Plaquemines Parish School District Moves to 8th Highest in Louisiana

Climbing a record 5 places from the 2012 – 2013 school year to the 2013 – 2014 school year, the Plaquemines Parish school district moved from 13th in the state of Louisiana to 8th in the state.   The school district is graded on school test scores, and in addition to making such an amazing jump in ranking, the school district itself also achieved enough points to move it from a B grade last year to an A grade this year.  The school’s 2014 annual district performance score was 104.8 overall out of 150 compared to a 95 last year.  Even though Common Core standards are being hotly debated and even set aside by some state government, the Plaquemines Parish school district had gone ahead and implemented the standards, and the schools achieved high scores despite the new system.

Zeroing in on the best performing schools in the district the report found that 3 out of 7 school systems in Plaquemines Parish received an A grade on their performance scores as well. Belle Chasse Primary School became the 5th best school in the New Orleans area based on the scores of non-magnet schools and placed 17th best in New Orleans overall.  Not to be outdone, the Belle Chasse Academy charter elementary and middle school was just .1 point behind Belle Chasse Primary School in the scores – Belle Chasse Primary received 115 points, and Belle Chasse Academy scored 114.9.

For Plaquemines Parish public schools both Belle Chasse Primary and Boothville-Venice Elementary School showed about a 10-point improvement year-over-year.  The biggest improvement in the Plaquemines Parish school district was the 21.6 point increase of scoring for Phoenix High School which moved from a D grade last year to a B grade this year.  You can search for and view individual schools in Plaquemines Parish by visiting this link.

“Plaquemines Parish ranked in the top 20 districts on growth in students at Basic and above and the top (sic) 10 districts on growth in students at Mastery and above,” the annual report said.

While district performance scores were released one day earlier, teacher evaluations showed that maintaining high expectations for teachers, especially in leadership were the key to success in Plaquemines Parish.  Teacher evaluations are based 50% on student academic progress and the rest on actual classroom observation.  The report claims that the high standards for leadership and results placed on the teachers in Plaquemines Parish directly resulted in the school district’s 10% increase in test scores.  The report went on to say that 40% of parish teachers were rated highly effective, 55% were scored as effective: proficient, 3% as effective: emerging, and only the last 2% as ineffective.

If you are considering moving to the Greater New Orleans area, consider Plaquemines Parish for its growing and continually improving school district as well as lower taxes, and the convenient proximity to the City of New Orleans – just 10.2 miles to the Central Business District.  To purchase a new home in the area, Visit The Parks of Plaquemines by scheduling a tour.  Call 504-364-2350 or E-mail [email protected].

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