Education Guide 2023: Strategic plan for Jefferson Parish schools focuses on student proficiency, closing equity gaps

Main photo caption: J.C. Ellis Elementary School in Metairie serves K-8 students. Photos courtesy Jefferson Parish Schools.

Jefferson Parish Superintendent Dr. James Gray meets students.

The Jefferson Parish School District is Louisiana’s largest school district with 85 schools that serve approximately 50,000 students on both sides of the Mississippi River.

With 48 elementary schools, 13 middle schools, 10 high schools, nine combined grade schools and five charter schools, Superintendent Dr. James Gray states that it’s essential for the district to become “a proof point for what is possible in a large urban district.”

In the district’s strategic plan titled, “2024: The Future Our Kids Deserve,” Gray states that while the COVID pandemic set back progress, the district has improved its infrastructure to support clean, healthy and modern schools and has “doubled down on our investments in technology to provide access and equity for all students.”

According to the report, 82% of the students in the district are economically disadvantaged. The district provided comprehensive technology to families during the pandemic for students who needed remote learning support.

“Whether learning in the classroom or at home, all students in kindergarten through 12th grade have access to a computer and the internet. By closing the digital divide, we are providing equity and opportunity, leveling the playing field for all students,” Gray states. The district opened the Jefferson Virtual High School in the 2021-2022 school year.

Through federal COVID-19 relief funds, the district was able to launch several new initiatives, including summer programs that focus on core content learning areas, an early literacy strategic plan and increased opportunities to earn industry-based credentials.

The free Summer Bridge program provides students with accelerated learning in a camp-like setting. Students are not only introduced to their next year’s coursework at the summer program, but engage in fun enrichment activities that cater to the whole child.

A deep focus in the district’s strategic plan is to support students in every level and prioritize access, equity and opportunity, Gray states.

Hands-on science experiments at Truman Elementary School.

On student achievement, the district had many accolades over the past school year. There were 346 Jefferson Parish School high school seniors who earned a score of 30 or above on the ACT or a Platinum score on the ACT WorkKeys for the 2022-2023 academic year. Eleven seniors scored a perfect score of 36 on the standardized exam. Eighty-one percent of schools in the parish increased their School Performance Scores from 2021, outpacing the state average of 63 percent

Two of Louisiana’s top 10 public schools are in Jefferson Parish, according to Niche, a Pittsburgh-based company that runs an annual nationwide ranking and review of K-12 schools based on feedback from students, parents and teachers.

For 2023, Haynes Academy ranked No. 2 and Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy ranked No. 3 statewide based on Niche’s rankings. Thomas Jefferson Academy ranked twelfth statewide.

The overall District Performance Score (DPS) improved from a 71.6 to a 74.4. The 2.8 increase outpaces the state’s growth of 1.8 and is the largest DPS growth Jefferson Parish Schools has seen in 10 years. Ten schools earned an A rating: Airline Park Academy, Fisher Middle/High School, Gretna No. 2 Academy, Haynes Academy, Metairie Academy, Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy, Ray St. Pierre Academy, Riverdale High School, Ruppel Academie Francaise and Thomas Jefferson Academy. Twelve schools improved their letter grade.

Jefferson Parish schools have not been immune to enrollment challenges. In early 2023, the board approved closing six schools at the end of the school year after a consulting firm studied the district’s buildings and enrollment and presented an infrastructure and efficiency plan with recommendations.

The board voted to close Grace King High School, Gretna Middle School, Helen Cox High School, Butler Elementary, Mildred Harris Elementary and Washington Elementary. Haynes Academy will relocate to the Grace King space.

The recommendations included constructing a new Washington PK‐8 school at the Bunche campus in Metairie. Janet Elementary in Marrero, currently PK-5, would also expand to a PK-8th grade campus under the recommendations.

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