West Middle School in Chesterfield just ranked second in the St. Louis region for reading growth — and picked up $5,000 along the way.
The Parkway C-2 school was named one of 20 finalists for the inaugural Louie Awards, a new regional honor that spotlights public and charter schools with the biggest academic improvement over time. West Middle earned its spot by posting the second-highest English Language Arts (ELA) growth score among middle schools across the St. Louis area, and ranked seventh overall in the entire state of Missouri, according to the Parkway Schools announcement published March 2.
Here's what makes the Louies different from most school awards: instead of rewarding schools that already score high, the program looks at how much students improved — measuring growth over three years, from 2022 to 2025. That means West Middle didn't just have one good year. It showed up, year after year, and kept getting better.
The award is sponsored by the Gateway to Success Foundation in partnership with the PRiME Center at Saint Louis University, described as the state's leading education research organization.
Principal Adam Kealen, ELA teacher Elizabeth Atz, and Assistant Principal Steve Gerace attended the inaugural ceremony on behalf of the school. The $5,000 grant comes with the finalist recognition.
For Parkway families, the ranking is a concrete sign that the school's focus on reading and writing is paying off — not just on a single test, but across multiple years of student growth.
