The top reported proficiency rate is 49% in English language arts. The lowest is 20% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on School Without Walls at Francis-stevens
School Without Walls at Francis-Stevens is a regular public school in the District of Columbia Public Schools system, serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade from its location on Euclid Street NW in Washington. The school sits in a part of the city where housing costs run well above the national benchmark, with typical home values in the surrounding zip code exceeding the District's already elevated state median. Rents are similarly steep. For families considering this area, the cost of living is a real factor, and the price-to-income ratio suggests that buying a home here requires a substantially higher household income than in most of the country. The school's enrollment is moderate for its grade band, with a student body that skews toward the upper elementary and middle grades, particularly in sixth through eighth.
The student population is predominantly Black, with a substantial Hispanic enrollment and smaller Asian, white, and multiracial groups. This racial and ethnic mix reflects the broader diversity of Washington, a cosmopolitan city shaped by the federal government, international organizations, embassies, and a large commuter workforce. The school does not report free-or-reduced-price-lunch data, special-education enrollment, or English-learner figures, so a parent looking for information about how the school serves economically disadvantaged students or students with specialized needs would want to ask the school directly.
On the most recent state assessments, the school's English language arts results stand out as a relative strength. Nearly half of tested students in grades three through eight met or exceeded expectations in ELA, which is a solid showing. Math proficiency was more modest, with roughly a third of students reaching proficiency. Science results tell a more uneven story. Fifth-grade science proficiency was in the same range as math, but eighth-grade science proficiency was very low, with only a handful of tested students scoring proficient. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly if they have a child approaching the middle grades, to understand what drives that gap and what supports are in place.
The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report, and the state's grade-three-through-eight testing framework is the primary academic measure available. No trend data was provided, so it is difficult to say whether these results represent improvement or decline. Program offerings, course access, staffing ratios, attendance figures, discipline data, and civil-rights reporting were not available in the materials reviewed, which limits the picture of day-to-day school environment and specialized academic pathways.
As part of DCPS, the school operates under the district's recently adopted cell phone policy, which restricts phone use during the school day beginning in the 2025-2026 academic year under the Heads Up! Distraction-Free Learning Amendment Act. The district is also guided by its A Capital Commitment 2023-2028 strategic plan, which focuses on academic success, student connection to school, and post-secondary readiness across all DCPS schools.
Washington itself is a city without a single traditional downtown. Civic and institutional life spreads across many neighborhoods organized in quadrants radiating from the Capitol. The National Mall serves as the central pedestrian spine, and the school's location in the Northwest quadrant places it within a city built on broad avenues and traffic circles designed under the L'Enfant Plan. The federal government dominates employment, and the metropolitan area is among the country's largest, pulling commuters from Maryland and Virginia suburbs daily.
For a family weighing this school, the strongest signal in the available data is the ELA performance, which suggests a literacy program producing results above what the math and science numbers show. The eighth-grade science result is the clearest soft spot. The missing data on economic disadvantage, special populations, and school environment means a visit to the school and a conversation with leadership would be an important next step before deciding whether this is the right fit.
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