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What's the most underrated thing about East Ward El Sch that outsiders don't know?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
549
Elementary
DISTRICT 540 · STATE 443
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DOWNINGTOWN AREA SD·NCES 420771005011
East Ward Elementary School
435 Washington Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335 · (610) 269-8282 · Chester County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL549 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 81% of Pennsylvania 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.
- 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 Pennsylvania public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
14.0:1
39 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.0:1 · STATE 13.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
30%
167 students
DISTRICT 15% · STATE 75%
Community
1
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 65 | 12% |
| Grade 1 | 86 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 92 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 103 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 99 | 18% |
| Grade 5 | 104 | 19% |
This year's kindergarten class (65) is 38% smaller than its 5th grade class (104).
Student demographics
64%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 53% · STATE 59% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
East Ward Elementary School→Marsh Creek Sixth Grade Center
Based on grade levels within Downingtown Area SD. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
PSSA + Keystone 2024-25 . % Proficient or AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
67.5%
PA avg 51.1% . -5.9pp since 2023
Math
68.3%
PA avg 43.0% . -2.2pp since 2023
What this means: On the PSSA + Keystone, Pennsylvania's statewide test, about 68 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 68 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Pennsylvania schools, those numbers are about 51 and 43. Reading and writing scores are down about 6 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 2 points.
PSSA + Keystone results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 67.5% | 68.3% |
| 2023-24 | 73.4% | 70.5% |
% Proficient or Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: PSSA + Keystone. 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
72.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
64.6%
based on PA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 73% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 65% typical for Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania'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 East Ward Elementary School
East Ward Elementary School's state test result (72.6% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Ward Elementary School this school | 549 | 30.4% | 72.6% |
| Hampden Elementary School Mechanicsburg | 538 | 29.6% | 71.2% |
| Walton Farm Elementary School Lansdale | 566 | 33.9% | 70.6% |
| Bridle Path Elementary School Lansdale | 508 | 22.8% | 71.3% |
| Gwyn-Nor Elementary School North Wales | 663 | 32.4% | 61.8% |
| Sugartown Elementary School Malvern | 449 | 30.3% | 61.4% |
Matched among Pennsylvania 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 East Ward Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Pennsylvania | In Chester County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 72.6% | #245 of 1,396 | #26 of 54 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 68.3% | #307 of 1,511 ▼ 74 | #31 of 56 ▼ 9 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 67.5% | #253 of 1,511 ▼ 5 | #25 of 56 ▲ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 549 | #393 of 1,638 | #12 of 62 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.0:1 | #1,056 of 1,528 | #50 of 60 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 64.5% | #220 of 1,531 | #9 of 60 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 30.4% | #1,323 of 1,600 | #24 of 61 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +1.9% | #389 of 450 | #17 of 20 |
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
549
+38 (+7%) vs 2020
+8% since 1990-91, when it was 509
Student : Teacher
14.0:1
was 13.1:1
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 | 549 | 39.3 | 14.0:1 | 30% (167) |
| 2023-24 | 557 | 36.8 | 15.1:1 | 30% (167) |
| 2022-23 | 540 | 35.3 | 15.3:1 | 26% (142) |
| 2020-21 | 511 | 39 | 13.1:1 | 19% (97) |
| 2017-18 | 539 | 35.4 | 15.2:1 | 21% (114) |
| 2015-16 | 565 | 38 | 14.9:1 | 21% (117) |
| 2010-11 | 590 | 35 | 16.9:1 | 11% (63) |
| 2000-01 | 617 | 35 | 17.6:1 | 10% (64) |
| 1990-91 | 509 | 33 | 15.4:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for East Ward Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students up 2% (539 to 549); teachers up 11% (35.4 to 39.3).
About East Ward Elementary School
Federal records list East Ward Elementary School as an elementary school in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. The school had 549 students in kindergarten through 5 in 2024-25. An average school in this group (elementary schools in Pennsylvania) has about 443 students.
East Ward Elementary School falls under Downingtown Area SD, which has 16 schools enrolling 13,047 students.
At East Ward Elementary School, White students make up 53% of the student body. After that, the student body is 24% Asian, 10% Hispanic, 8% multiracial, and 6% Black. Census figures show Chester County is about 77% White. The school's diversity index is 64%, meaning two students picked at random have a 64% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Dividing enrollment by its 39.3 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 14.0:1. That is higher than the 13.1:1 average for elementary schools in Pennsylvania. Eligible students account for 30% of enrollment in the free or reduced-price lunch program.
East Ward Elementary School is graded A- by allk12, scoring above 81% of Pennsylvania public elementary schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
East Ward Elementary School posts an average proficiency rate on state tests of 72.6%, compared with a predicted 64.6%. It is not in the top or bottom 10% of Pennsylvania schools on BeatsExpectations.
Census estimates describe Chester County this way: the median household income is $127,208, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 57% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 4%. In all, Chester County has 111 public schools and roughly 83,468 students.
Chester County Technical College High School - Brandywine is located about 0.8 miles from East Ward Elementary School. The five-mile area around East Ward Elementary School holds at least 8 other public schools. East Ward Elementary School comes in 4th of 8 nearby schools on average proficiency.
For locale, NCES codes East Ward Elementary School as Suburb: Large.
2024-25 enrollment was 549, a 7% gain from 511 in 2020-21.
If you have questions about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at East Ward Elementary School, you can post them here. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Chester County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
547,840
Census ACS
Median income
$127,208
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
57%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
111
83,468 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Downingtown Area SD
- Downingtown HS West CampusHigh · 1,796 students
- Downingtown HS East CampusHigh · 1,708 students
- Downingtown Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,074 students
- Marsh Creek Sixth Grade CenterMiddle · 1,066 students
- Lionville Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,045 students
- Downingtown STEM AcademyHigh · 962 students
Other schools in Downingtown
- Downingtown HS West CampusHigh · 1,796 students
- Downingtown Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,074 students
- Marsh Creek Sixth Grade CenterMiddle · 1,066 students
- Downingtown STEM AcademyHigh · 962 students
- Lionville Elementary SchoolElementary · 668 students
- West Bradford Elementary SchoolElementary · 623 students
Other East Ward Elementary schools
One other US public school is named East Ward Elementary. East Ward Elementary School is the 2nd largest of the 2.
- East Ward Elementary SchoolNewark, NJ · 854 students
Nearby schools
- Chester County Technical College High School - Brandywine0.8 mi · 75
- Downingtown STEM Academy1.0 mi · 962
- Downingtown HS West Campus1.2 mi · 1,796
- Downingtown Middle School1.2 mi · 1,074
- Beaver Creek Elementary School1.5 mi · 531
- Bradford Hgts Elementary School1.7 mi · 534
Frequently asked questions
About East Ward Elementary SchoolHow many students attend East Ward Elementary School?
East Ward Elementary School enrolls approximately 549 students in grades KG-05.
Is East Ward Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
East Ward Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at East Ward Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at East Ward Elementary School is approximately 14.0:1 (39 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at East Ward Elementary School?
Student demographics at East Ward Elementary School are roughly 53% White, 10% Hispanic, 6% Black, 24% Asian, 8% Two or more.
Is East Ward Elementary School public or private?
East Ward Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Downingtown Area SD.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.