Maili Elementary School, Waianae HI

Original Research by School Decision on Maili Elementary School

Maili Elementary School sits in Waianae, on the leeward coast of Oʻahu, a predominantly residential community separated from urban Honolulu by the Waiʻanae mountain range. The school serves pre-kindergarten through sixth grade and operates as a regular public school within the Hawaii Department of Education, the statewide district that covers all of Hawaii's public schools. The setting is car-dependent and spread out along Farrington Highway, with civic institutions and schools strung along that corridor rather than clustered in a walkable center. Residents commute long distances to work, many toward Honolulu or Kapolei, and the community carries a strong Native Hawaiian identity.

The student body reflects that community. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students form the largest group, with a substantial Hispanic segment and smaller proportions of Asian, multiracial, white, and Black students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which points to the economic pressures many families in the area face. English learner and special education enrollment figures were not available in the data we received, so we cannot characterize those populations here. A parent wanting that detail would need to ask the school directly.

On state assessments, Maili shows a pattern worth describing carefully. English language arts results climb steadily from third grade through sixth, with the upper elementary grades reaching higher proficiency levels than the lower ones. Sixth grade stands as the strongest ELA result. Mathematics is flatter across the grade levels, with roughly a third of students meeting proficiency in each tested grade and no clear upward trajectory. Science, tested only in fifth grade, sits below the math and ELA marks. Participation rates are near-universal across every grade and subject, which means the results reflect nearly the entire student body rather than a self-selected subset. Average scale scores were not reported, and only one year of data was available, so there is no trend line to show whether these numbers are rising, falling, or holding steady. A parent may want to look into how the school supports students who are not yet proficient, particularly in math where growth across grades is less visible.

The community context shapes what kind of school experience this is. Waianae's population growth has slowed and may be declining, with limited developable land bounded by mountains and ocean constraining large-scale expansion. Housing values in the school's zip code sit below the state benchmark but well above national figures, and rents have been rising modestly while home values have eased slightly. The area faces documented affordability challenges and has a large homeless population, including Puʻuhonua o Waiʻanae near the boat harbor. These social and economic realities form the backdrop against which the school operates. Health care, through institutions like the Waiʻanae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, and community organizations such as Hale Naʻau Pono provide family support services in the area.

Several categories of data were absent from what we received. No information on staffing ratios, teacher qualifications, attendance patterns, discipline data, course offerings, or specialized programs was available. Title I status was not reported. A locale classification from the National Center for Education Statistics was missing as well. The Hawaii Department of Education district brief returned no specific recent policy, curriculum, or budget changes of note. Without these pieces, a full picture of the school's resources and strategic direction is incomplete. Families considering Maili would benefit from asking the school directly about support services, enrichment opportunities, and how it uses assessment data to guide instruction.

What the available evidence does show is an elementary school serving a close-knit, culturally grounded community on Oʻahu's west coast, with steady participation in state testing, rising ELA outcomes in the upper grades, and math results that a parent may want to understand better before drawing conclusions.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 334%

School 34% · District 53% · ▼ 20 pts below district

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

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 51% · ▼ 19 pts below district

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

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 45% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 635%

School 35% · District 41% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 50% · ▼ 15 pts below district

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

Grade 438%

School 38% · District 52% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 542%

School 42% · District 56% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 647%

School 47% · District 54% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 49% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income26%Higher-income83%57 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income31%Higher-income57%26 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income35%Higher-income65%30 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income40%Higher-income68%29 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income30%Higher-income58%29 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income20%Higher-income62%42 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income30%Higher-income41%11 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income23%Higher-income68%46 pp gap