The top reported proficiency rate is 55% in English language arts. The lowest is 42% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Garfield Elementary School
Garfield Elementary School serves kindergarten through sixth grade in Davenport, Iowa, as part of the Davenport Community School District. It is a regular public school with an enrollment that is large for an elementary building, drawing from a surrounding neighborhood that is a mix of older residential districts on bluffs north of downtown. The student body is diverse, with white students comprising the largest single group, followed by Black students, Hispanic students, and a notable share of students who identify as two or more races. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that a significant portion of families in the attendance zone face economic challenges.
On the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) for the most recent testing year, Garfield's results paint a mixed picture. In English language arts, about half of students met the proficiency benchmark. In math, the share of proficient students was just above that midpoint. Science proficiency, tested only in certain grades, was lower, with less than half of tested students scoring at the proficient level. Participation rates for the assessments were very high, meaning the results reflect nearly the entire tested student population. When placed alongside other elementary schools in Scott County, Garfield's overall proficiency index lands in the bottom quartile. This positioning is a soft spot; a parent or guardian may want to ask the school about specific instructional supports and intervention programs available to help raise performance, particularly in science and math.
Because this is an elementary school serving only grades K through six, there is no graduation rate to report, and no data on chronic absenteeism or course access was available in the school's submission. The school environment data also did not include staffing ratios, discipline records, or attendance details, which limits what can be said about day-to-day operations and climate. A family considering Garfield may wish to visit in person and ask for these figures directly from the principal or district office.
The Davenport Community School District itself did not surface any recent major parent-relevant changes such as boundary adjustments, curriculum shifts, or referendums in publicly available records at the time of this writing. Interested families may want to check the district website or attend a school board meeting to learn about any ongoing developments.
Davenport as a city offers mid-sized urban amenities. It is the largest of the Quad Cities, situated on the Mississippi River, and has a downtown with cultural institutions like the Figge Art Museum, riverfront parks, and an annual lineup of festivals and a foot race. The city's industrial base largely departed in earlier decades, and population growth has been flat for an extended period. The housing market in the area is moderately priced relative to national benchmarks, with both home values and rents below the national median; buying a home is more affordable than in many parts of the country, and the rent-to-income picture is manageable. The neighborhood around Garfield is car-dependent in the way most of the city outside the downtown core is, though the city does have a network of recreational paths.
For a family, Garfield Elementary represents a large, diverse neighborhood school within a flat-population city where housing is affordable and the district has not recently undergone dramatic changes. The academic performance is below average compared to other elementary schools in the county, particularly in science and math, which is worth probing. The school serves a high-need population, and the district's overall context does not point to any recent upheavals that would alter the school's trajectory. A parent should consider whether the school's instructional supports and community feel align with their child's needs, and should plan to ask about specific academic interventions and enrichment programs during a school tour.
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