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Does Waterman Elementary have enough mental health and stress support?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
557
Elementary
DISTRICT 522 · STATE 499
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·HARRISONBURG CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 510186000787
Waterman Elementary
451 Chicago Ave, Harrisonburg, VA 22802 · (540) 434-8352 · Harrisonburg city
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL557 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.7:1
38 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.4:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
87%
485 students
DISTRICT 88% · 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 2 | 0% |
| Kindergarten | 83 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 96 | 17% |
| Grade 2 | 97 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 103 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 91 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 85 | 15% |
Student demographics
52%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 61% · 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
42.0%
VA avg 74.2% . +2.0pp since 2022
Math
47.0%
VA avg 72.7% . +12.0pp since 2022
What this means: On the SOL, Virginia's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 47 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Virginia schools, those numbers are about 74 and 73. Reading and writing scores are up about 2 points since 2022, while math scores are up about 12 points.
SOL results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 42.0% | 47.0% |
| 2023-24 | 44.0% | 44.0% |
| 2022-23 | 40.0% | 35.0% |
% Passing, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SOL. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of VA schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
46.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
64.4%
based on VA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-17.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 47% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 64% typical for Virginia schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Where Waterman Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Virginia | In Harrisonburg city |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 46.8% | #1,015 of 1,101 | #4 of 6 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 47.0% | #1,049 of 1,111 | #7 of 7 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 42.0% | #1,070 of 1,111 | #6 of 7 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 557 | #448 of 1,176 | #2 of 7 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.7:1 | #708 of 1,105 | #5 of 7 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 52.3% | #724 of 1,106 | #7 of 7 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 87.1% | #400 of 1,157 | #2 of 7 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +11.6% | #109 of 324 | N/A |
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.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
557
+38 (+7%) vs 2020
+8% since 1990-91, when it was 514
Student : Teacher
14.7:1
was 15.7:1
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 | 557 | 38 | 14.7:1 | 87% (485) |
| 2023-24 | 559 | 38 | 14.7:1 | 82% (457) |
| 2022-23 | 530 | 43 | 12.3:1 | 79% (418) |
| 2020-21 | 519 | 33 | 15.7:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 499 | 42 | 11.9:1 | 77% (383) |
| 2015-16 | 532 | 37 | 14.4:1 | 79% (420) |
| 2010-11 | 398 | 30 | 13.3:1 | 77% (306) |
| 2000-01 | 398 | 39 | 10.2:1 | 57% (226) |
| 1990-91 | 514 | 38 | 13.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Waterman Elementary.
About Waterman Elementary
The public elementary school Waterman Elementary is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The school serves 557 students in pre-K through 5 in 2024-25.
Harrisonburg City Public Schools counts 10 schools and 6,652 students, including Waterman Elementary.
Waterman Elementary is 66% Hispanic by enrollment. The rest of enrollment is 19% White, 9% Black, and 5% multiracial. Census estimates put the Hispanic share of Harrisonburg city's population at about 24%. The school's diversity index is 52%, meaning two students picked at random have a 52% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Teachers at the school number 38 full-time equivalents, and the ratio is 14.7:1. This ratio sits 0.8 above the 13.8:1 average for elementary schools in Virginia. Roughly 87% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. That tracks the 87% average for public schools in Harrisonburg city.
BeatsExpectations compares each school's average proficiency rate on state tests with a prediction based on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility. Waterman Elementary posts 46.8% against a 64.4% prediction, a bottom-10% result in Virginia.
Harrisonburg city census figures show that the median household income is $62,254, about 38% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 12% of residents are in poverty. Harrisonburg city is home to 13 public schools and about 6,934 public school students.
The closest public school, Thomas Harrison Middle, is about 0.9 miles from Waterman Elementary. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. Waterman Elementary places 7th of 8 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
NCES lists the school's locale as City: Small. That means it sits inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
2024-25 enrollment was 557, a 7% increase from 519 in 2020-21. The ratio was 15.7:1 in 2020-21 and 14.7:1 in 2024-25.
The allk12 site hosts a discussion page for Waterman Elementary covering things like sports schedules, lunch menus, and spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Harrisonburg city at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
51,392
Census ACS
Median income
$62,254
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
38%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
12%
Below federal line
Schools in county
13
6,934 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Harrisonburg City Public Schools
- Rocktown HighHigh · 1,011 students
- Harrisonburg HighHigh · 998 students
- Thomas Harrison MiddleMiddle · 771 students
- Skyline MiddleMiddle · 738 students
- Bluestone ElementaryElementary · 566 students
- Stone Spring ElementaryElementary · 554 students
Other schools in Harrisonburg
- Rocktown HighHigh · 1,011 students
- Harrisonburg HighHigh · 998 students
- Thomas Harrison MiddleMiddle · 771 students
- Skyline MiddleMiddle · 738 students
- Bluestone ElementaryElementary · 566 students
- Stone Spring ElementaryElementary · 554 students
Nearby schools
- Thomas Harrison Middle0.9 mi · 771
- Spotswood Elementary1.2 mi · 468
- Keister Elementary1.3 mi · 475
- Bluestone Elementary1.8 mi · 566
- Harrisonburg High2.1 mi · 998
- Mountain View Elementary2.2 mi · 411
Frequently asked questions
About Waterman ElementaryHow many students attend Waterman Elementary?
Waterman Elementary enrolls approximately 557 students in grades PK-05.
Is Waterman Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Waterman Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Waterman Elementary have?
Waterman Elementary employs 38 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.7:1.
What is the student diversity at Waterman Elementary?
Student demographics at Waterman Elementary are roughly 19% White, 66% Hispanic, 9% Black, 2% Asian, 5% Two or more.
What district is Waterman Elementary in?
Waterman Elementary is part of Harrisonburg City Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.