Asa Messer Elementary School

Asa Messer Elementary School serves 557 students in prekindergarten through grade 4 in Providence. In 2025–26, 26% of students were proficient in English Language Arts (ELA) and 22% in math. SchoolDigger placed the school at the 27th percentile statewide, ranking it 119th out of 163 schools with one star; the Providence district ranked at the 13th percentile, also with one star. The key takeaway is that Asa compares favorably with many nearby schools, but its proficiency remains below the state—especially in math.

Among Asa and ten nearby schools, it ranked fourth in both subjects. Its ELA result was 7 percentage points above the nearby-school average, while its math result was essentially at that average. Asa also exceeded district results in ELA and math by 9 and 5 points, respectively, but trailed the state by 7 points in ELA and 10 in math. At grade level, third-grade math stands out as a relative weakness: 20% were proficient, below the district’s 23% and the state’s 37%; third-grade ELA was 29%, above the district’s 24% but below the state’s 39%. These results show that doing better than the district or many local peers does not mean matching state proficiency.

Scores have risen overall since 2022–23, but have fallen from their 2023–24 highs: ELA increased from 17% to 26% across the period after peaking at 40%, while math rose from 20% to 22% after peaking at 32%. SchoolDigger’s overall percentile also varied, moving from 14 in 2022–23 to 53, then down to 26 and up slightly to 27. Asa’s student–teacher ratio is 17.9, compared with a nearby-school average of 15.8; its free/reduced-lunch rate is 84%, close to the nearby average of 86%. SchoolDigger’s subgroup rankings show a notable contrast: its English Language Learner Students ranked at the 59th percentile in 2025–26, down from the 76th percentile the year before, while its Special Education Students ranked at the 8th percentile, well below the school’s overall 27th percentile.