The top reported proficiency rate is 24% in English language arts. The lowest is 8% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Paramount School of Excellence South Bend
Paramount School of Excellence South Bend is a tuition-free public charter district that opened for the 2023-2024 school year, serving kindergarten through eighth grade. It operates as a single-school district with one campus. Because it is newly established, there is no track record of performance over time; the first year of state testing results serve as a baseline that families will want to watch as the school matures.
The student body of roughly three hundred is predominantly Black, with a notable share of students identifying as white, and smaller populations of students who are Hispanic or of two or more races. The district appears to be in its early growth phase: enrollment by grade shows a larger kindergarten class and a pattern of numbers that taper off through the upper elementary grades, with no students yet enrolled in seventh or eighth grade. This grade configuration suggests that the school may still be building out its full middle school program.
State assessment results for the 2024-25 school year place overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades in the bottom quartile among St. Joseph County’s districts. In math and English language arts, proficiency rates sit well below the county and state averages. Science proficiency was also low, and social studies proficiency among fifth graders was very low. These are early numbers from a school that just opened. A parent should want to understand what academic interventions or supports the school offers and whether the school expects these results to improve as it stabilizes.
The district’s brief indicates that the school’s inaugural ILEARN results in 2023-2024 were similarly below state averages, so the pattern held across the first two years of testing. The school’s own website describes its approach as structured, which may appeal to families who prefer a clear academic framework. The school is a charter option that does not require a voucher, which broadens school choice for South Bend families.
Housing market and community context data for the school’s immediate location were not available, so it is not possible to speak to the residential character of the neighborhoods that feed into this school. Given that the district covers a single school and that school is a charter, families can choose to send their child here regardless of where they live within the broader area, as long as they apply and are admitted through the charter enrollment process.
Civil rights data, such as discipline rates or access to advanced coursework, was not reported. The school serves only kindergarten through eighth grade, so there is no graduation rate to consider. Families considering this school for middle school should investigate what academic pathways are available for the upper grades, given that the school has not yet enrolled students in seventh or eighth grade.
Paramount School of Excellence South Bend is a new option for families who want a structured, tuition-free charter in the South Bend area. Its academic performance is very early and low relative to other districts in the county. The school’s trajectory will become clearer in subsequent years. A family considering this school should ask about academic supports, how the school plans to raise proficiency, and what the full middle school experience will look like as the school continues to build out its grade levels.
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