The West Tallahatchie School District (WTSD) is a public school district with its headquarters in the Charles M. George Facility for Educational Services in unincorporated Tallahatchie County, Mississippi (USA), adjacent to Sumner. In addition to Sumner, the district also serves the communities of Tutwiler, Webb, and Glendora. Additionally it includes unincorporated areas of Brazil, Philipp, and Vance. The parts of the Mintner City area in Tallahatchie County are in the West Tallahatchie district.

History

In 1993 most classrooms were not air conditioned. In 1997 the district got little money from local taxation, and it reported that it had a shortage of qualified teachers. Superintendent Reggie Barnes asked area housing authorities to build affordable housing next to West Tallahatchie High School so area teachers had affordable housing. In 1999 there were two schools in the district, and both received intercom systems and were given a $1,071,000 renovation. In 2022, West Tallahatchie High School received an award from GreatSchools.org as a College Success-Gold Honoree for its success in preparing its students for life and enrollment in both two-year and four-year colleges and universities, respectively.

Schools

Demographics

As of November 1997, 99% of the students were black and 1% was white. As of that time, 92% qualified for buying lunches at reduced or no expense. In 1999 there were 1,500 students.

2007-08 school year

There were a total of 947 students enrolled in the West Tallahatchie School District during the 2007–2008 school year. The gender makeup of the district was 53% female and 47% male. The racial makeup of the district was 99.89% African American and 0.11% Hispanic.

Previous school years

Student achievement

In 1997 the graduation rate was 86%. The class of 1999 was the only class of the 1990s decade to graduate 100% of the seniors that enrolled.

Accountability statistics

Other facilities

The Charles M. George Facility for Educational Services, the headquarters of WTSD, was dedicated on July 23, 1995. Charles M. George, the headquarters' namesake, was a principal and a superintendent of the district. As per the Mississippi Critical Teacher Shortage Act of 1998, a duplex was built for $200,000 next to West Tallahatchie High School. Priority was for district teachers but people not employed by the district are welcome to rent. In 2015 Monique Harrison-Henderson of The Hechinger Report stated "In the end, instead of being an exciting recruitment tool, the duplex has been filled in recent years by people with no direct ties to the school system."