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Honest take: what's the hardest part about being a student at Whittier Elementary?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
779
Elementary
DISTRICT 545 · STATE 481
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·FREDERICK COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 240033001015
Whittier Elementary
2400 Whittier Dr, Frederick, MD 21702 · (227) 203-1140 · Frederick County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL779 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 57% 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
16.0:1
49 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.1:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
42%
328 students
DISTRICT 39% · 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 | 74 | 9% |
| Kindergarten | 115 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 109 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 131 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 120 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 117 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 113 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (115) is about the same size as its 5th grade class (113).
Student demographics
75%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 69% · 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
57.4%
MD avg 50.6% . -2.8pp since 2023
Math
44.6%
MD avg 34.8% . -1.1pp 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 45 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Maryland schools, those numbers are about 51 and 35. Reading and writing scores are down about 3 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 1 points.
MCAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 57.4% | 44.6% |
| 2023-24 | 60.2% | 45.7% |
% 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
52.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
49.3%
based on MD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+2.7pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 52% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% 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 Whittier Elementary
Whittier Elementary's state test result (52.0% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whittier Elementary this school | 779 | 42.1% | 52.0% |
| Solley Elementary Glen Burnie | 674 | 39.9% | 47.1% |
| Rockland Woods Elementary Hagerstown | 655 | 47.9% | 50.4% |
| Tuscarora Elementary Frederick | 793 | 46.9% | 58.1% |
| Francis Scott Key Elementary/Middle Baltimore | 722 | 40.0% | 64.5% |
| Walkersville Elementary Walkersville | 692 | 50.1% | 55.9% |
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 Whittier Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Maryland | In Frederick County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 52.0% | #315 of 853 | #30 of 39 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 44.6% | #370 of 853 ▼ 30 | #33 of 39 ▼ 5 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 57.4% | #327 of 853 ▼ 83 | #31 of 39 ▼ 9 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 779 | #44 of 898 | #7 of 41 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 16.0:1 | #707 of 857 | #23 of 38 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 75.1% | #26 of 857 | #5 of 38 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 42.1% | #594 of 885 | #17 of 41 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +2.0% | #258 of 294 | #18 of 18 |
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
779
+93 (+14%) vs 2020
+9% since 2000-01, when it was 716
Student : Teacher
16.0:1
was 14.9:1
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 | 779 | 48.6 | 16.0:1 | 42% (328) |
| 2023-24 | 730 | 45 | 16.2:1 | 36% (263) |
| 2022-23 | 735 | 47.5 | 15.5:1 | 39% (287) |
| 2020-21 | 686 | 46 | 14.9:1 | 35% (239) |
| 2017-18 | 764 | 49.1 | 15.6:1 | 33% (253) |
| 2015-16 | 747 | 47 | 15.9:1 | 35% (261) |
| 2010-11 | 786 | 48 | 16.4:1 | 25% (197) |
| 2000-01 | 716 | 38 | 18.8:1 | 12% (88) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Whittier Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students up 2% (764 to 779); teachers down 1% (49.1 to 48.6).
About Whittier Elementary
Whittier Elementary is a high-enrollment elementary school in Maryland, located in Frederick. A federal count lists 779 students at the school, in pre-K through 5. An average school in this group (elementary schools in Maryland) has about 481 students.
Whittier Elementary is one of 67 schools in Frederick County Public Schools, which enrolls 48,054 students in total.
Whittier Elementary has no majority group; White students are the largest, at 34%. Other reported shares: 26% Black, 21% Hispanic, 12% multiracial, and 6% Asian. That compares with about 68% White among all Frederick County residents. Pick two students at random and there is a 75% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
The school reports 48.6 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 16.0 students per teacher. The school has more students per teacher than the 13.8:1 average for elementary schools in Maryland. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 42%.
Measured against Maryland public elementary schools, Whittier 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.
BeatsExpectations compares each school's average proficiency rate on state tests with a prediction based on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility. For Whittier Elementary, the prediction is 49.3% and the result is 52.0%.
In the county around the school, Frederick County, the median household income is $122,002, about 46% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 4% of residents are in poverty. Frederick County is home to 69 public schools and about 48,054 public school students.
The closest public school, Yellow Springs Elementary, is about 1.3 miles from Whittier Elementary. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. By average proficiency, Whittier Elementary is 2nd among 8 schools close by.
Its NCES locale code is City: Small: the school is inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
2024-25 enrollment was 779, a 14% rise from 686 in 2020-21. The school's ratio rose from 14.9:1 to 16.0:1 between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
Conversations here can range across school safety, transportation, and start times. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Frederick County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
287,048
Census ACS
Median income
$122,002
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
46%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
69
48,054 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Frederick County Public Schools
- Gov. Thomas Johnson HighHigh · 2,066 students
- Urbana HighHigh · 1,989 students
- Frederick HighHigh · 1,821 students
- Tuscarora HighHigh · 1,735 students
- Oakdale HighHigh · 1,702 students
- Linganore HighHigh · 1,647 students
Other schools in Frederick
- Gov. Thomas Johnson HighHigh · 2,066 students
- Frederick HighHigh · 1,821 students
- Tuscarora HighHigh · 1,735 students
- Linganore HighHigh · 1,647 students
- Crestwood MiddleMiddle · 996 students
- Waverley ElementaryElementary · 965 students
Other Whittier Elementary schools
34 other US public schools in 17 states are named Whittier Elementary. Whittier Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 35.
- Whittier ElementaryHemet, CA · 816 students
- WHITTIER ELEMENTARYKANSAS CITY, MO · 550 students
- Whittier ElementaryLong Beach, CA · 526 students
- Whittier ElemKansas City, KS · 502 students
- Whittier ElementaryMINNEAPOLIS, MN · 491 students
Nearby schools
- Yellow Springs Elementary1.3 mi · 628
- Waverley Elementary2.0 mi · 965
- Monocacy Middle2.0 mi · 710
- Monocacy Elementary2.2 mi · 523
- Heather Ridge2.4 mi · 50
- Monocacy Valley Montessori2.7 mi · 386
Frequently asked questions
About Whittier ElementaryHow many students attend Whittier Elementary?
Whittier Elementary enrolls approximately 779 students in grades PK-05.
Is Whittier Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Whittier Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Whittier Elementary have?
Whittier Elementary employs 49 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.0:1.
How diverse is Whittier Elementary?
Whittier Elementary reports a student body of 34% White, 21% Hispanic, 26% Black, 6% Asian, 12% Two or more.
Who oversees Whittier Elementary?
Whittier Elementary is overseen by Frederick County Public Schools in Frederick County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.