Elementary Schools in City of Monroe School District

The City of Monroe School District in Louisiana oversees 12 elementary schools serving grades Pre-K through 6, a district ranked 91st out of 116 in the state, indicating significant overall challenges but with notable exceptions of high performance.

For parents, the standout school is J.S. Clark Magnet Elementary School, which consistently earns a 5-star rating and ranks in the top 5% of Louisiana elementary schools, achieving 94% proficiency in English Language Arts (ELA) and 88% in Math—far exceeding district averages of 64% and 51%, respectively. Another strong option is Sallie Humble Elementary School, a 4-star school with 82% proficiency in both Math and ELA and a low chronic absenteeism rate of 11.8%. In contrast, schools like Berg Jones Elementary School, Roy Neal Shelling Senior Elementary, and Carver Elementary School face severe challenges, consistently ranking in the bottom 10% of Louisiana elementary schools with 0-star ratings and very low proficiency rates, such as Berg Jones with only 37% in Math and 15% in Social Studies. Madison James Foster Elementary School has the highest chronic absenteeism rate at 37.3%, which is linked to its low test scores. However, there are positive trends: Cypress Point Elementary School jumped from the 23rd to the 41st percentile in one year, and Barkdull Faulk Elementary School improved from the 17th to the 28th percentile.

A key takeaway is the stark performance disparity tied to economic disadvantage, with the highest-poverty schools (over 95% free/reduced lunch) showing the lowest scores, while J.S. Clark defies this trend with 71.62% economically disadvantaged students yet top-tier results, likely due to its magnet program. Social Studies is a district-wide weakness, with an average proficiency of just 41% compared to the state average of 55%, and only J.S. Clark exceeds that benchmark. Additionally, two schools—Lexington Elementary School and Clara Hall Accelerated School—serve only grades PK-2 and do not participate in state testing, making their academic effectiveness unmeasurable, though their high poverty and absenteeism rates suggest they serve a challenging population.