The top reported proficiency rate is 17% in Math. The lowest is 7% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on James Elementary
James Elementary, a regular Kansas City Public Schools building serving students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade, operates in an older residential section of the city. It is not a charter, magnet, or Title I school, though nearly every student it serves qualifies for free or reduced-price meals. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a smaller share of Black students, a measurable Asian population, and a modest white enrollment. That composition gives the school a distinctly diverse character, a plain characteristic that families may weigh differently depending on the kind of peer environment they are looking for.
On Missouri’s state assessments, the evidence shows a school where most students are not yet scoring at the proficient level. In third-grade English language arts, for instance, the share of students reaching Levels 3 or 4 was in the single digits. In math, third-grade proficiency likewise landed in that low range, and fourth-grade math results were suppressed for reporting, though the number of students tested was not trivial. Fifth-grade ELA and math were higher than the lower elementary grades but still well below half of students meeting the bar. Sixth-grade math reached a modestly higher mark, but sixth-grade ELA slipped back again, and fifth-grade science proficiency was in the single digits. Across all tested grades and subjects, James Elementary’s overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among its district peers in Jackson County. A parent considering this school will want to look into what academic interventions and supports are in place and how the school is approaching grade-level learning, particularly in reading and math in the early grades.
The district itself is in a period of relative stability. Kansas City Public Schools regained full state accreditation in 2022, the first time in years, and has held that status. This removes the cloud of provisional accreditation that once hung over the district and signals that state overseers see consistent improvement in its operations and student outcomes. For families at James, the district-level shift provides some assurance about the school’s governance and long-term direction, though it does not directly speak to the day-to-day academic challenges visible in the building-level test results.
The school’s locale is Kansas City, a major Midwestern urban center with a well-documented mix of neighborhoods, commercial districts, and industrial areas. James sits on the eastern side of the city, in a zip code where home values are notably below the state and national benchmarks, and where rental prices are moderate relative to incomes. The city’s downtown has seen residential redevelopment and streetcar expansion, but the school’s immediate surroundings are older residential blocks. Walkability around the school is limited, and car dependence is the norm for most trips. The broader metro is a regional employment center in health care, logistics, and government, and the city retains a strong civic and cultural core in its museums, parks, and boulevard system.
There is no graduation rate for James Elementary because the school does not serve high school grades. Chronic absenteeism data was also not available, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about attendance patterns. Program offerings such as art, music, or extended learning were not reported in the available data, which means any picture of enrichment or intervention outside core academics is incomplete. The school’s size is unremarkable for a pre-K through six building, and its grade span means students who start here will need to transition to a middle school for seventh grade and beyond, likely elsewhere in the Kansas City 33 system.
This is a school where the academic numbers are low and where the student population faces significant economic need. The strength of the narrative here is not a standout test score or a specialized program; it is a district that has stabilized its accreditation and a school that serves a diverse, predominantly low-income community. Families who are already in the attendance area will want to understand what academic interventions, tutoring, and family engagement strategies the school uses, and to look beyond the single year of assessment data for a fuller picture of any progress being made.
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