The top reported proficiency rate is 80% in Math. The lowest is 78% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Manana Elementary School
Manana Elementary School sits on Kumano Street in Pearl City, a suburban census-designated place on the north shore of Pearl Harbor in central Oʻahu. It is a regular public school within the Hawaii Department of Education, serving pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. The campus is one of several elementary schools in the Pearl City Complex, a cluster that also includes Momilani, Palisades, Pearl City, Pearl City Highlands, Waimalu, and Waiau elementaries, plus Highlands Intermediate and Pearl City High School.
The school draws from a community that is largely built out and family-oriented. Pearl City has no traditional downtown core; civic and educational institutions are spread across residential neighborhoods and commercial strips along Kamehameha Highway. The built environment is car-dependent, with shopping centers like Pearl Highlands Center serving as activity nodes rather than a walkable main street. The Skyline rail line, including the Pearl Highlands and Waiawa stations, connects the area to downtown Honolulu and the ʻEwa plain, functioning more as a transit corridor than a pedestrian gathering point. Pearl City's population has been declining gradually, and the housing stock is largely settled, with very little vacancy. The community traces its roots to the 1880s terminus of Dillingham's Oahu Railway, when residential lots were first sold after the rail line's completion.
Academically, Manana Elementary stands out for consistently strong proficiency results across every tested grade and subject. On the Smarter Balanced Assessment in mathematics, the share of students scoring proficient or above runs high in every grade from third through sixth, with the sixth-grade cohort reaching an especially strong level. English language arts results follow a similar pattern, with proficiency well above state norms across grades, peaking in fifth grade. Science proficiency among fifth graders, measured by the Hawaii Science Assessment aligned to the NGSS standards, also sits at a healthy level. Participation was full across every tested group. These are the kind of results that point to solid core instruction and a school where most students are meeting or exceeding grade-level expectations. The overall summary rates across all tested grades place the school well above typical state proficiency levels in all three subjects.
One limitation worth noting: only a single year of assessment data is available, so there is no trend to observe. A parent may want to ask the school whether these strong results have been sustained over time or whether this year reflects a particular cohort.
The student body is small for its grade band and reflects the diverse demographics typical of central Oʻahu. Asian students form the largest group, followed by a substantial portion identifying as two or more races, with Hispanic and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students also well represented. White students make up a very small slice, and Black students are nearly absent. A moderate share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, below what many Hawaii public schools report, which aligns with Pearl City's relatively stable residential character. Data on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not reported, so those populations cannot be characterized here. A parent whose child falls into either category would want to ask the school directly about available services.
The housing market surrounding Manana Elementary is expensive by any standard. Home values in the school's zip code run well above the state benchmark and far above the national figure, with a price-to-income ratio that signals serious affordability pressure. Rents have risen sharply in recent months, and the gap between monthly rent and a monthly mortgage payment is wide enough that ownership remains the costlier path. This is a community where housing costs will shape who can live here and, by extension, who attends the school.
Several categories of information were not available. The data set does not include locale classification, Title I status, discipline records, course access details, staffing figures, or attendance rates. No program offerings were listed. The Hawaii Department of Education district brief did not surface any parent-relevant policy, curriculum, or facility changes. Where these gaps reflect the nature of the data collection rather than the school itself, they are noted as missing rather than interpreted as weaknesses.
For a family weighing Manana Elementary, the picture is straightforward. It is a small, diverse neighborhood school in a quiet, established suburb, producing proficiency results that are among the stronger outcomes a Hawaii elementary school can show. The peer environment is mixed and community-rooted, and the surrounding area offers suburban convenience with rail access but limited walkability and high housing costs. The academic signal is clear and positive; the main questions a parent might pursue concern special education and English learner supports, longitudinal performance trends, and enrichment programming beyond the core curriculum.
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