Assumption Parish Schools Post Broad Academic Gains, Led by Strong Reading Scores and a District Wide Math Surge
Assumption Parish students posted measurable academic gains across nearly every school in the district this year, according to new achieve data released by the Louisiana Department of Education, with especially strong results in early literacy and mathematics.
Reading Gains Lead the Way
The most striking improvement came from the district's youngest readers. Third-grade DIBELS literacy testing showed the percentage of students meeting the state's reading proficiency benchmark jumped from 70.5% in Spring 2025 to 82.8% in Spring 2026 a 12.3 percentage point gain. The number of students requiring retention in third grade fell from six to just one, while 99.5% of this year's third graders were promoted to fourth grade on schedule, up from 96.8% the previous year.
"Reading is the foundation everything else is built on," said Superintendent, Dr. John Barthelemy, noting that fewer students needed summer retesting this year, and those who did succeeded at a far higher rate 83.3%, compared to 53.8% last year.
Individual Schools Show Widespread Improvement
Six of the district's seven schools improved proficiency rates of students scoring Mastery or Advanced on state assessments:
• Belle Rose Elementary School posted the sharpest turnaround in the district, with students scoring Mastery or Advanced climbing from 15.0% to 20.2%, while struggling students dropped 11.1 percentage points showing the largest reduction of any school.
• Napoleonville Elementary School saw Mastery and Advanced scores rise from 21.6% to 27.4%, the single largest point gain of any school.
• Labadieville Elementary School improved from 18.7% to 21.1%, building on last year’s exceptional growth.
• Pierre Part Elementary School, already the district's top-performing school, still gained ground, moving from 49.6% to 51.4%, representing the strongest overall scores.
• Bayou L’ Ourse Elementary School saw a slight .6% increase, edging from 24.4% to 25.0%.
• Assumption High School 7th-8th grade students improved from 32.1% to 33.9%.
Not every group moved in the same direction. Assumption High School's 9th-12th grade students saw Mastery and Advanced scores slip from 39.7% to 36.9% which was the only decline recorded across the district this year.
District-Wide: Math Emerges as a Bright Spot
Looking at the district as a whole, Assumption Parish's overall Mastery and Advanced rate in Grades 3-12 rose from 31% to 33% this year, continuing a six-year climb from 27% in 2021 to 33% in 2026.
Mathematics stood out as the strongest subject-area performer, with Mastery and Advanced scores rising from 35% to 38%, a three-point gain, the largest of any subject this year. English Language Arts and Social Studies each grew two points, while Science held flat at 24%, prompting district leaders to flag it as an area for renewed focus heading into next year.
Looking Ahead
District administrators say the results reflect sustained investment in early literacy and instructional support, while crediting the hard work and impact on student achievement of each teacher and school leader.
"We're proud of the progress our students and teachers have made, but we don't view any of this as finished business," Dr. John Barthelemy said. "Our job now is to understand what's working and make sure every school, and every grade span, benefits from it." Also, he encourages all students, staff members and communities to be proud of and celebrate the 2025-2026 academic gains.