Ison Springs Elementary School, Sandy Springs GA

Original Research by School Decision on Ison Springs Elementary School

Ison Springs Elementary is a full PreK-5 school in Sandy Springs serving a student body that is predominantly economically disadvantaged and majority Black and Hispanic. The school sits in a mixed-use suburban city about twelve miles north of downtown Atlanta, with a strong commercial spine anchored by corporate headquarters and a major medical complex, but also large residential districts that range from high-income wooded areas near the Chattahoochee River to apartment-heavy corridors along Roswell Road, where about half of housing units are renter-occupied.

The school's recent state assessment data shows proficiency rates that are below the midpoint for elementary schools across Fulton County. In math, proficiency ranges across grades three through five, with grade four the strongest. In English language arts, fifth grade outperforms grades three and four. Science proficiency in grade five is the lowest of the tested subjects. Overall, the school's proficiency index places it in the top quartile among county elementary schools, but this reflects the composition of the county comparison set rather than strong absolute performance. A substantial share of students at Ison Springs qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the racial composition is predominantly Black students followed by Hispanic students, with a small white enrollment.

The school benefits from a district literacy initiative launched during the pandemic that replaced multiple reading programs with a unified Science of Reading approach, supported by LETRS training for teachers and a literacy coach in every elementary building. This shift is now permanent and reflects a sustained commitment to reading instruction across the district. Whether this program has already improved outcomes at Ison Springs specifically is not clear from the available data; state testing data for trend analysis covers only the current school year, so a reader may want to follow up with the school on the visible impact of this initiative on their students' reading growth.

Sandy Springs itself is a high-activity suburban setting with strong corporate and healthcare employment, a newly developed downtown in the City Springs district that opened about four years ago with walkable retail and civic spaces, and more than adequate parks and trails. MARTA rapid transit serves three stations in the city. However, most of the city remains car-dependent, and large suburban schools typically rely heavily on busing. The school's location on Ison Road positions it in one of the city's residential districts rather than in the commercial or downtown core.

Housing values in the school's zip code are moderate to high relative to national benchmarks, and rents have remained stable; the affordability data suggests that mortgage payments are notably higher than rents in the immediate area. The city has been growing and evolving with new mixed-use development replacing older strip retail, particularly along Roswell Road, so family housing options remain active. The district has recently consolidated two elementary schools (Parklane and Spalding Drive) to address declining enrollment, and redistricting took effect in the current school year. A parent considering Ison Springs should confirm current attendance boundaries and any ongoing capacity discussions within the district.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 339%

School 39% · District 58% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 62% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 54% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

English language arts

Grade 339%

School 39% · District 50% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 54% · ▼ 22 pts below district

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

Grade 541%

School 41% · District 59% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Science

Grade 528%

School 28% · District 56% · ▼ 28 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Social studies

Grades 3-878%

School 78% · district not reported

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

This schoolFulton 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 4Lower-income22%Higher-income58%36 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income31%Higher-income52%22 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income35%Higher-income67%32 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income31%Higher-income52%21 pp gap