The reported proficiency rate for English language arts is 11%.
Original Research by School Decision on Shenandoah Elem.
Shenandoah Elementary is a regular public school in the St. Louis City school system, serving students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. Its enrollment is small for an elementary school serving that grade span, and the student body is almost entirely Black, with a very small share of white and Hispanic students. Every single student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of concentrated poverty that shapes the school’s daily reality.
Because the school’s tested grade levels have small numbers of students, most of its state assessment results are suppressed to protect student privacy. Only one grade-level result was reported: fourth-grade English language arts, where roughly one in ten students scored proficient or above. The limited multi-year trend data, covering a single year, shows the same general pattern in ELA across all tested grades. When compared against other districts in St. Louis city, Shenandoah’s overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quarter of the field. A parent reading this should understand that the available evidence points to low academic attainment, and that the suppressed data makes it hard to gauge trends or see the full picture. The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to consider.
The school is located in the city of St. Louis, an independent city that separated from St. Louis County long ago and has its own distinct political boundaries. St. Louis is a major urban center with a diversified economy anchored by manufacturing, trade, transportation, and a substantial health-care and research sector. Major employers include the Federal Reserve Bank, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and Barnes-Jewish Hospital, part of the Washington University Medical Center. Research universities such as Washington University, Saint Louis University, and the University of Missouri–St. Louis are also important economic and civic forces. The city is well known for its cultural institutions, including the Gateway Arch, Forest Park, the Saint Louis Zoo, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and several major museums.
Housing in the area around the school carries a cost that is somewhat above the statewide median home value, and rents have been rising at a notable pace in recent years. A typical mortgage payment on a home here would be lower than the average rent, which may tilt the math for families deciding between renting and buying. The area’s unemployment rate and national median household income context both sit near the national average.
The district itself did not show any recent parent-relevant changes in the available research, so this school’s profile is largely a snapshot of its current enrollment, demographics, and performance.
Shenandoah Elementary is a high-poverty, predominantly Black school in a major city, serving a pre-K-to-sixth-grade population. A parent considering this school will want to ask directly about the academic programs and supports in place, especially given the low reported proficiency and the lack of detailed public data. The school may fit a family that values a small, neighborhood-oriented environment and is prepared to work closely with the school to supplement instruction, or one that is exploring school-choice options within the St. Louis system and wants a clear-eyed view of where the school stands.
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