With the release of the 2024-2025 state assessment results, several schools in the Laurel School District achieved notable progress with Laurel High School receiving a B rating, Laurel Magnet School of the Arts ranking sixth in the state with an A rating, and Nora Davis Elementary coming in just four points shy of their goal of a B.
“The Laurel School District continues to make steady progress in a positive direction,” said Superintendent Dr. Michael Eubanks. “While there are still areas of much needed improvement, I am extremely proud of the work our teachers and leaders are putting in daily to build relationships and deliver high quality instruction.”
Laurel High School’s B rating can be contributed to that focus on high quality instruction. The school saw an impressive 35-point increase over last year’s C rating with increases in almost every area of the accountability model. Several areas of note include 13.5 percent-point increase in reading proficiency, 8.9 percent-point increase in history proficiency, 8.9 percent-point increase in reading growth, and a 11.8-point increase in college and career readiness.
“At LHS our students have bought into our teachers, and our teachers are doing an outstanding job of focusing on providing students with optimal instruction,” Eubanks said. “Our students being enrolled in dual credit college courses, the high performance of our English Learner students, and the intentional focus of increasing student proficiency has played a huge part in the school’s success.”
Another point of success for the Laurel School District comes from Laurel Magnet School of the Arts. The school maintained its A rating for the seventh consecutive year, and is now the sixth ranking elementary school in the state. LMSA saw a 9 percent-point increase in reading growth and a 7.3 percent-point increase in math growth.
Nora Davis Elementary School increased 52 points moving from a D to a C rating, and was only 3 points shy of hitting their goal of becoming a B rated school. The school saw a 7.5 percent-point increase in math proficiency, 19.6 percent-point increase in math growth, 15.7 percent-point increase in reading low growth, and an impressive 21 percent-point increase in math low growth, reflecting strong progress among the bottom 25 percent of students.
Oak Park Elementary School maintained their C rating, and saw increases in math proficiency, math growth, and math low growth.
Laurel Middle School and Laurel Upper Elementary School saw a decline in letter grade from the previous year. However, both schools had progress in the area of reading growth.
“We’ve got work to do. There is no way around that,” Eubanks said. “We will continue to build teacher capacity and make sure our students are leaving all grade levels with higher levels of proficiency. Even though the outcome isn’t where we want it to be, our teachers are putting in the work, and I am proud of their dedication to our children.”
With the 2025-2026 school year underway, the district is prioritizing a focus on the district’s new 2025-2030 Strategic Plan, which outlines the goals and metrics for continued advancements in academics and operations.
“There’s no secret to improving student performance. It’s effective teaching, combined with a strong curriculum, that produces results,” Eubanks said. “I want my teachers, staff, and administrators to know just how proud I am of their work, and I look forward to the next chapter in our success story.”
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