The top reported proficiency rate is 61% in Math. The lowest is 34% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Hayes Lewis Elementary School
Hayes Lewis Elementary School serves the rural Appalachian community of Yeaddiss in Leslie County, Kentucky, covering preschool through eighth grade. It is a regular public school within the Leslie County district and is not a charter school. The school is a core community anchor along Cutshin Road, one of the few civic institutions in a place that has no downtown, no sidewalks, and a dispersed population spread along the creek corridor.
The enrollment is small for a pre-K through eighth grade building, with a student body that is overwhelmingly white. Most students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic context of this part of eastern Kentucky. The school's grade span means that a child can attend Hayes Lewis from the earliest years all the way through the end of middle school, before moving on to a high school elsewhere in the county.
State assessment results are available for several tested grades and subjects, though some results were suppressed, which can happen when the number of students tested is very small. In the 2024-25 school year, the proficiency picture was mixed and varied significantly by grade and subject. Fourth graders showed a solid share achieving proficiency in math, while eighth graders posted a particularly strong result in math, with most students meeting the state's proficiency benchmark. Seventh grade math was about even, with half the students proficient. In reading, third graders had a solid outcome. Fourth grade reading and eighth grade reading were weaker, with eighth grade reading posting the lowest performance of any reported subject or grade. Social studies results in grades five and eight were also low. The overall pattern is one of uneven performance where some grades and subjects show real strength and others show areas where a parent may want to look into this further with the school.
Because this school does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate. The student body is too small to produce reliable subgroup comparisons, and the district has only one other school operating at this grade level, so county-level comparisons are not meaningful here. State testing data was the primary academic measure available, and no data was found on program offerings such as advanced coursework, career pathways, or extracurriculars.
Housing in the area is very affordable by national standards, with the typical home value far below state and national benchmarks. The broader county has experienced population decline, and the community of Yeaddiss itself shows no signs of new development or growth. The nearest town of any size is Hyden, the county seat, located a considerable distance away on mountain roads. Daily life is fully car-dependent.
The district brief for Leslie County did not surface any recent changes, strategic initiatives, or notable shifts at the district level that would directly affect this school. A parent considering Hayes Lewis Elementary School would be choosing a very small, rural school in a tight-knit creek community, where academic performance varies by grade and subject and where the setting is defined by the mountain landscape and a car-dependent lifestyle. The school serves as a consistent presence in a place that lacks many other civic institutions.
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