The top reported proficiency rate is 14% in English language arts. The lowest is 7% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Ralph F. Wilson Elementary School
Ralph F. Wilson Elementary School is a regular public school in Lake Charles, Louisiana, serving third through fifth grade within the Calcasieu Parish school district. The school sits just north of the downtown core, a short distance from the lakefront boardwalk and the Charpentier Historic District. The school’s surrounding area has faced significant challenges in recent years. The city was severely damaged by Hurricanes Laura and Delta in 2020, and the district has since passed a major budget driven by FEMA reimbursement funds to rebuild or renovate at least ten school facilities. Voters renewed property tax millages in 2024 to maintain teacher salaries and school operations. The district has also implemented a literacy initiative using structured literacy approaches and reading intervention programs, an effort that earned a Magna Award in 2025. For a family considering this school, these district-level moves signal a system working to stabilize its finances and instructional approach after natural disasters, but the school’s own academic results tell a more difficult story.
The student body is small. The enrollment is composed almost entirely of students who identify as Black. A very large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school in a high-poverty context. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source material. Anyone considering this school should know that its state assessment results are concerning. On the LEAP 2025 exams, the share of students scoring at the proficient level or above was in the low single digits in science, and only modestly higher in math, English language arts, and social studies. These proficiency rates place the school well below the midpoint when compared to other Calcasieu Parish districts. Only a handful of students met the proficiency bar in any subject. A parent should look into this further with the school to understand what academic support is available for students who are not meeting grade-level benchmarks, and to ask about intervention programs and whether the district literacy initiative has reached this campus yet.
The school serves only grades three through five, so there is no graduation rate or high school programming to consider. Lake Charles is a mid-sized city shaped by the petrochemical industry, casino tourism, and higher education institutions such as McNeese State University. The housing market in the zip code shows home values that sit below state and national benchmarks. Rents have been rising. The city’s population has declined in recent years, and the recovery from the 2020 hurricanes remains an active story. For a parent, this school represents a small, neighborhood-focused elementary option within a district that is investing in rebuilding its facilities and raising literacy outcomes, but the current academic performance is weak and warrants a close look at what the school offers to help children catch up or stay on track.
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