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Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
291st
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 699 Louisiana Elementary Schools
Better than 58% of Louisiana elementary schools
Summary

Ralph J Bunche Elementary is a PK-5 school in Metairie, LA, serving 470 students within the Jefferson Parish school district, and it has achieved a remarkable turnaround from a 1-star rating in 2019 to a 3-star rating in 2026, now ranking in the 60th percentile statewide.

This school stands out for its strong academic performance despite serving a predominantly low socio-economic status population, with over 72% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch. Its overall proficiency rates (Math: 70%, ELA: 68%, Social Studies: 59%) are notably higher than nearby schools with similar poverty levels, such as Bridgedale Elementary School (Math: 57%, ELA: 61%) and Hazel Park/Hilda Knoff School (Math: 56%, ELA: 65%). The school also shows a pattern of academic growth as students progress, with 5th-grade proficiency jumping to 74% in Math and 76% in ELA, indicating effective teaching and a positive school culture. However, the school faces a critical weakness in its special education services, ranking in the 18th percentile (1-star) for this subgroup, which contrasts sharply with its overall success.

While the school excels with its Hispanic student population (75th percentile, 4-star) and African American students (71st percentile, 4-star), it struggles with a chronic absenteeism crisis, with a rate of 24.2% for the 2024-2025 school year—higher than the district (21.5%) and state (22.5%) averages, and significantly worse than nearby peers like Bissonet Plaza School (17.7%) and Green Park Elementary School (17.9%). This absenteeism issue, though improving from a staggering 35.1% in 2022-2023, remains a key challenge for the school's continued progress.

470
Students ?
11.9
Student/teacher ratio ?
$16,861
Per pupil spending ?
72.6%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 8101 Simon Street
       Metairie, LA  70003-6493

(504) 934-4875

District: Jefferson Parish


Students who attend Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    T.H. Harris Middle School
High:    East Jefferson High School
Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
45.1%
African American:
43.8%
White:
8.3%
more
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 Compare Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Improving — 27th percentile in 2019 → 58th in 2026
Strengths
Ranking is trending up — up 31 percentile points since 2019
Among the top-ranked schools in Jefferson Parish
Above the Louisiana median (58th percentile)
Worth a look
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school65%
District avg55%
Louisiana avg62%
291st of 699
Louisiana public elementary schools ?
Top 42%▲ up 32 pts since 2019
From bottom 27% (2019) to top 42% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Louisiana Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
10th of 50Elementary Schools in the Jefferson Parish
58th of 119Jefferson Parish among Louisiana districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202659.3291 of 69958.4%★★★☆☆
202552.0346 of 66648.0%★★☆☆☆
202445.9391 of 67542.1%★★☆☆☆
202357.3337 of 73053.8%★★★☆☆
202255.9341 of 72753.1%★★★☆☆
202142.5427 of 72941.4%★★☆☆☆
201932.5537 of 73126.5%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202662.2165 of 55670.3%★★★★☆
202549.7251 of 50149.9%★★★☆☆
202457.0200 of 50960.7%★★★☆☆
202365.9162 of 57071.6%★★★★☆
202265.2153 of 56272.8%★★★★☆
202152.6246 of 56456.4%★★★☆☆
201947.0308 of 55944.9%★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202648.566 of 12748.0%★★☆☆☆
202571.38 of 8290.2%★★★★★
202449.141 of 8652.3%★★★☆☆
202274.812 of 9086.7%★★★★☆
201950.241 of 9154.9%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202658.7286 of 68858.4%★★★☆☆
202542.8381 of 63339.8%★★☆☆☆
202455.6303 of 63552.3%★★★☆☆
202345.4414 of 70541.3%★★☆☆☆
202254.0336 of 70152.1%★★★☆☆
202152.7354 of 70549.8%★★★☆☆
201929.6539 of 68421.2%★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202672.767 of 27375.5%★★★★☆
202568.751 of 20775.4%★★★★☆
202447.396 of 18949.2%★★☆☆☆
202376.042 of 23382.0%★★★★☆
202264.676 of 22065.5%★★★☆☆
202156.192 of 20254.5%★★★☆☆
201940.5119 of 19037.4%★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202665.5218 of 69368.5%★★★☆☆
202553.1328 of 66150.4%★★★☆☆
202450.0362 of 67446.3%★★☆☆☆
202359.2301 of 72358.4%★★★☆☆
202259.7280 of 72461.3%★★★☆☆
202148.0385 of 71946.5%★★☆☆☆
201936.9488 of 69730.0%★★☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202657.7300 of 69056.5%★★★☆☆
202559.1290 of 64154.8%★★★☆☆
202446.5371 of 65143.0%★★☆☆☆
202371.0200 of 71371.9%★★★★☆
202255.8339 of 71252.4%★★★☆☆
202136.5451 of 70435.9%★★☆☆☆
201943.3439 of 69636.9%★★☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankLouisiana percentileRating
202628.0315 of 40722.6%★☆☆☆☆
202125.5241 of 30621.2%★☆☆☆☆
20199.6330 of 3330.9%☆☆☆☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Hispanic (2026)75th percentile+17 vs school
African American (2026)70th percentile+12 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)69th percentile+10 vs school
Female (2026)58th percentile~ school
Male (2026)57th percentile~ school
English Language Learner (2026)48th percentile-10 vs school
Special Education (2026)23rd percentile-36 vs school
By subject vs Louisiana (2025-2026) ?
Mathematics70%+8 vs state
English Language Arts68%~ state avg
Science63%+4 vs state
Social Studies59%+4 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School

In the 2024-25 school year, 470 students attended Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School.

Students at Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School are 45% Hispanic, 44% African American, 8% White, 1% Two or more races.

Students who attend Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : T.H. Harris Middle School
High : East Jefferson High School

Ralph Bunche/George Washington Elementary School ranks 291st of 699 Louisiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

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Latest Louisiana data All new data »
2025–26 LEAP test scoresJul 6, 2026
2023–24 dropout ratesFeb 24, 2026
2023–24 school spending dataDec 1, 2025
2023–24 through 2024–25 graduation ratesNov 22, 2025


SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Louisiana Dept of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.

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