Summary:
The city of Scott, Louisiana, is home to four public schools within the Lafayette Parish school district, serving students from Pre-K through 8th grade with a total enrollment of 2,554 students.
Scott’s elementary schools present a striking contrast in performance. L. Leo Judice Elementary School is a standout, earning a 5-star rating and ranking 14th out of 690 elementary schools in Louisiana. It boasts exceptional academic proficiency, with 91% of students proficient in Social Studies, and a low chronic absenteeism rate of 12.0%. In comparison, Westside Elementary School is a 2-star school with a 44th percentile state ranking, a high poverty rate (73.2% free/reduced lunch), and a chronic absenteeism rate of 26.1%. J. Wallace James Elementary School performs very well, earning a 4-star rating and ranking in the 79th percentile, with the city’s lowest chronic absenteeism rate at just 7.2% and strong proficiency scores (81% in Math, 82% in ELA).
A significant challenge emerges at the middle school level. Scott Middle School has a 2-star rating and ranks in the 34th percentile, with the highest chronic absenteeism rate in the city (33.8%) and the lowest academic performance. This "middle school slide" contrasts sharply with the strong elementary schools that feed into it. Notably, L. Leo Judice Elementary achieves top results despite having the highest student-teacher ratio (29.2), suggesting that factors like school culture and teaching quality are powerful drivers of success. Overall, while poverty correlates with lower performance, J. Wallace James Elementary demonstrates that strong outcomes are achievable even with a moderate poverty rate.
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