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Alumni: what's one memory from Cardinal Elementary that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
682
Elementary
DISTRICT 516 · STATE 499
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ARLINGTON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 510027000101
Cardinal Elementary
1644 N. McKinley Road, Arlington, VA 22205 · (703) 228-5280 · Arlington County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL682 STUDENTS
A+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 95% of Virginia 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.
- A-Beats 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 Virginia public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
14.5:1
47 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.4:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
7%
46 students
DISTRICT 31% · STATE 66%
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 | 80 | 12% |
| Grade 1 | 116 | 17% |
| Grade 2 | 136 | 20% |
| Grade 3 | 124 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 111 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 115 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (80) is 30% smaller than its 5th grade class (115).
Student demographics
45%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 71% · STATE 71% · 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
SOL 2024-25 . % PassingEnglish Language Arts
91.0%
VA avg 74.2% . -1.0pp since 2022
Math
94.0%
VA avg 72.7% . +2.0pp since 2022
What this means: On the SOL, Virginia's statewide test, about 91 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 94 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Virginia schools, those numbers are about 74 and 73. Reading and writing scores are down about 1 points since 2022, while math scores are up about 2 points.
SOL results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 91.0% | 94.0% |
| 2023-24 | 94.0% | 93.0% |
| 2022-23 | 92.0% | 92.0% |
% Passing, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SOL. 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
93.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
86.3%
based on VA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+7.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 94% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 86% typical for Virginia 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 Virginia'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 Cardinal Elementary
Cardinal Elementary's state test result (93.8% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinal Elementary this school | 682 | 6.7% | 93.8% |
| Princess Anne Elementary Virginia Beach | 654 | 11.2% | 92.4% |
| Waynewood Elementary Alexandria | 738 | 4.1% | 92.0% |
| Oak Street Elementary Falls Church | 587 | 11.8% | 86.3% |
| Butts Road Intermediate Chesapeake | 579 | 12.8% | 87.5% |
| Fairview Elementary Fairfax Station | 751 | 10.8% | 85.8% |
Matched among Virginia 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 Cardinal Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Virginia | In Arlington County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 93.8% | #16 of 1,101 | #4 of 25 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 94.0% | #32 of 1,111 ▼ 8 | #6 of 25 ▼ 2 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 91.0% | #44 of 1,111 ▼ 32 | #6 of 25 ▼ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 682 | #212 of 1,176 | #2 of 26 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.5:1 | #673 of 1,105 | #19 of 25 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 44.7% | #844 of 1,106 | #24 of 25 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 6.7% | #1,139 of 1,157 | #21 of 25 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -14.8% | #301 of 759 | #13 of 19 |
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
682
0 (0%) vs 2020
+114% since 1990-91, when it was 319
Student : Teacher
14.5:1
was 17.5:1
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 | 682 | 47 | 14.5:1 | 7% (46) |
| 2023-24 | 714 | 45.5 | 15.7:1 | 6% (42) |
| 2022-23 | 704 | 66.5 | 10.6:1 | 6% (45) |
| 2020-21 | 682 | 39 | 17.5:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 800 | 48.5 | 16.5:1 | 9% (69) |
| 2015-16 | 604 | 39 | 15.5:1 | 5% (33) |
| 2010-11 | 491 | 28 | 17.5:1 | 7% (35) |
| 2000-01 | 397 | 31 | 12.8:1 | 21% (82) |
| 1990-91 | 319 | 21 | 15.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Cardinal Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 15% (800 to 682); teachers down 3% (48.5 to 47).
About Cardinal Elementary
In Arlington, Virginia, Cardinal Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school. It serves 682 students in pre-K through 5. The average among elementary schools in Virginia is roughly 499 students; this school is 37% larger than that.
Cardinal Elementary is run by Arlington County Public Schools, whose 36 schools enroll 27,950 students.
Cardinal Elementary is 73% White by enrollment. The remaining students are 11% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, 4% Asian, and 2% Black. Among people living in Arlington County, the White share is about 60%. Cardinal Elementary's diversity index is 45%, against a US figure of 70%.
Dividing enrollment by its 47 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 14.5:1. That matches the 13.8:1 average for elementary schools in Virginia fairly closely. Eligible students account for 7% of enrollment in the free or reduced-price lunch program. It compares with 31% for public schools in Arlington County.
allk12 grades Cardinal Elementary an A+. The grade compares the school only with Virginia public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
Cardinal Elementary sits between the top and bottom 10% of Virginia schools on BeatsExpectations, with an actual average proficiency rate on state tests of 93.8% and a predicted 86.3%.
Cardinal Elementary is located in Arlington County, where the median household income is $142,114, 77% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 4% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Cardinal Elementary is one of 42 public schools in the county.
The nearest other public school, Swanson Middle, is about 0.3 miles away. There are at least 8 more public schools inside five miles. On state test proficiency, Cardinal Elementary ranks 4th in a group of 8 nearby schools.
NCES lists the school's locale as City: Mid-size. That means it sits inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Enrollment at Cardinal Elementary was 682 in 2020-21 and 682 in 2024-25, a change of less than 3%. The ratio was 17.5:1 in 2020-21 and 14.5:1 in 2024-25.
The allk12 site hosts a discussion page for Cardinal Elementary covering things like sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Arlington County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
236,254
Census ACS
Median income
$142,114
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
77%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
42
27,950 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Arlington County Public Schools
- Washington-Liberty HighHigh · 3,044 students
- Wakefield HighHigh · 2,646 students
- Yorktown HighHigh · 2,593 students
- Jefferson MiddleMiddle · 1,120 students
- Gunston MiddleMiddle · 1,072 students
- Kenmore MiddleMiddle · 1,053 students
Other schools in Arlington
- Washington-Liberty HighHigh · 3,044 students
- Wakefield HighHigh · 2,646 students
- Yorktown HighHigh · 2,593 students
- Jefferson MiddleMiddle · 1,120 students
- Gunston MiddleMiddle · 1,072 students
- Kenmore MiddleMiddle · 1,053 students
Other Cardinal Elementary schools
7 other US public schools in 6 states are named Cardinal Elementary. Cardinal Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 8.
- Cardinal ElementaryRichmond, VA · 821 students
- Cardinal Elementary SchoolBrownsburg, IN · 650 students
- Cardinal ElementaryMUSKEGON, MI · 611 students
- Cardinal ElementaryEldon, IA · 495 students
- CARDINAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLSO SIOUX CITY, NE · 424 students
Nearby schools
- Swanson Middle0.3 mi · 993
- Arlington Traditional0.6 mi · 624
- Tuckahoe Elementary1.0 mi · 448
- Ashlawn Elementary1.0 mi · 553
- Nottingham Elementary1.1 mi · 382
- Yorktown High1.1 mi · 2,593
Frequently asked questions
About Cardinal ElementaryHow large is Cardinal Elementary?
Cardinal Elementary enrolls approximately 682 students in grades PK-05.
Is Cardinal Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Cardinal Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Cardinal Elementary have?
Cardinal Elementary employs 47 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.5:1.
How diverse is Cardinal Elementary?
Cardinal Elementary reports a student body of 73% White, 11% Hispanic, 2% Black, 4% Asian, 10% Two or more.
Who oversees Cardinal Elementary?
Cardinal Elementary is overseen by Arlington County Public Schools in Arlington County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.