Edward L. Bouie- Sr. Elementary School, Lithonia GA

Original Research by School Decision on Edward L. Bouie- Sr. Elementary School

Edward L. Bouie Sr. Elementary School is a school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Lithonia, a small city in the eastern Atlanta metro rooted in granite quarrying. The school sits in a predominantly Black community, and reflects that demographic composition: nearly all enrolled students identify as Black or African American, with smaller populations of Hispanic, multiracial, and Asian students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of economic need at the school and in the surrounding residential neighborhoods.

Academically, the school's most recent state assessment results show mixed performance across grade levels. In mathematics, third grade proficiency is notably low, while fourth grade reaches close to a majority, and fifth grade dips back down. In English language arts, third and fourth grades show proficiency below or near half, while fifth grade reaches above half. Science proficiency in fifth grade, the only grade tested, falls below half. Overall across all tested subjects and grades, the school sits in the top quartile among districts in DeKalb County on an aggregate proficiency measure, though individual subject and grade results reveal uneven mastery. A parent may want to look into whether the school has identified the drops in fourth-to-fifth-grade math and the consistently lower science results and what supports are being deployed.

The school has an enrollment of about that size for its grade band, distributed across the full pre-K through fifth-grade span. Lithonia itself is a walkable historic community centered on a compact downtown along Main Street, with pedestrian-friendly streets and small shops. The broader area is experiencing residential growth, with new townhome and apartment communities under construction, and sits near the Stonecrest commercial corridor and I-20. The Arabia Mountain PATH, a multi-use paved trail system, offers accessible recreation starting from downtown. Housing values in the zip code have declined modestly year over year, and rental costs are rising slightly, making housing affordability a live consideration for families.

DeKalb County School District, which operates this school, is undergoing significant structural change. The Student Assignment Project, launched in 2024, will reshape school boundaries and may close or consolidate dozens of buildings over the coming years to address substantial enrollment overcapacity in some areas and declining capacity in others. A final recommendation to the Board is expected in December 2026, so families choosing this school now should understand that boundaries and nearby school assignments may shift. The district has also approved major facility investments through E-SPLOST VI, a sales tax running through mid-2027 funding new school construction and program conversions, though Bouie Sr. Elementary does not appear among the named flagship projects. Additionally, the district's property tax rate, historically among Georgia's highest, has been trimmed for three consecutive years, though actual tax bills have continued to climb because of rising home values—a relevant factor in the local cost of living.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 34% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 463%

School 63% · District 35% · ▲ 28 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 30 pts above county median

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 32% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 30% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 446%

School 46% · District 30% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 555%

School 55% · District 35% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Science

Grade 539%

School 39% · District 33% · ▲ 6 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Social studies

Grades 3-882%

School 82% · district not reported

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

This schoolDeKalb County, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.