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How has Dowell Elementary changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
541
Elementary
DISTRICT 541 · STATE 481
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CALVERT COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 240015001102
Dowell Elementary
12680 H G Trueman Rd, Lusby, MD 20657 · (443) 550-9480 · Calvert County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY23-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL541 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 58% of Maryland public elementary schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Maryland public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
13.6:1
40 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.7:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
47%
256 students
DISTRICT 35% · STATE 54%
Community
5
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 20 | 4% |
| Kindergarten | 63 | 12% |
| Grade 1 | 76 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 92 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 106 | 20% |
| Grade 4 | 86 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 98 | 18% |
This year's kindergarten class (63) is 36% smaller than its 5th grade class (98).
Student demographics
50%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 54% · STATE 73% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
MCAP 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 3-4)English Language Arts
56.5%
MD avg 50.6% . +9.9pp since 2023
Math
48.5%
MD avg 34.8% . -1.4pp since 2023
What this means: On the MCAP, Maryland's statewide test, about 57 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 49 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Maryland schools, those numbers are about 51 and 35. Reading and writing scores are up about 10 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 1 points.
MCAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 56.5% | 48.5% |
| 2023-24 | 46.6% | 49.9% |
% Proficient (Levels 3-4), all students and all tested grades.
Source: MCAP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
50.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
46.2%
based on MD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+4.2pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 50% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 46% typical for Maryland schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Maryland's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Dowell Elementary
Dowell Elementary's state test result (50.4% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dowell Elementary this school | 541 | 47.3% | 50.4% |
| Edgemere Elementary Baltimore | 458 | 44.5% | 51.9% |
| Sunset Elementary Pasadena | 520 | 41.3% | 41.5% |
| Cranberry Station Elementary Westminster | 593 | 44.4% | 53.3% |
| Meadowvale Elementary Havre De Grace | 552 | 41.7% | 39.2% |
| Grasonville Elementary School Grasonville | 472 | 46.4% | 54.9% |
Matched among Maryland elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Dowell Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Maryland | In Calvert County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 50.4% | #329 of 853 | #12 of 12 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 48.5% | #315 of 853 ▼ 29 | #11 of 12 ▼ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 56.5% | #335 of 853 ▲ 80 | #11 of 12 ▲ 1 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 541 | #293 of 898 | #7 of 12 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.6:1 | #386 of 857 | #2 of 12 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 49.5% | #525 of 857 | #9 of 12 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 47.3% | #550 of 885 | #3 of 12 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -1.3% | #522 of 551 | #9 of 10 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
541
+12 (+2%) vs 2020
-28% since 2000-01, when it was 751
Student : Teacher
13.6:1
was 13.9:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 541 | 39.7 | 13.6:1 | 47% (256) |
| 2023-24 | 589 | 39.7 | 14.8:1 | 47% (277) |
| 2022-23 | 585 | 39.3 | 14.9:1 | 42% (243) |
| 2020-21 | 529 | 38 | 13.9:1 | 35% (184) |
| 2017-18 | 548 | 35.1 | 15.6:1 | 35% (192) |
| 2015-16 | 651 | 38 | 17.1:1 | 39% (253) |
| 2010-11 | 662 | 38 | 17.4:1 | 33% (221) |
| 2000-01 | 751 | 41 | 18.3:1 | 20% (147) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Dowell Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 1% (548 to 541); teachers up 13% (35.1 to 39.7).
About Dowell Elementary
Dowell Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school in Lusby, Maryland, under Calvert County Public Schools. The student body numbers 541 students, from pre-K through 5.
District-wide, Calvert County Public Schools has 24 schools and 14,849 students.
White students make up a majority at Dowell Elementary, at 69%. Next come 12% multiracial, 10% Black, and 7% Hispanic. Dowell Elementary's diversity index is 50%, against a US figure of 70%.
Teachers at Dowell Elementary total 39.7 full-time equivalents, and the ratio is 13.6:1. That matches the 13.8:1 average for elementary schools in Maryland fairly closely. Federal records put free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at 47%. The average for public schools in Calvert County is 32%.
Measured against Maryland public elementary schools, Dowell Elementary receives a B. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
In Maryland, Dowell Elementary is in the middle band of BeatsExpectations: 50.4% actual against a predicted 46.2%.
According to the American Community Survey, in Calvert County, the median household income is $133,922, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 37%, and roughly 2% of residents are in poverty. Dowell Elementary is one of 25 public schools in the county.
Mill Creek Middle is the closest public school, about 0.6 miles away in a straight line. Other public schools within five miles number 7. Among 9 nearby schools that report test results, Dowell Elementary ranks 4th on proficiency.
NCES describes the area around Dowell Elementary as Suburb: Small, meaning in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population under 100,000.
Over 4 years, enrollment stayed close to where it was, going from 529 to 541.
Families, students, and staff can use this page to discuss enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Dowell Elementary. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Calvert County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
94,313
Census ACS
Median income
$133,922
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
37%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
2%
Below federal line
Schools in county
25
14,849 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Calvert County Public Schools
- Northern HighHigh · 1,478 students
- Huntingtown High SchoolHigh · 1,311 students
- Calvert HighHigh · 1,080 students
- Patuxent HighHigh · 928 students
- Northern MiddleMiddle · 745 students
- Windy Hill MiddleMiddle · 669 students
Other schools in Lusby
- Patuxent HighHigh · 928 students
- Patuxent Appeal Elementary CampusElementary · 641 students
- Southern MiddleMiddle · 442 students
- Mill Creek MiddleMiddle · 436 students
Other Dowell Elementary schools
One other US public school is named Dowell Elementary. Dowell Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 2.
- Dowell Elementary SchoolMarietta, GA · 898 students
Nearby schools
- Mill Creek Middle0.6 mi · 436
- Patuxent High0.6 mi · 928
- Patuxent Appeal Elementary Campus1.6 mi · 641
- Southern Middle3.5 mi · 442
- Town Creek Elementary4.2 mi · 220
- Green Holly Elementary School4.6 mi · 478
Frequently asked questions
About Dowell ElementaryHow many students attend Dowell Elementary?
Dowell Elementary enrolls approximately 541 students in grades PK-05.
Is Dowell Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Dowell Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dowell Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Dowell Elementary is approximately 13.6:1 (40 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Dowell Elementary?
At Dowell Elementary, the student body is approximately 69% White, 7% Hispanic, 10% Black, 2% Asian, 12% Two or more.
Who oversees Dowell Elementary?
Dowell Elementary is overseen by Calvert County Public Schools in Calvert County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.