The top reported proficiency rate is 21% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Ac Prep Elementary
AC PREP Elementary is a regular public school serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade in Kansas City’s Kansas City 33 district. It sits within the sprawling urban fabric of Missouri’s largest city, a place defined by wide boulevards, a strong barbecue and jazz tradition, and a mix of dense downtown pockets and extensive lower-density residential neighborhoods. The school itself is located on Swope Parkway, near Swope Park, one of the country’s largest urban parks.
The student body is small for a school covering this grade span. Nearly every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, and the population is overwhelmingly Black, with small shares of students who are Hispanic, two or more races, or other backgrounds. That high concentration of poverty is a central fact about the school’s context and shapes the resources and challenges present in the building. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those support programs.
On the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP), proficiency rates across tested subjects and grades are low. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or advanced ranged from a small fraction in grade five to just over a third in grade eight. In English language arts, reported rates for grades four and five were similarly low; results for other elementary and middle grades were suppressed, often due to small group sizes. Science results for grade five were very low, while grade eight science was noticeably stronger, though still below a majority. The school’s overall proficiency index, averaging results across all tested subjects and grades, places AC PREP Elementary below the midpoint relative to districts in Jackson County. Because this is a school that serves elementary and middle grades, there is no graduation rate to report.
These test results are sobering, and a parent considering the school should discuss with staff what interventions, tutoring, or differentiated instruction are available, especially since the school’s name includes “Prep” and may imply a college-oriented track. The district itself regained full accreditation in 2022 after years of provisional status, a change that signals improved district oversight and academic monitoring. Families who lived through the years of accreditation uncertainty may find that stability meaningful.
Housing in the surrounding area is relatively affordable compared with national benchmarks. Home values and rents are modest, and the cost of buying versus renting leans toward renting as a lower monthly outlay. The broader Kansas City metro has a diversified economy with healthcare, logistics, finance, and government as major employers, and the city has seen steady downtown residential growth and streetcar expansion. Still, the school’s immediate neighborhood is primarily residential and car-dependent; walkable retail and services are concentrated in areas a drive away.
AC PREP Elementary offers no information about advanced coursework, arts programs, or extracurriculars in the data provided. For a school that runs through eighth grade, families will want to confirm what secondary-level preparation, such as high school transition support or early high school credit options, is in place. The school’s size and high-poverty profile mean that it likely qualifies for substantial federal Title I funding, which can support reading specialists, smaller class sizes, or after-school programs, but those specifics are not documented here.
This is a school with clear academic challenges, set in a district that has recently stabilized its accreditation. For a family focused on the neighborhood and the convenience of a single PK-8 campus, the critical next step is to visit, ask about academic support structures, and understand how the school addresses the literacy and math gaps reflected in its state tests. The low housing costs in the area may be a practical draw, but the academic environment will require active engagement from parents and guardians.
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