The top reported proficiency rate is 82% in English language arts. The lowest is 31% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Franklin Elem School
Franklin Elementary is a small school serving prekindergarten through sixth grade in Metropolis, sitting on the eastern edge of a struggling small river city in southern Illinois. The school enrolls about a hundred and fifty students, distributed fairly evenly across its grade span. The student body is predominantly white, with a small number of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial students. Data on free-or-reduced-price-lunch eligibility was not available, nor was information about students receiving special education services or English learner enrollment.
The school's test results show mixed performance. In math, third and fourth graders post proficiency rates in the high range, while sixth graders also perform at a strong level. Fifth grade represents a significant dip, with proficiency in math sitting at the midpoint. In English language arts, third graders reach a high proficiency level, while performance dips somewhat in grades four through six, ranging from the mid-range down toward the low end. Science testing occurred only in fifth grade, where proficiency was notably low. The school achieved universal test participation across all tested subjects and grades where data appears. State assessment scoring rules changed this year, so comparisons to prior years are not possible.
Positioned against the two other districts in Massac County, Franklin Elementary shows a proficiency index in the top quartile, meaning its average proficiency rate across tested subjects and grades outperforms the county median. Graduation rate data does not apply to an elementary school, and chronic absenteeism information was not available.
Metropolis, the county seat, is a small city on the Ohio River facing Kentucky. The town is defined by its Superman cultural identity—the Chamber of Commerce and DC Comics officially designated it Superman's hometown, and Superman statuary, museums, and themed commerce dominate the downtown core at Superman Square. The city functions as a mix of residential community and small commercial hub anchored by the riverboat casino Harrah's and historically by Honeywell's uranium processing facility. The trajectory is one of slow population and economic decline. The county has lost jobs, wages, and residents over recent years, and observers worry Metropolis is becoming a bedroom community of Paducah, Kentucky. The Honeywell plant cycled through layoffs, an extended NRC-mandated shutdown, and indefinite idling before a 2021 restart plan that targeted resumption of production with several hundred new hires; employment in the city grew very modestly between 2023 and 2024.
Housing costs in the area are considerably below the state and national medians. Median home values sit substantially lower than the state benchmark, making homeownership more accessible relative to household income, though mortgage rates are in the high range.
The district, Massac Unit District 1, recently undertook a shift in elementary reading instruction toward the Science of Reading approach, with emphasis on building vocabulary through authentic texts rather than basal readers alone. This represents a curriculum-level pedagogical change affecting how the district's elementary students are taught to read. An April 2023 referendum to annex the neighboring Joppa-Maple Grove District failed because voters in Joppa rejected it, even though Massac voters approved it. The defeat means the district's footprint, enrollment, and resources remain unchanged.
A parent considering Franklin Elementary should anticipate solid proficiency in the lower-to-middle elementary grades in math and reading, with a noticeable performance dip in fifth grade, particularly in math. The science result in fifth grade warrants a closer look with the school. The shift toward Science of Reading pedagogy is worth understanding in terms of how the school will support reading development across the grades. The community itself is small, economically pressured, and stable rather than expanding, which means school enrollment and local resources reflect that context.
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