Noelani Elementary School, Honolulu HI

Original Research by School Decision on Noelani Elementary School

Noelani Elementary School sits on Woodlawn Drive in Honolulu, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as part of the Hawaii Department of Education. It is a regular public school in a city that functions as the capital and commercial hub of the state, a place where Pacific, Asian, and Western cultures mix across neighborhoods stretching from a dense downtown civic core to the tourist corridors of Waikīkī. Honolulu's major employers span the U.S. Navy at Pearl Harbor, state and county government, tourism and hospitality, healthcare, and finance, and the city is contending with an aging population and a steady exodus of residents to the mainland. The publicly reported housing market in the school's zip code shows home values well above the national benchmark though below the statewide figure, with rents rising at a brisk clip year over year. Affordability is a real tension here: estimated mortgage costs run substantially higher than typical rents, and the rent-to-income ratio sits in uncomfortable territory for many families.

Academically, Noelani stands out as a strong performer on state assessments. In mathematics, the share of students scoring proficient or above is high across third, fourth, and fifth grades, with participation rates near full. English language arts results are even stronger, with fourth and fifth grade proficiency landing in a range that places Noelani among the more accomplished elementary schools in the state. Science proficiency in fifth grade is similarly elevated. These are results a family can feel confident about. The school's overall combined proficiency rates across all tested grades sit comfortably above what most Hawaii elementary schools post. One year of data is available, so trend information is limited; there is no multi-year pattern to read yet.

The student body is predominantly Asian, with a substantial portion identifying as two or more races, and smaller shares of Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, white, and Hispanic students. A modest fraction of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is lower than many public schools in the state and reflects the relatively advantaged character of the surrounding community. Data on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not reported, so those dimensions of the school's support environment are not visible here. A parent wanting to understand how Noelani serves special populations may want to look into this further with the school directly.

Housing near the school is expensive by national standards, and the gap between buying and renting is wide given current mortgage rates. For families already settled in the area or those who can manage the cost of entry, Noelani offers a solid academic foundation in a setting where children are testing well and participating at near-universal rates. Pre-kindergarten enrollment is very small, so most families will be looking at Noelani from kindergarten onward. The school does not carry a charter or magnet designation, and Title I status was not reported.

Honolulu itself is a city in transition, with its Skyline rail system under continued development, climate pressures mounting along the waterfront, and population decline reshaping demand for public services. Noelani sits within that larger current but reads, on the available evidence, as a stable, high-performing neighborhood elementary doing right by the children who walk through its doors.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 378%

School 78% · District 53% · ▲ 25 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 479%

School 79% · District 51% · ▲ 28 pts above district

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 568%

School 68% · District 45% · ▲ 23 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 50% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 490%

School 90% · District 52% · ▲ 38 pts above district

▲ 37 pts above state median · ▲ 32 pts above county median

Grade 585%

School 85% · District 56% · ▲ 29 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Science

Grade 584%

School 84% · District 49% · ▲ 35 pts above district

▲ 35 pts above state median · ▲ 31 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income38%Higher-income76%38 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income82%Higher-income92%10 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income57%Higher-income84%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income64%Higher-income82%19 pp gap