The top reported proficiency rate is 17% in English language arts. The lowest is 6% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Madison Middle School
Madison Middle School serves grades six through eight in Tallulah, the parish seat of Madison Parish in northeastern Louisiana. A regular public school within the Madison Parish district, it serves a student body that is overwhelmingly Black, with a very small share of Hispanic, white, Asian, or multiracial students. Most families who send their children here qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a rate that places this school in a high-poverty context. The school is not a charter or magnet school, and no Title I status was reported.
The academic picture from state assessments is candidly low. On the LEAP 2025 exams, proficiency rates across subjects sat in the single digits for math, science, and social studies, and in the mid-teens for English language arts. These are state tests that define proficiency as scoring at levels four or five. The share of students reaching that bar in any subject is thin. Participation on test day was complete, so the results reflect nearly the entire tested population. Multi-year trend data available for this school is limited to a single recent year, so we cannot say whether these numbers represent a change or a stable pattern.
The school’s environment and access data, including discipline rates, course access, and staffing information, were not available in the record. That means a parent considering this school may want to ask the school or district directly about class sizes, the availability of electives, and how the school approaches student behavior and support. Special education and English learner counts were also missing from the data, which is another gap to follow up on.
Tallulah itself is a small, historically agricultural city that has seen sustained population decline over several decades. Mechanization reduced farm labor, and residents have moved to larger cities for work. The correctional facilities in and near town are prominent local employers, and the commercial core is modest. Housing values are well below both state and national benchmarks, and home prices have been declining in recent years, making this an affordable area for a family on a tight budget. The city’s civic anchors include a museum on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail and a historic shopping mall converted into apartments, but growth-related developments have been minimal. No recent district-level changes or initiatives were found in the research, so it is not clear if there are active improvement plans at the central office level.
A parent reading this should have a clear-eyed picture. Madison Middle School is in a community with limited economic opportunity and a shrinking population. Its test scores are low, and the data available does not include many of the contextual measures a family might want, such as chronic absenteeism, teacher turnover, or program offerings. That does not mean the school lacks strengths a parent could uncover by visiting, talking to staff, or hearing from current families. It does mean the publicly reported academic results are a significant concern and should be weighed carefully. For a family with a student who is already performing at or near grade level, or who needs strong enrichment and acceleration, this school may not offer the academic peer environment or instructional intensity they are looking for. For a family whose top priority is a school that is local and familiar, and where the district may be the only option given the rural location, this is the public middle school serving Tallulah. The gaps in the data suggest that a parent should invest time in direct conversation with the school and the district to get a fuller picture of what a typical day looks like and what supports are actually in place.
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