Red River Elementary School

Red River Elementary School in Coushatta, LA, serves 568 students from Pre-Kindergarten through 5th grade in the Red River Parish district, where over 90% of students come from low socio-economic backgrounds. This school is a remarkable turnaround story, climbing from the bottom 20% of Louisiana elementary schools just a few years ago to a 3-star rating and the 60th percentile in the 2024-2025 school year, a significant achievement given its high level of economic disadvantage.

One of the most impressive findings is the school's exceptional support for Special Education students, who ranked in the 95th percentile statewide in the most recent year—a dramatic leap from the 5th percentile just two years prior. This suggests a highly effective intervention program is in place. However, the school faces challenges in Social Studies, where only 40% of students are proficient, compared to 75% at the nearby Fairview-Alpha Elementary & Junior High School in the Natchitoches Parish district. Red River also trails Fairview-Alpha in English Language Arts (63% vs. 79%) and Mathematics (65% vs. 70%), though it has a significantly lower chronic absenteeism rate (17.0% vs. 28.8%), which is a strong positive for student engagement.

Red River Elementary consistently outperforms its district average in both Math and English Language Arts, indicating its internal practices are more effective than other schools in the Red River Parish district. While the school excels with Special Education students, it struggles with White students, who ranked in the 29th percentile, compared to African American students at the 56th percentile. This disparity suggests that instructional strategies may need to be more equitable across all student groups. Overall, Red River Elementary is a school on a powerful upward trajectory, with standout achievements in special education and a clear need to focus on Social Studies instruction to reach the top tier of performance.