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Prairie Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
182nd
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 690 Louisiana Elementary Schools
Better than 74% of Louisiana elementary schools
Summary

Prairie Elementary School in Lafayette, LA, is a mid-sized public school serving 663 students in grades PK-5, and it is part of the Lafayette Parish school district, which ranks in the top third of districts in Louisiana.

Prairie Elementary has a history of solid, above-average performance, consistently earning a 4-star rating over the past decade. However, its state ranking has recently slipped from the 88th percentile to the 74th percentile, a trend that sets it apart from nearby schools like Woodvale Elementary and Broadmoor Elementary, which have maintained or improved their standings. A key strength is the school's exceptional performance with its Hispanic students, which reached the 98th percentile in a recent year. Additionally, a fascinating pattern emerges in test scores: while 4th-grade scores dip below the district average, 5th-grade scores in Math, ELA, and Social Studies surge well above it, suggesting a particularly effective instructional focus in the 5th-grade year. This "5th-grade bounce" is a stark contrast to nearby Westside Elementary, where 5th-grade scores are the strongest but still below the district average.

Prairie sits in a unique competitive position, achieving above-average results with a student body where nearly 58% qualify for free or reduced lunch. This is a higher percentage than high-performing peers like Myrtle Place Elementary (30.2%) and L. Leo Judice Elementary, but lower than lower-performing schools like Westside and S.J. Montgomery Elementary. While chronic absenteeism (16.6%) is better than the district average, it has more than doubled in recent years. The school's closest competitor is Ridge Elementary, which has a similar poverty rate and comparable test scores. The most critical issue to watch is the recent decline in performance for low-income students, which dropped from the 89th to the 64th percentile, a significant shift that is a major driver of the school's overall ranking.

663
Students ?
17.2
Student/teacher ratio ?
$14,962
Per pupil spending ?
57.9%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 1101 Rue du Belier
       Lafayette, LA  70506

(337) 521-7790

District: Lafayette Parish


Students who attend Prairie Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Edgar Martin Middle School
High:    Acadiana High School
Racial breakdown:

White:
44.5%
African American:
38.6%
Hispanic:
10.1%
more
 See top rated Louisiana elementary schools

 Compare Prairie Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 88th percentile in 2023 → 74th in 2026
Strengths
✓Test scores above the Louisiana average (72% vs 62% meeting standards)
✓Above the Louisiana median (74th percentile)
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped from its 88th-percentile peak (2023) to 74th (2026)
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school72%
District avg68%
Louisiana avg62%
182nd of 690
Louisiana public elementary schools ?
Top 26%▲ up 13 pts since 2016
From top 39% (2016) to top 26% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Louisiana Elementary Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
11th of 23Elementary Schools in the Lafayette Parish
27th of 116Lafayette Parish among Louisiana districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202675.4182 of 69073.6%★★★★☆
202582.6108 of 66683.8%★★★★☆
202486.285 of 67587.4%★★★★☆
202385.085 of 73088.4%★★★★☆
202278.7155 of 72778.7%★★★★☆
202181.8125 of 72982.9%★★★★☆
201977.4173 of 73176.3%★★★★☆
201867.4184 of 72874.7%★★★★☆
201763.8306 of 73958.6%★★★☆☆
201664.7289 of 74261.1%★★★☆☆
201567.0273 of 79265.5%★★★☆☆
201463.1307 of 77760.5%★★★☆☆
201365.3282 of 77263.5%★★★☆☆
201271.8223 of 76470.8%★★★★☆
201173.4222 of 76671.0%★★★★☆
201068.3260 of 73664.7%★★★☆☆
200968.3253 of 73865.7%★★★☆☆
200871.2211 of 74371.6%★★★★☆
200775.6168 of 72576.8%★★★★☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202667.8141 of 54874.3%★★★★☆
202577.374 of 50185.2%★★★★☆
202478.984 of 50983.5%★★★★☆
202378.095 of 57083.3%★★★★☆
202258.2198 of 56264.8%★★★☆☆
202184.557 of 56489.9%★★★★★
201978.892 of 55983.5%★★★★☆
201875.6100 of 54781.7%★★★★☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202670.123 of 11580.0%★★★★☆
201898.22 of 8997.8%★★★★★

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202669.4211 of 67968.9%★★★☆☆
202583.781 of 63387.2%★★★★☆
202486.469 of 63589.1%★★★★☆
202380.1110 of 70584.4%★★★★☆
202279.3125 of 70182.2%★★★★☆
202181.0113 of 70584.0%★★★★☆
201979.6126 of 68481.6%★★★★☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202677.855 of 26679.3%★★★★☆
202571.640 of 20780.7%★★★★☆
202493.64 of 18997.9%★★★★★
202380.833 of 23385.8%★★★★☆
202293.97 of 22096.8%★★★★★
202191.811 of 20294.6%★★★★★
201983.021 of 19088.9%★★★★☆
201877.531 of 16881.5%★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202663.9249 of 68563.6%★★★☆☆
202576.0134 of 66179.7%★★★★☆
202484.975 of 67488.9%★★★★☆
202383.482 of 72388.7%★★★★☆
202270.5187 of 72474.2%★★★★☆
202182.982 of 71988.6%★★★★☆
201974.8156 of 69777.6%★★★★☆
201876.6146 of 68278.6%★★★★☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202676.6155 of 68277.3%★★★★☆
202577.0142 of 64177.8%★★★★☆
202485.480 of 65187.7%★★★★☆
202386.570 of 71390.2%★★★★★
202274.2180 of 71274.7%★★★★☆
202177.7147 of 70479.1%★★★★☆
201969.8227 of 69667.4%★★★☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202190.318 of 30694.1%★★★★★

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202681.264 of 49687.1%★★★★☆
202582.950 of 43188.4%★★★★☆
202482.550 of 43488.5%★★★★☆
202373.2112 of 51878.4%★★★★☆
202277.0100 of 51780.7%★★★★☆
202171.6129 of 52275.3%★★★★☆
201961.5210 of 51759.4%★★★☆☆
201865.0185 of 51664.1%★★★☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Special Education (2021)94th percentile+11 vs school
White (2026)87th percentile+13 vs school
English Language Learner (2026)80th percentile+6 vs school
Hispanic (2026)79th percentile+6 vs school
Male (2026)77th percentile+4 vs school
African American (2026)74th percentile~ school
Female (2026)69th percentile-5 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)64th percentile-10 vs school
By subject vs Louisiana (2025-2026) ?
English Language Arts79%+9 vs state
Mathematics74%+12 vs state
Social Studies64%+9 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Prairie Elementary School

Prairie Elementary School ranks 182nd of 690 Louisiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Students who attend Prairie Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Edgar Martin Middle School
High : Acadiana High School

Students at Prairie Elementary School are 44% White, 39% African American, 10% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

In the 2024-25 school year, 663 students attended Prairie Elementary School.


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Schools in Lafayette, LA

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Louisiana Dept of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.




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