The top reported proficiency rate is 34% in Science. The lowest is 26% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on W. Reily Brown Elementary School
W. Reily Brown Elementary School sits on Webbs Lane in Dover, serving first through fifth graders as part of the Caesar Rodney School District. It is a regular public school with a fairly even racial and ethnic mix: roughly equal shares of white and Black students, a Hispanic population that makes up a solid portion of the enrollment, and a smaller group identifying as two or more races. The school draws from Dover, Delaware's capital city, a place whose identity is anchored by its historic civic core. The Green, a colonial-era public square, is surrounded by the Old State House, Legislative Hall, the Delaware Supreme Court, and the Kent County Courthouse. Downtown also hosts the Delaware State Library, the Delaware State Museum, and the Delaware State Archives, all open to the public. The Sewell C. Biggs Museum of American Art holds collections spanning Colonial days to the present. Just south of the city, the John Dickinson Plantation preserves the childhood home of a Revolutionary-era statesman. Dover Motor Speedway brings NASCAR races annually, and the Firefly Music Festival has been held in the speedway's Woodlands. The Dover Mall along US 13 serves as the area's only enclosed shopping center. The city sits on the St. Jones River in the Delaware River coastal plain.
On state assessments, W. Reily Brown's results tell a clear story, and it is one of decline followed by a plateau. In the years before the pandemic, ELA proficiency sat comfortably in the upper range, and math was similarly solid. Both subjects dropped sharply in the 2020-21 testing cycle and have not returned to their earlier levels. The most recent math proficiency rate sits in the mid-twenties, while ELA is in the low thirties. Science, tested at the elementary level, lands in the mid-thirties. Social studies, tested at fourth grade, comes in lower. Relative to districts in Kent County, the school's overall proficiency index falls below the midpoint. A parent looking at these results may want to ask the school what interventions and supports are in place to move proficiency back toward pre-pandemic levels, since the current numbers reflect a sustained dip rather than a one-year anomaly.
The school's enrollment is moderate for an elementary building, with each grade level carrying a similar number of students. That size is typical for the area and allows for grade-level teaming. Free and reduced-price lunch data was not available in the records we received, and information on students with individualized education programs and English learners was also missing. A parent wanting to understand the full student population may want to request these figures directly from the school or district.
No data on staffing, course access, discipline, attendance, chronic absenteeism, or Title I status was provided, so we cannot characterize those dimensions here. Program offerings were not listed either. This is an elementary school, so there is no graduation rate to report; that measure applies to high schools, not to a building serving grades one through five.
The housing market around the school is relatively affordable compared with both state and national benchmarks. Typical home values in the school's zip code sit below the Delaware median and below the national figure. Rents are modest, and renting costs slightly less per month than carrying a mortgage at current interest rates, assuming a standard down payment. The broader economic picture includes a national unemployment rate holding in the low fours and median household income that has been gradually rising. For families considering a move into the attendance zone, housing costs are likely to be less of a barrier here than in many parts of the state, though mortgage rates remain elevated relative to recent history.
W. Reily Brown fits a family looking for a community school in Dover with a diverse student body and direct access to the cultural and civic resources of a state capital. The academic results, though, are a central factor to weigh. The school's proficiency rates have not recovered from the pandemic-era drop, and its standing among Kent County districts is below the midpoint. A parent weighing this school should look closely at what the building is doing now to strengthen core instruction and ask how the district plans to support improvement.
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