The top reported proficiency rate is 54% in Math. The lowest is 44% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Koloa Elementary School
Koloa Elementary School sits on Poipu Road in the small south-shore Kauai community of Koloa, serving students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. It is a regular public school within the Hawaii Department of Education, the single statewide district that governs all of Hawaii's public schools. The enrollment is moderate for an elementary school on a neighbor island, and the campus is woven directly into the town rather than set apart on a distant campus. The Koloa Public and School Library, a joint facility operated by the Hawaii State Public Library System, shares the educational footprint, which gives the school a civic anchor role beyond its classroom walls.
The student body reflects the mixed heritage common to Kauai's south shore. A substantial share of students identify as two or more races, with Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander and Hispanic each forming large portions of the enrollment as well. White and Asian students round out the population, and the school has very few Black or American Indian students. A little over half of the children qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school in a middle range of economic need for a Hawaii public elementary school. Data on English learners and special-education enrollment was not available in the provided records, so those population sizes remain unclear from this source.
Academic results from the 2024-25 Smarter Balanced assessments show a mixed picture that leans strongest in the early grades. Third-grade math proficiency was notably high, with most tested students reaching proficiency and near-universal participation. Fourth-grade math dropped to about half proficient, and fifth-grade math fell further, with only about a third of tested students clearing the bar. English language arts followed a similar but less steep pattern: third grade was the strongest, with a solid majority proficient, while fourth and fifth grades settled in the mid-range, with roughly half or slightly below half of students proficient. Fifth-grade science, measured by the Hawaii Science Assessment aligned to NGSS, landed in a middle band as well. Across all tested grades combined, the school's overall proficiency sat at about half in both math and English, with science slightly below that. No multi-year trend data was available because only a single year of results was reported, so there is no way from this data to tell whether performance is rising, falling, or steady. Participation rates were high across every grade and subject, which means the results reflect nearly the full student body.
Because the school ends at fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and the data set does not include AP, dual-credit, or career-pathway offerings, which is typical for an elementary school. Information on discipline, staffing ratios, attendance, course access, and Title I status was not provided, so those dimensions of school life cannot be characterized here. A parent wanting to understand classroom culture, teacher retention, or disciplinary approach would need to ask the school directly.
The surrounding community shapes what attending Koloa Elementary feels like. Koloa is a small census-designated place on Kauai's south shore, blending a residential village with the tourist-oriented Old Koloa Town, where plantation-era buildings along Koloa Road house shops, galleries, and cafes. The town retains much of its 19th-century sugar-plantation character, with old-fashioned storefronts and monkey pod shade trees, while functioning as a gateway to the nearby Poipu resort area. Waikomo Stream runs through the center of town, and the Koloa Heritage Trail connects over a dozen cultural and historical sites along a self-guided route from Old Koloa Town to Poipu. Public transit is limited, so families rely on cars. The community has seen modest, slow growth, and no major new housing developments or rezoning activity surfaced in publicly reported sources.
Housing here is expensive by any standard. Typical home values in the Koloa zip code sit well above the Hawaii state benchmark and far above the national figure, with a price-to-income ratio that signals a steep ownership barrier for most families. Rents are also high, with a typical monthly rent that consumes a large share of median household income. Owning costs more per month than renting by a meaningful margin, which pushes many families toward rentals. This housing context means families considering Koloa Elementary are often already committed to life on Kauai's south shore, and the school is part of a small-town, tight-knit setting where the campus and the community sit side by side.
For a parent weighing this school, the academic signal is that the early grades appear strong, particularly third grade, while upper-elementary math is a softer area worth asking about. The school's cultural diversity, its embeddedness in a historic plantation town, and its shared library facility give it a distinct community character. The missing data on English learners, special education, staffing, and discipline means a fuller picture would require a conversation with the school itself.
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