Laupahoehoe Community - Pcs, Laupahoehoe HI

Original Research by School Decision on Laupahoehoe Community - Pcs

Laupahoehoe Community Public Charter School sits on the Hamakua Coast of Hawaiʻi Island, in the North Hilo district, along the highway that connects Hilo to Waimea. The community is small and rural, stretched along Mamalahoa Highway with minimal commercial presence. A train museum, a convenience store, and Laupahoehoe Point Beach Park form the civic anchors. The area was built on sugar plantations and the old Hawaii Consolidated Railroad, and has since shifted toward residential use with some agriculture. The school itself carries deep local history. Its original campus sat on Laupahoehoe Point and was destroyed by a historic tsunami, after which the village relocated to higher ground. A monument to the victims stands at the old school site, and the Laupahoehoe Public and School Library sits alongside the current campus.

The school serves pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, which makes it one of the few full-band charter schools on the island. Enrollment is modest for a school covering that many grades, and class sizes at each grade level are small. The student body is diverse. White students form the largest racial group, followed by Hispanic, students of two or more races, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students, with smaller Asian, Black, and American Indian or Alaska Native populations. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school operates as a charter under the Hawaii Department of Education, which is the statewide public district. We looked for recent district-level policy or curriculum changes that would affect families here and found little that was specific or lasting, so we left that out rather than guess.

State assessment results from the most recent year show a mixed academic picture. In math, proficiency is generally low across the elementary and middle grades, with most grade levels landing well below where a family would want to see them. One middle grade stands out as relatively stronger, but the overall pattern in math is a soft spot. English language arts tells a different story. Proficiency varies widely by grade, with some elementary grades performing modestly and the upper middle grades showing real strength, particularly in eighth grade where a clear majority of tested students reached proficiency. Science results are mixed, with eighth grade again outperforming the earlier tested grade. Participation rates are consistently high across all tested grades and subjects, which means the results reflect nearly the full student body rather than a skewed subset.

Because only a single year of data is available, there is no trend to assess. Average scale scores were not reported. A parent weighing these results should keep in mind that small tested groups can swing sharply from year to year, so one year's numbers may not capture the full trajectory. The math results in particular are an area a parent may want to look into further with the school, asking what interventions or curricular shifts are underway. The stronger ELA and science showing in the upper grades suggests the school may be doing better as students progress through the program.

Several data points a family might expect are absent. IEP and English Learner rates were not reported, so we cannot characterize the special education or language-support population. No graduation rate, course access, discipline, staffing, or attendance data was available. The school does serve high school grades, so the absence of a graduation rate is a gap in the data rather than something explained by the grade band. No information on AP, dual-credit, or career pathways was provided.

The housing market in this zip code sits below the broader Hawaii state benchmark but far above the national figure. Estimated monthly mortgage costs are steep relative to typical incomes, and the price-to-income ratio is high. Renting appears somewhat more affordable than carrying a mortgage. Home values have dipped modestly year over year. For a family considering a move here, housing costs are a real factor, and the rural setting means limited local amenities and no public transit. The trade-off is a tight-knit community, a small school where students stay known across all grades, and a setting of genuine natural beauty along one of the island's most scenic coastlines.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=80%Cohort of 22 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

59 schools plotted. 4 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 311%

School 11% · District 53% · ▼ 42 pts below district

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 415%

School 15% · District 51% · ▼ 36 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 45% · ▼ 29 pts below district

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

Grade 627%

School 27% · District 41% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 714%

School 14% · District 38% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 36% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 36%

School 6% · District 50% · ▼ 44 pts below district

▼ 45 pts below state median · ▼ 32 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 52% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 530%

School 30% · District 56% · ▼ 26 pts below district

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

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 54% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 727%

School 27% · District 54% · ▼ 27 pts below district

▼ 24 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 859%

School 59% · District 54% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Science

Grade 526%

School 26% · District 49% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 850%

School 50% · District 43% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

This schoolHawaii Department of Education, 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.