The top reported proficiency rate is 32% in English language arts. The lowest is 10% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Howard University Middle School of Math and Science Pcs
Howard University Middle School of Math and Science PCS is a public charter middle school in the District of Columbia serving grades six through eight. As its name suggests, the school carries a STEM-focused identity and has historical ties to Howard University, though that relationship has shifted in ways families should understand. The school operates as its own charter district with a single campus, and publicly reported information confirms its charter was recently renewed, giving families some operational continuity for the years ahead.
The school has moved from its original location on the Howard University campus to a new site on Georgia Avenue NW. This relocation changed commute patterns and ended the direct, day-to-day access to Howard University's campus that earlier cohorts of students may have experienced. A parent weighing this school should consider what the Georgia Avenue location means for their own transportation logistics and what, if any, university partnership programming remains part of the student experience at the new site.
Academically, the most recent state assessment results tell a mixed story. In English language arts, proficiency rates across all three grades land in a range that suggests a reasonable share of students are meeting grade-level expectations, with seventh grade the strongest of the three. The ELA results are the school's clearer academic bright spot. Mathematics tells a different story. Sixth-grade math proficiency falls in a reported range that is modest, and the rate drops sharply in seventh grade and again in eighth grade. By eighth grade, only a small fraction of tested students are scoring proficient. Science results, drawn from an earlier assessment cycle for eighth grade only, were essentially nonexistent, with the proficiency rate reported in a range at or near zero. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly given the institution's stated math and science focus, and ask what supports and curricular changes are in place to move these outcomes.
The student body is small for a middle school and predominantly Black, with a small Hispanic presence and only a handful of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. This composition reflects the school's role as a community institution serving primarily Black families in the District. Economic data through free or reduced-price lunch counts was not available, and information on students with disabilities and English learners was also missing, so the picture of who the school serves is incomplete from the data on hand.
Several categories families often rely on were absent entirely. No locale brief, housing data, or community economic context was provided, which limits what can be said about the surrounding neighborhood and its housing market. No program offerings data was available beyond the school's name and stated focus, so families looking for details on electives, extracurriculars, or specialized STEM coursework will need to go directly to the school. No staffing, attendance, discipline, or course-access information was provided. No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether the current proficiency levels represent a decline, a plateau, or something else. No comparison set against neighboring DC charter or traditional schools was included, so positioning this school relative to peer options is not possible from the data here. And because this is a middle school serving only grades six through eight, there is no graduation rate to report; that metric does not apply to this grade band.
What the available data does convey is a small, mission-named charter middle school with a STEM identity, a recently renewed charter, a predominantly Black student body, ELA results that outpace its math results, and mathematics and science proficiency levels that are low and, in the case of science, strikingly so. Families drawn to the Howard University affiliation and the math-and-science framing should ask the school directly how that mission translates into classroom practice and what the current improvement plans look like for the subject areas at the center of the school's name.
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