The top reported proficiency rate is 21% in English language arts. The lowest is 15% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on William Henry Middle School
William Henry Middle School sits on Carver Road in Dover, Delaware, and serves a single grade level: fifth grade. It is a regular public school within the Capital School District, which publicly reported figures describe as operating roughly a dozen and a half schools across the greater Dover area. Because this school educates only fifth graders, there is no graduation rate to report, and the grade band itself explains that absence. The enrollment is sizeable for a single-grade configuration, giving the building a focused identity as the transition point between elementary and middle school for its district.
The student body is predominantly Black, with smaller White, Hispanic, and multiracial populations, plus a handful of Asian and American Indian or Alaska Native students. The school does not report free-or-reduced-price lunch figures, special-education rates, or English-learner counts in the data we received, so those pieces of the picture are missing here. A parent wanting to understand the economic and linguistic mix of the classroom would need to ask the school directly. Title I status was also not available.
On state assessments, William Henry's results are low. In the most recent school year, roughly one in five fifth graders reached proficiency in English language arts, while math and science proficiency each landed below that. These results place the school in the bottom quartile on overall proficiency among districts in Kent County, the comparison set used here. The trend data tells a harder story. English language arts proficiency has fallen over the past decade from levels that were already modest into the low twenties, with a steep drop during the pandemic years and only slight movement since. Math shows a similar pattern, declining from the high twenties and low thirties into the mid-teens, with a post-pandemic floor in the single digits before a partial climb back. Science results are reported only for the current year, so no trend is available there. Social studies results were suppressed and date to an older assessment no longer in use. Participation rates were missing across all subjects.
Dover itself is Delaware's capital, and the surrounding community gives families access to a range of civic and cultural resources. The Green anchors the historic district, with the Old State House, Legislative Hall, the Delaware Supreme Court, and the Kent County Courthouse grouped around it. The Delaware State Library, State Museum, and State Archives are downtown and open to the public. The Sewell C. Biggs Museum of American Art holds collections spanning Colonial era to the present. Just south of the city, the John Dickinson Plantation preserves the childhood home of a Revolutionary-era statesman. Dover Motor Speedway hosts NASCAR racing, and the Firefly Music Festival has been held in its Woodlands. The Dover Mall along US 13 serves as the area's only indoor shopping center. The city sits on the St. Jones River.
Housing in the school's zip code is relatively affordable compared with the statewide benchmark, with typical home values sitting below the state midpoint and rents that are lower than the estimated monthly mortgage cost on a purchased home. That gap means renting may carry a cost advantage over buying at current mortgage rates, though local market conditions shift. Home values have moved up modestly year over year, and rents have risen at a slightly faster clip.
For a parent weighing this school, the academic data is the central consideration. Proficiency is low across subjects, the multi-year trend shows decline rather than recovery, and the school sits near the bottom of its county peer set. A family considering William Henry may want to ask the school directly what interventions and supports are in place for fifth graders performing below grade level, how the single-grade structure is used to target instruction, and what the transition plan looks like for students moving on to sixth grade.
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