Summary:
The St. Bernard Parish school district in Louisiana is home to two high schools serving grades 9 through 12, offering a stark contrast in educational environments and outcomes for families in the area.
Chalmette High School is the district's standout performer, a large traditional high school with over 2,100 students that consistently earns a 3-star rating. It boasts a strong graduation rate of 92.6%, well above the state average of 85%, and a very low dropout rate of just 0.8%. The school excels in core subjects like Algebra I and English I, where proficiency rates significantly exceed state averages. In contrast, C.F. Rowley Alternative School serves a much smaller, at-risk population of just over 100 students and faces significant challenges, ranking in the bottom 1% of all Louisiana high schools with a 0-star rating. Its graduation rate is only 47.6%, and its dropout rate is more than four times higher than Chalmette's.
The most critical issue across the parish is chronic absenteeism, which is alarmingly high at both schools. While the state average is 22.5%, Chalmette High School reports a rate of 33.5%, and C.F. Rowley Alternative School has a staggering 63.7% rate. This directly impacts academic performance and graduation outcomes. Interestingly, C.F. Rowley has a much lower student-to-teacher ratio (6.3:1) than Chalmette High (14.7:1), suggesting more individualized attention, yet its results are dramatically worse. This highlights that for alternative schools serving high-needs populations, additional resources alone cannot overcome deep-seated challenges like truancy. For parents, the data clearly shows that Chalmette High School is a strong, stable choice, while C.F. Rowley is a specialized environment for students who have struggled in traditional settings.
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