The top reported proficiency rate is 58% in Science. The lowest is 52% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Bayless Elementary
Bayless Elementary is a regular public school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in St. Louis, Missouri. It sits within the Bayless School District, a small district in St. Louis County. The school building is located on Weber Road in the city proper, which means students come from a mix of residential neighborhoods inside the independent city of St. Louis. The larger city has a diversified economy anchored by major hospitals, research universities, and federal agencies, and it offers families access to cultural institutions such as Forest Park, the zoo, and the science center. The district itself has not undergone any publicly reported recent changes like boundary shifts, referendums, or curriculum overhauls; it appears to have operated in a stable, steady state for families.
Academically, Bayless Elementary’s results on the Missouri Assessment Program show a pattern worth looking at closely. In third grade, performance is solid across both math and English language arts, with the share of students scoring proficient or above landing well above the midpoint among St. Louis County districts. Fifth grade also turns in respectable results in math and ELA, and the fifth-grade science score is similarly strong. Fourth grade, however, marks a noticeable dip: the proficiency rates in both math and ELA are substantially lower than the third-grade and fifth-grade levels. That grade-to-grade swing is something a parent may want to investigate further with the school to understand whether it reflects a cohort effect, a curricular transition, or something that the school is already addressing. Overall, when you average across all tested subjects and grades, Bayless Elementary’s proficiency index sits above the midpoint relative to districts in St. Louis County, meaning the school is performing better than many of its county peers even with the fourth-grade soft spot.
The student body totals in the several hundreds for an elementary school serving up to grade five. Just over half of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a measure of household need that aligns with the area’s middle-income character. Racially and ethnically, the school is predominantly white, with a sizeable minority of Asian students and smaller shares of Black and Hispanic students, as well as a modest multiracial population. Data on special education identification and English learner status were not available in the profile, so a parent interested in those supports would need to ask the school directly.
Housing in the zip code that serves the school is moderately priced relative to national benchmarks. Home values and rents in the area trend at levels typical for St. Louis County, where the median listing price has edged lower year over year but demand remains steady. The region’s unemployment rate is near the national average, and real median household income sits solidly in the middle range. For a family considering moving into the attendance zone, the market offers a fairly typical suburban-style inventory with a manageable time on market.
Bayless Elementary is best suited for a family looking for a regular neighborhood elementary school with overall average-to-above-average test performance, but who is aware that fourth grade may require extra attention. The school’s grade three and grade five results are a strength, and its overall district placement is favorable among St. Louis County schools. The stable district context and the broad set of city amenities nearby add to the appeal. Families who place a high premium on consistent year-over-year academic strength might want to inquire about the fourth-grade program, while those comfortable with typical variability in elementary school will find a solid option.
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