Gladden Farms Elementary, Marana AZ

Original Research by School Decision on Gladden Farms Elementary

Gladden Farms Elementary is a regular public school serving preschool through sixth grade in Marana, a fast-growing town in Pima County along the Interstate 10 corridor. The school sits inside the Marana Unified District, which also offers free full-day kindergarten and an online distance learning option for families seeking an alternative to the traditional classroom. Like the town itself, the school operates in a landscape of rapid residential development, highway‑oriented commercial strips, and the rugged Sonoran Desert backdrop of the Tortolita and Tucson Mountains. Marana is car‑dependent and spread over a large area; there is no compact walkable core, though a downtown concept is in early planning. The school’s enrollment is substantial for an elementary building, and the student body is majority white with a large Hispanic population, alongside smaller shares of students who are Black, Asian, Native American, or multiracial. Data on the share of students qualifying for free or reduced‑price meals, receiving special education services, or classified as English learners is not available in the record; a parent would need to ask the school for those figures.

On statewide assessments for the most recent year, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the top quarter of Pima County’s elementary schools when compared against other districts in the county. This broad measure points to a solid academic standing relative to local peers. However, the grade‑level results are uneven. In mathematics, performance ranges from a relatively strong showing in third and fifth grades to weaker marks in fourth and sixth grades. English language arts follows a similar pattern: third and fifth grade results are notably higher than fourth and sixth grade results, where fewer than half of students met proficiency. Fifth‑grade science results fell in between, with about three‑fifths of students scoring proficient. The inconsistency by grade is worth a closer look; a parent may want to discuss how the school addresses these gaps with the principal or teaching staff.

The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate, and data on chronic absenteeism is also missing from the record. The local housing market reflects the area’s rapid growth: home values are moderate compared to national benchmarks, and rents have been rising at a pace that slightly outpaces mortgage costs, making renting about as expensive as buying an entry‑level home. The broader unemployment rate is low, and median household income is above the national figure, suggesting a relatively stable economic base for Marana families.

Gladden Farms Elementary presents itself as a school with overall strong academic performance relative to its county peers, but with grade‑level variability that families should examine closely. The wider district adds flexibility through full‑day kindergarten and online learning, and the town’s continued expansion means the school is situated in an area of sustained demographic change. For a parent weighing options, the missing pieces on student support services and economic need are gaps worth filling before making a decision.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 361%

School 61% · District 44% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 43% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 570%

School 70% · District 46% · ▲ 24 pts above district

▲ 28 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 33% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 357%

School 57% · District 37% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 47% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 41% · ▲ 23 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 645%

School 45% · District 44% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · even with county median

Science

Grade 560%

School 60% · District 43% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

This schoolMarana Unified District (4404), 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.