Ralph J Bunche Elementary

Ralph J Bunche Elementary is a moderately sized K-5 school in Metairie, Louisiana, one of the schools within Jefferson Parish. The school hosts 470 students in grades pre-K through 5.

Ralph J Bunche Elementary is one of 74 schools operated by Jefferson Parish, a district that enrolls 46,790 students overall.

On demographics, Ralph J Bunche Elementary lists that the most-represented group is Hispanic (45%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest is composed of 44% Black, 8% White. The wider county runs roughly 19% Hispanic, putting the school's mix meaningfully more Hispanic than the area baseline.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 39 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 11.9:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 14.0:1 average. Around 73% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Ralph J Bunche Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 32.2% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 25.3%.

In the area at large, community-level numbers for Jefferson Parish indicate median household earnings sit near $65,252, 31% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 13%. In all, Jefferson Parish runs 86 public schools (combined enrollment of about 47,983 students), of which Ralph J Bunche Elementary is one.

Nearest neighbor: Green Park Elementary School, around 1.1 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Ralph J Bunche Elementary ranks 5th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 33.8%.

Geographically, the school is in a city-core area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Ralph J Bunche Elementary has expanded 28%, going from 366 students in 2018 to 470 in 2025. The Hispanic share of enrollment edged up from 22% to 45% over that span. Class-load math has fell: from 16.9:1 in 2018 to 11.9:1 in 2025.

Inside the community feed, posts here usually surface around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.