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Teachers: what resource would make the biggest difference at Pointers Run Elementary this year?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
835
Elementary
DISTRICT 614 · STATE 481
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·HOWARD COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 240042090478
Pointers Run Elementary
6600 South Trotter Rd, Clarksville, MD 21029 · (410) 313-7142 · Howard County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL835 STUDENTS
A+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 98% of Maryland public elementary schools
- A+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ABeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
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
14.2:1
59 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.7:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
9%
71 students
DISTRICT 29% · STATE 54%
Community
6
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 | 47 | 6% |
| Kindergarten | 116 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 137 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 132 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 117 | 14% |
| Grade 4 | 142 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 144 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (116) is 19% smaller than its 5th grade class (144).
Student demographics
73%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 77% · 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
86.3%
MD avg 50.6% . +1.4pp since 2023
Math
86.4%
MD avg 34.8% . +2.2pp since 2023
What this means: On the MCAP, Maryland's statewide test, about 86 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 86 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 1 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 2 points.
MCAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 86.3% | 86.4% |
| 2023-24 | 84.9% | 84.2% |
% 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
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of MD schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
85.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
69.2%
based on MD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+16.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 85% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 69% typical for Maryland schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 16 points, placing it in Maryland's top 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 Pointers Run Elementary
Pointers Run Elementary's state test result (85.5% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pointers Run Elementary this school | 835 | 8.5% | 85.5% |
| Fulton Elementary Fulton | 872 | 7.9% | 78.7% |
| Sugarloaf Elementary Frederick | 845 | 12.2% | 68.9% |
| Rockburn Elementary Elkridge | 649 | 12.3% | 79.2% |
| Northfield Elementary Ellicott City | 764 | 17.5% | 70.3% |
| Dayton Oaks Elementary Dayton | 739 | 7.6% | 75.8% |
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 Pointers Run Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Maryland | In Howard County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 85.5% | #8 of 853 | #1 of 42 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 86.4% | #6 of 853 ▲ 4 | #1 of 42 ▲ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 86.3% | #23 of 853 ▼ 2 | #2 of 42 no change |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 835 | #31 of 898 | #4 of 42 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.2:1 | #465 of 857 | #35 of 42 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 72.6% | #96 of 857 | #20 of 42 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 8.5% | #866 of 885 | #38 of 42 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +8.7% | #149 of 294 | #6 of 15 |
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
835
+56 (+7%) vs 2020
-15% since 2000-01, when it was 983
Student : Teacher
14.2:1
was 14.2:1
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 | 835 | 59 | 14.2:1 | 9% (71) |
| 2023-24 | 830 | 57.2 | 14.5:1 | 8% (65) |
| 2022-23 | 812 | 54.6 | 14.9:1 | 7% (60) |
| 2020-21 | 779 | 55 | 14.2:1 | 3% (24) |
| 2017-18 | 768 | 56.3 | 13.6:1 | 4% (32) |
| 2015-16 | 744 | 56 | 13.3:1 | 3% (23) |
| 2010-11 | 643 | 49 | 13.1:1 | 2% (14) |
| 2000-01 | 983 | 59 | 16.7:1 | 0% (2) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Pointers Run Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students up 9% (768 to 835); teachers up 5% (56.3 to 59).
About Pointers Run Elementary
Clarksville, Maryland, is home to Pointers Run Elementary, a large elementary school. A total of 835 students attend the school, which covers pre-K through 5. The average for elementary schools in Maryland is about 481 students, so this school is 74% bigger than average.
Pointers Run Elementary belongs to Howard County Public Schools, a district of 77 schools and 57,565 students.
Federal enrollment data show White students as the largest group at Pointers Run Elementary, at 37%. It is also 32% Asian, 14% Black, 9% multiracial, and 7% Hispanic. Howard County's residents are about 47% White, 10 points above the school's share. Pointers Run Elementary's diversity index is 73%, against a US figure of 70%.
Pointers Run Elementary employs 59 full-time-equivalent teachers. That gives a ratio of about 14.2:1. For comparison, elementary schools in Maryland average 13.8:1. Pointers Run Elementary's free or reduced-price lunch eligibility rate is 9%. Public schools in Howard County average 27%.
allk12 grades Pointers Run Elementary an A+. The grade compares the school only with Maryland public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
After accounting for student poverty, Pointers Run Elementary is in the top 10% of Maryland schools. Its average proficiency rate on state tests of 85.5% is 16.3 points above the 69.2% predicted for its lunch-eligibility share.
Across Howard County, the median household income is $149,763, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 65% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 4%. Howard County is home to 78 public schools and about 57,565 public school students.
The closest public school, Clarksville Middle, is about 0.1 miles from Pointers Run Elementary. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. On state test proficiency, Pointers Run Elementary ranks 1st in a group of 8 nearby schools.
The school's locale code, City: Mid-size, means it is inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Over 4 years, Pointers Run Elementary's enrollment climbed 7%, to 835.
Discussion on this page can cover science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Howard County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
336,328
Census ACS
Median income
$149,763
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
65%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
78
57,565 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Howard County Public Schools
- Marriotts Ridge HighHigh · 1,741 students
- Reservoir HighHigh · 1,597 students
- Atholton HighHigh · 1,540 students
- Howard HighHigh · 1,493 students
- Mount Hebron HighHigh · 1,455 students
- Oakland Mills HighHigh · 1,413 students
Other schools in Clarksville
- River Hill HighHigh · 1,383 students
- Clarksville MiddleMiddle · 679 students
- Clarksville ElementaryElementary · 543 students
Nearby schools
- Clarksville Middle0.1 mi · 679
- River Hill High1.7 mi · 1,383
- Clarksville Elementary1.9 mi · 543
- Atholton High2.4 mi · 1,540
- Cedar Lane Special Center2.5 mi · 133
- Lime Kiln Middle2.6 mi · 675
Frequently asked questions
About Pointers Run ElementaryHow many students attend Pointers Run Elementary?
Pointers Run Elementary enrolls approximately 835 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does Pointers Run Elementary serve?
Pointers Run Elementary serves grades PK-05.
How many students per teacher at Pointers Run Elementary?
Approximately 14.2:1 students per teacher at Pointers Run Elementary.
How diverse is Pointers Run Elementary?
Pointers Run Elementary reports a student body of 37% White, 7% Hispanic, 14% Black, 32% Asian, 9% Two or more.
Is Pointers Run Elementary public or private?
Pointers Run Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Howard County Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.