Parsons Elementary School

Parsons Elementary School is a PK–5 school in the Columbus City Schools District on Columbus’s south side at 3231 Lee Ellen Pl, serving 365 students — the largest enrollment among its same-district peers in this comparison. It ranks 1,293 of 1,560 Ohio elementary schools (17th percentile) with a 1-star rating, while the district ranks 683 of 773. The school has improved from the 6th to the 17th percentile over four years, and its student-teacher ratio is 17.3:1, in line with nearby schools.

Academically, Parsons averages about 35% proficient across tested subjects, versus roughly 38.5% for the district and 64% statewide. Grade 5 is a genuine bright spot: ELA is 64.9%, science 48.6%, and math 29.7% — all above district averages, with science more than quadrupling and ELA more than doubling over four years. But Grade 4 math (21.3%) and ELA (22.9%) are about 18 points below the district, and Grade 3 ELA is 25.5%. Chronic absenteeism is high at 62.4% and has risen for two straight years, roughly 9 points above the district; nearly two-thirds of students are chronically absent. By contrast, the same-district schools that outrank Parsons — Stewart Alternative Elementary School (38.1%) and Cedarwood Alternative Elementary School (44.9%) — have much lower absenteeism.

Parsons outperforms four of its six same-district neighbors — Moler Elementary School, Watkins Elementary School, Lincoln Park Elementary School, and Southwood Elementary School — so its 1-star rating reflects a struggling district as much as the school itself. Yet it sits 10 percentile points behind Cedarwood Alternative Elementary School, less than a mile away with similar enrollment, student-teacher ratio, and spending; Cedarwood beats Parsons in nearly every tested subject. Nearby cross-district examples also post higher results: South Columbus Preparatory Academy at Southfield ranks at the 63rd percentile, and Hamilton Elementary School matches state averages in Grade 3 math and ELA — despite Parsons spending more per pupil than Hamilton. Bottom line: Parsons is improving unevenly, with real strengths in Grade 5 and clear needs in lower grades and attendance.