I.A. Lewis School

Located at 1000 Mitchell Avenue, in Ruston, Louisiana, I.A. Lewis School is a small junior high that caters to 277 students (grade 6), operated by Lincoln Parish. That puts it 37% leaner than the typical public school in Louisiana, which averages around 440 students.

Lincoln Parish comprises 12 schools with combined enrollment of 5,601 students; I.A. Lewis School is among them.

On demographics, I.A. Lewis School reports that 57% of the student body identifies as Black. Beyond that, the school lists 33% White, 8% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 37% Black, putting the school's mix visibly more Black than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, I.A. Lewis School records 22 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 12.3:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 41.0:1, putting I.A. Lewis School tighter than the state norm the norm. Around 62% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

With demographic context factored in, On a poverty-adjusted basis, I.A. Lewis School sits in the bottom 10% statewide. Predicted proficiency from the FRL regression is roughly 39.9%; actual is 25.3%, a gap of -14.6 points.

In the surrounding community, census data for Lincoln Parish shows the typical household earns roughly $39,172 per year, 36% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 21% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Lincoln Parish's 14 public schools (combined enrollment of about 6,360 students), I.A. Lewis School is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is A. E. Phillips Laboratory School, roughly 0.7 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, I.A. Lewis School comes 5th of 5 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 45.4%.

The campus sits in a rural setting.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at I.A. Lewis School has edged down 16%, going from 328 students in 2018 to 277 in 2025. Class-load math has pulled in: from 17.1:1 in 2018 to 12.3:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, members of the I.A. Lewis School community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.