The top reported proficiency rate is 12% in Math. The lowest is 7% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on W.s. Hornsby Elementary School
W.S. Hornsby Elementary School serves pre-K through fifth grade in central Augusta, a mixed-use city that blends a pedestrian-friendly historic downtown along the Savannah River with more car-dependent residential neighborhoods. The school sits in a zip code where the median home value is modest and rents are proportionally low compared to national benchmarks. Hornsby's enrollment is entirely drawn from students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals, and the student body is predominantly Black, with small numbers of Hispanic, Asian, and multiracial students.
The school's most pressing academic reality is that proficiency rates across tested subjects and grades are very low. In English language arts, the school is reporting proficiency rates in the single digits across third, fourth, and fifth grade, with fourth grade particularly weak. Math proficiency is similarly concerning, with third and fourth grades each showing proficiency rates below the midpoint of the state range, and fifth grade showing marginal improvement. Science proficiency in fifth grade is also in single digits. Across the school, the average proficiency index places Hornsby in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Richmond County, meaning that students are not demonstrating grade-level mastery at rates expected across the school's grade band.
This is a small elementary school relative to its grade span, with enrollment distributed fairly evenly across grades. One result is that any single assessment result represents responses from a modest number of children; a parent may want to discuss what supports the school has in place for literacy and math fundamentals and what evidence of progress, if any, the school is seeing within the school year beyond these annual state tests.
Richmond County School System is in the midst of significant structural change. A Long-Range Facilities Master Plan approved by the Board of Education will reshape attendance zones and close or consolidate several schools beginning in the 2026-27 school year. The plan includes closing T.W. Josey Comprehensive High School as a zoned high school by the end of 2028-29 and converting the campus into a districtwide College and Career Academy. It will also close Spirit Creek Middle School and A. Brian Merry Elementary School, while consolidating Langford and Tutt Middle Schools temporarily. Hornsby's current status within this plan was not available in the data, so a parent should verify directly with the school and district whether Hornsby will remain open and what feeder patterns will apply going forward.
The district has secured substantial voter-approved education sales tax funding (ESPLOST VI and VII) to build a new Barton Chapel Elementary School and the College and Career Academy without raising property taxes or adding debt. This long-term capital investment signals the district's commitment to modern facilities, though the timing and scope of those changes will reshape which schools families attend.
On calendar, the district chose to keep a traditional school calendar with an extended summer break rather than adopt a year-round schedule, a choice that affects family planning around childcare and summer activities.
Housing in the surrounding area remains affordable by state and national standards, with home prices and rents well below the state median, making this a neighborhood accessible to families on modest incomes. The broader Augusta area is experiencing downtown revitalization and multifamily housing growth, particularly around Broad Street and the riverfront, though Hornsby's immediate zone is more residential and car-dependent.
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