Knox Gifted Academy, Chandler AZ

Original Research by School Decision on Knox Gifted Academy

Knox Gifted Academy serves students from preschool through sixth grade as a regular public school within the Chandler Unified School District, though its name and mission are explicitly oriented toward gifted education. The school is located in Chandler, a large Phoenix-area suburb that has grown rapidly as a technology and semiconductor hub, anchored by employers such as Intel, Wells Fargo, and Northrop Grumman. Chandler is a car-oriented city defined by freeway corridors, master-planned subdivisions, and a historic downtown core that now sits within a much larger metropolitan area. The housing market in the area is expensive, with home values and rents above the state and national medians, reflecting the economic pressures of a high-growth region.

Academically, Knox Gifted Academy posts results that are exceptionally strong. Across all tested grades and subjects, the proportion of students scoring proficient is very high. In math, proficiency rates are consistently near or above nine in ten students at every tested grade level from third through sixth. In English language arts, the pattern is even stronger, with proficiency reaching nearly universal levels in third grade and remaining above nine in ten through sixth grade. Science results, available for fifth grade, also show a very high proficiency rate. When compared with other districts across Maricopa County, the school’s overall proficiency index falls in the top quarter. These outcomes are consistent with the school’s identity as a gifted academy; a family considering this school should expect a peer environment where nearly all students are performing at or above grade-level standards, often well above.

The student body reflects the school’s selective focus. The largest racial or ethnic group is Asian, accounting for about half of enrollment, followed by White students at roughly three in ten, and smaller shares of Hispanic, two-or-more-races, Black, and Native American students. Data on students eligible for free or reduced-price meals is not available, nor are counts of students with disabilities or English learners. A parent may wish to ask the school directly about the extent of diversity in socioeconomic background and about the availability of support for students with special needs, given that these figures are absent from the public record. The school serves about seven hundred students in a grade-span that caps at sixth grade, so there is no graduation rate to report, and data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, and staffing were also not available in this profile.

The broader district context shows no major changes flagged in recent reporting, though detailed information about strategic initiatives or bond measures was not found. Families choosing this school should understand that it is part of the large Chandler Unified district, which itself is a major employer in the city. The school’s location in Chandler means that families live in a place with a strong tech job base, significant recent job growth along the Price and Santan freeway corridors, and amenities such as the Chandler Fashion Center and Tumbleweed Park. The built environment is suburban and driving is the primary mode of transportation.

For a family seeking an academically intense elementary and middle school environment where the student population is uniformly high-achieving, Knox Gifted Academy fits that description clearly. The limited availability of data on special programs, course access, and student supports beyond test scores is a gap that interested families may want to explore with the school directly. The school’s performance numbers speak for themselves, but the context around who the school serves and how it identifies gifted students is not detailed in the available public data.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 393%

School 93% · District 44% · ▲ 49 pts above district

▲ 49 pts above state median · ▲ 47 pts above county median

Grade 490%

School 90% · District 30% · ▲ 60 pts above district

▲ 46 pts above state median · ▲ 43 pts above county median

Grade 586%

School 86% · District 53% · ▲ 33 pts above district

▲ 44 pts above state median · ▲ 40 pts above county median

Grade 690%

School 90% · District 26% · ▲ 64 pts above district

▲ 54 pts above state median · ▲ 50 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 399%

School 99% · District 35% · ▲ 64 pts above district

▲ 59 pts above state median · ▲ 55 pts above county median

Grade 496%

School 96% · District 32% · ▲ 64 pts above district

▲ 49 pts above state median · ▲ 46 pts above county median

Grade 591%

School 91% · District 32% · ▲ 59 pts above district

▲ 50 pts above state median · ▲ 47 pts above county median

Grade 694%

School 94% · District 58% · ▲ 36 pts above district

▲ 51 pts above state median · ▲ 49 pts above county median

Science

Grade 589%

School 89% · District 48% · ▲ 41 pts above district

▲ 52 pts above state median · ▲ 50 pts above county median

This schoolChandler Unified District #80 (4242), same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.