The top reported proficiency rate is 73% in English language arts. The lowest is 50% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Center for Educational Excellence
Center for Educational Excellence is a charter school serving kindergarten through eighth grade in Tempe, Arizona. It operates as a single-school district under Allen-Cochran Enterprises Inc., a charter organization. The school’s grade band means there are no high school outcomes to report here, no graduation rate and no data that would apply to a secondary program.
Tempe is an inner suburb of Phoenix with a distinct character shaped heavily by Arizona State University’s main campus. The northern part of the city, especially near the Valley Metro light rail line and the university, is fairly dense and urbanized, with high-rise development along Tempe Town Lake and the pedestrian-oriented Mill Avenue shopping and entertainment district. South of that corridor development becomes less dense, with single-family homes, strip malls, and office parks. Major employers include ASU, State Farm, and several corporate headquarters. The city has seen continued growth as a suburb of Phoenix and as a center of education and commerce. The school itself is located on East Elliot Road in the southern part of the city, in a more suburban commercial strip setting.
Looking at academic performance, the school’s results are a clear strength. Across tested grades and subjects, overall proficiency sits well above typical levels for districts in Maricopa County, placing Center for Educational Excellence in the top quartile relative to its peers. In English language arts, a strong majority of students meet or exceed standards in every grade where data is reported, with particularly high results in the earlier elementary years and again in seventh grade. In mathematics, the picture is more uneven: early grades show strong proficiency, but there is a noticeable decline as students move into middle school, with results in sixth grade notably lower than the school’s own earlier marks. Science results are available for fifth grade only and show about half of students proficient, while eighth-grade science results are suppressed due to small group size, a common practice when few students are tested. Seventh and eighth grade math results are also suppressed for the same reason, so a parent may want to follow up directly with the school to understand how those older students are performing.
Enrollment size is on the smaller side for a K-8 school, with a full list of grades from kindergarten through eighth. The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic minority and smaller representations of Black, multiracial, Native American, and Asian students. Data on free or reduced-price meal eligibility, special education services, and English learner status is not reported, so it is not possible to assess the school’s economic or linguistic diversity from the available information. Similarly, data on discipline, staffing ratios, chronic absenteeism, course access, and program offerings are all absent. Those gaps mean a parent considering this school will want to inquire directly about student support services, enrichment offerings, and classroom environment.
As a charter school, Center for Educational Excellence is a public school of choice, not tied to a traditional district attendance boundary, so families anywhere in the region can apply. The district brief for Allen-Cochran Enterprises Inc. did not identify any recent changes or developments that would affect parents’ decisions; no strategic priorities, facility updates, or program shifts were found in publicly available sources.
For a family looking at K-8 options in the Tempe area, this school stands out for its strong academic performance overall, especially in literacy. The softer spot in middle school math warrants a conversation with the school about how they support students through that transition. The missing data on special populations, programs, and discipline means that fit will depend on a family’s specific needs, and the school itself is the best source for those details.
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