Gould Elementary School, Savannah GA

Original Research by School Decision on Gould Elementary School

Gould Elementary serves pre-K through fifth grade in the Savannah-Chatham County district in Pineland, a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. The school enrolls a school of roughly that size for its grade band, and the student body is predominantly Hispanic and Black, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. More than half the enrollment comes from two grade levels that test on state assessments, and the state data for those grades shows proficiency well below the midpoint statewide. Math proficiency across grades three through five sits in the low range, with fifth grade notably lower than third and fourth. Reading proficiency is similarly low across the tested grades. Fifth-grade science is the exception: proficiency there runs at the midpoint or slightly above. The school also has data from an older assessment, social studies, sitting higher; a parent may want to look into the school directly to understand what has changed in instruction and how the school is working to move current results.

The Savannah-Chatham County district is in the midst of substantial change. Voters approved a major continuation of school funding through 2030 and secured roughly several hundred million dollars for capital projects including new schools and rebuilds aimed at managing rapid growth on the western side of the county around Pooler. The district simultaneously adopted a long-range facilities plan that has been realigning attendance boundaries and reconfiguring schools since 2024. Gould was one of the schools affected by Phase I rezoning. Parents should view school choice here in context of active district reorganization; families in this area may see boundary changes again as the plan unfolds through the end of the decade.

The district has also made a system-wide shift in how reading is taught. In compliance with state law, all elementary teachers have received training in the Science of Reading, using a common curriculum across the district and universal screening three times yearly. This is a recent, wholesale change in classroom practice that a parent might ask the school how it is rolling out, and whether students new to Gould or returning this year have seen the change reflected.

Savannah itself is a mixed-use coastal city with strong tourism, a historic downtown anchored by one of the country's largest historic districts, and a sustained economic boom driven by major manufacturing, logistics, military, and healthcare employment. Housing pressures from rapid regional growth are a visible concern; rental and home prices are moderate relative to the national benchmark but have been strained by demand. Families considering Savannah should expect ongoing change in both the housing market and school assignments as the area absorbs the scale of growth now underway.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 330%

School 30% · District 34% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 42% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 29% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 324%

School 24% · District 26% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 422%

School 22% · District 32% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Grade 522%

School 22% · District 33% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Science

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 35% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Social studies

Grades 3-872%

School 72% · district not reported

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolSavannah-Chatham County, 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income18%Higher-income22%4 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income11%Higher-income9%2 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income15%Higher-income46%32 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income14%Higher-income26%12 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income20%Higher-income26%6 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income13%Higher-income9%4 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income14%Higher-income27%13 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income15%Higher-income21%6 pp gap