Summary
Lasalle Elementary School is a PK–6 school in Mishawaka, Indiana, serving 519 students as part of School City of Mishawaka. The district ranks 272nd of 374 Indiana districts (27th percentile, 1 star), and Lasalle has long ranked near the bottom of Indiana elementary schools. Its last two years are its best in a decade, moving from the 9th–14th percentile range to 17th–18th, but 2025-26 ILEARN proficiency remains low: 17.97% in English Language Arts, 25.20% in Math, and 23.20% in Science. That means roughly 1 in 6 students reads at grade level and about 1 in 4 does math at grade level. Chronic absenteeism is 27.5%, improved from 42.6% in 2021-22, while per-pupil spending is $11,426 and the student–teacher ratio is 16.0.
Lasalle is the lowest-spending school in this comparison set, yet it outperforms several higher-spending neighbors, including Nuner Fine Arts Academy ($16,341 per pupil), Edison Middle School ($18,228), and Monroe Elementary School ($15,613), in ELA, Math, and Science. Within its own district, only Battell Elementary School clearly outperforms it: Battell posts about double Lasalle’s ELA proficiency (34.15% vs. 17.97%) with a similar free/reduced-lunch rate and slightly lower spending, plus smaller classes (12.9 vs. 16.0). Math is a relative strength for Lasalle compared with reading, and grade-level gaps narrow as students move up: 3rd grade has the widest gaps versus the district (ELA −13.5 points, Math −14.3), while 6th grade has the narrowest. Literacy, especially in 3rd and 5th grades, is the clearest internal challenge.
There are real signs of progress: rank percentile improved, Math proficiency rose every year since 2022-23, 5th grade social studies jumped from 3.28% to 23.21%, and attendance improved by 15 points. Still, spending has risen about 30% in four years alongside only modest gains. Some data need caution: Lasalle’s free/reduced-lunch rate dropped from 83.79% to 43.16% in one year with no matching change in enrollment or scores, likely reflecting a reporting change; McKinley Elementary School shows contradictory figures; and Monroe Elementary School has the lowest outcomes in the cluster. Overall, Lasalle is improving and cost-efficient, but it remains far below district and state norms in reading, with the biggest gaps among its youngest students.
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