The top reported proficiency rate is 28% in English language arts. The lowest is 13% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on William Hart Elementary School
William Hart Elementary School sits on Hancock Street in Gretna, a mix of residential neighborhoods and commercial districts that serves as the parish seat of Jefferson Parish. The school is a regular public elementary school within the Jefferson Parish Public School System, serving students from preschool through fifth grade. The community context matters here: Gretna functions as both a suburb of New Orleans and a governmental hub, with a working-class character reflected in local income and poverty measures. The school building is part of the neighborhood fabric rather than a separated campus, and families considering the area should be aware that Jefferson Parish has been undergoing a school consolidation plan approved in 2023, involving closures, mergers, and redrawn attendance zones, with district officials citing declining enrollment and aging facilities. Budget cuts for the 2024-2025 school year have also been approved, affecting central office staffing, transportation, and some programs. These district-level shifts carry practical implications for where a child attends and how far they travel.
The student body at William Hart is small for an elementary school serving this grade band. The enrollment is predominantly Hispanic, and Black students make up a substantial share as well; there is a very small number of White students, and a modest number of Asian students or those identifying as two or more races. A considerable majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school firmly in a high-need economic context. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source materials, which is a notable gap for any family whose child receives special education services or is learning English.
State testing results from the LEAP 2025 assessments, the latest available, give a clear picture of academic performance. In English language arts, just over a quarter of students scored at the proficient or advanced level. In mathematics, the share was lower, around one in eight students reaching that threshold. Science results were similar to math, and social studies proficiency was slightly higher, at roughly one in five students. These are low rates of proficiency across all tested subjects, and a parent considering the school should look into this further with the school to understand what support structures are in place and how the school is working to move these numbers. Participation on test day was reported as full, so the results represent nearly all eligible students.
The housing market in the Gretna area, based on the school's ZIP code, shows home values that sit close to the state benchmark and below the national median. Rents are modest relative to incomes. The local economy reflects broader trends; the national mortgage rate and unemployment data available for the period provide context but are not specific to Gretna.
A notable gap in the available information is the absence of program offerings, staffing data, discipline records, and attendance metrics. The comparison fact-set for Jefferson Parish could not generate meaningful benchmarks because too few schools in the county had comparable data. This means there is no way to position William Hart relative to other district elementary schools using the metrics the source system tracks. A family may want to ask the school or district directly about class sizes, teacher experience, and the range of academic or enrichment programs offered at the elementary level.
On the positive side, the district has adopted a new evidence-based reading curriculum beginning in recent years, aligned with Louisiana's state reading initiative, and invested in teacher professional development to support it. The district also received a federal grant to enhance STEM education across multiple schools, including technology upgrades and expanded STEM programs. These moves suggest a district-level effort to address foundational literacy and expand access to science and math resources, though how fully those investments have reached William Hart is not detailed in the available data.
For a family weighing this school, the story is straightforward: William Hart is a small, high-poverty elementary school in an urbanized suburb across the river from New Orleans. The proficiency numbers are low, and the district is in a period of consolidation and budget tightening that could affect school assignments and transportation. The school serves its neighborhood, and families considering it should ask directly about academic intervention programs, the status of STEM and reading resources at the building level, and how the district's consolidation plan may affect attendance boundaries for this area in the coming years.
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