal year 2022-23.$11,258
- Petal High School, the largest high school in Petal1,324 students in 2024-25, 12.8 per teacher.1,324
- Compare Petal School District with Perry County School DistrictPetal's two largest operators side by side: enrollment, spending and schools.
- The largest public schools in MississippiMississippi's 50 largest schools open in 2024-25, by enrollment.
- Find the school district for a Petal addressA home's district, not its city, decides which public schools it can enroll in.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (schools and their operating agencies); NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23 (spending per student).
Choosing among them: how to choose a school district with the federal data, and what a Title I school is.
Other cities in Mississippi
- Jackson46 schools
- Gulfport22 schools
- Hattiesburg18 schools
- Meridian16 schools
- Olive Branch14 schools
- Biloxi13 schools
- Columbus13 schools
- Vicksburg13 schools
Questions about schools in Petal
How many public schools are in Petal, MS?
6 public schools with an address in Petal were open in 2024-25: 1 high, 2 middle, 3 elementary, enrolling 4,426 students.What is the largest high school in Petal?
Petal High School, with 1,324 students in 2024-25 (Petal School District).Which districts run Petal's schools?
Petal School District (5 schools), Perry County School District (1 school). A school's district, not its city, decides who can enroll.
These figures are for information and are not a substitute for the district's enrollment office, which confirms the school a home is assigned to.
Sources
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25
Source: NCES Common Core of Data Public school search (the official record of each school) · 2024-25