The top reported proficiency rate is 80% in Social studies. The lowest is 17% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Tara Elementary School
Tara Elementary School serves prekindergarten through fifth grade in Morrow, a commercial suburb of Atlanta anchored by Southlake Mall and defined by retail corridors and subdivisions that grew as a bedroom community after the 1950s. The school sits on Mount Zion Road in a mixed-income area of the city, drawing an enrollment of about 570 students. All enrolled students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the population is predominantly Black, with a substantial Hispanic enrollment and very small numbers of white, Asian, and multiracial students.
The school's academic performance is low across measured subjects and grade levels. In the most recent testing window, proficiency in English language arts hovered around one in five students across grades three, four, and five, with math proficiency running similar or slightly lower. Science proficiency in fifth grade reached roughly one in five students. These results place the school in the top quartile of overall proficiency within Clayton County's five districts, a positioning that reflects broader challenges across the county rather than strength relative to state or national benchmarks. The data does not allow year-over-year trend analysis; only the current year of testing is available, so whether these outcomes represent a shift or a persistent plateau cannot be determined from the figures provided. Parents may want to ask the school directly about what supports are in motion to improve literacy and mathematics outcomes, particularly given the district's recent adoption of Science-of-Reading practices and the Amira literacy screening tool across all K-5 classrooms.
Tara is a regular public elementary school with no magnet designation or charter status. The school is located within Clayton County Public Schools, a district undergoing significant capital renewal. Voters approved a major sales-tax referendum in 2023 to fund renovation or replacement of 36 aging schools across the district; Tara's status within that list was not specified in available data. The district has also launched a convocation center and college and career academy at the former Southlake Mall Sears site in Morrow, which will serve high school students districtwide but signals the district's investment in career pathways and upgraded facilities. The district-wide shift to structured literacy instruction is now in place across elementary grades, which may shape classroom practice and supplemental support at Tara.
Housing in the Morrow 30260 zip code, where the school is located, is below state median and reflects the neighborhood's character as an established, affordable suburb. Median home values are moderate, and rental costs are broadly accessible relative to median household income. The area has seen modest population and housing changes in recent years; new construction such as Story Mt. Zion and townhome development has added housing options, while Barton Memorial Park and the city's greenway expansion are improving the public realm, but the overall pace of growth is steady rather than rapid.
Tara Elementary is the kind of school that serves a high-need population in an under-resourced community. The gap between current performance and proficiency benchmarks is substantial, and parents considering the school should understand that reading and math proficiency are below where most families would want them, and that intensive academic support may be necessary. At the same time, the district is actively reshaping its literacy approach and the school sits within a broader improvement effort. Direct conversation with school leadership about specific interventions, classroom instruction, and how the school is using Amira and other reading tools would give a clearer picture of what kind of academic pathway a particular child might experience.
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