The top reported proficiency rate is 38% in English language arts. The lowest is 28% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Grace Jordan Elementary
Grace Jordan Elementary sits on Boise's west side, part of the Boise Independent District, serving students from prekindergarten through sixth grade. The school draws from a growing capital city where government work, technology employers, and food processing anchor the regional economy. Boise State University sits adjacent to the downtown core, and the Boise River Greenbelt, publicly reported as an extensive urban trail along the river, threads through the city as a defining recreational feature. Major employers like Micron Technology, Albertsons, and J.R. Simplot shape the local job market, and the broader Treasure Valley metro has absorbed sustained in-migration over recent years.
The school's enrollment is moderate for its grade span. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, reflecting the working-class character of pockets of west Boise. The student body is majority white with a sizable Hispanic presence and smaller representations of Black, Asian, multiracial, American Indian, and Pacific Islander students. Information on English learner and special education enrollment was not available in the data we reviewed, so we leave those characteristics unnamed rather than guess.
On the most recent Idaho ISAT, results are available only for the tested grades, starting in third grade, since the youngest students here are not assessed by the state. Grace Jordan's results paint a mixed picture that varies by subject and grade. In English language arts, proficiency starts modestly in third and fourth grade, where fewer than a third of tested students met the proficient bar. Results climb meaningfully in the upper grades, with fifth and sixth graders approaching the halfway mark for proficiency. That upward trajectory in the older grades suggests some strengthening in literacy as students progress, though the third and fourth grade numbers are a softer spot a parent may want to explore with the school.
Math results tell a different story. Third grade math was the school's strongest showing, with approaching half of tested students reaching proficiency. From there, fourth grade drops sharply to about a fifth, and fifth and sixth grade settle at roughly a quarter of students proficient. The fourth grade dip is the most pronounced gap in the school's data, and the upper grades do not recover to the third grade level. A parent weighing Grace Jordan for a child moving through the intermediate grades may want to ask how the school supports math instruction across the transition from primary to upper elementary.
Science was tested only in fifth grade, and the state reported only a broad range for proficiency, with underlying counts suppressed. That suppression often reflects privacy protections for small tested groups rather than a signal about performance quality. We looked for multi-year trend data to see whether results are moving in a clear direction, but what was available did not provide a reliable year-over-year comparison for this school.
Beyond assessment results, the available data thins out. We looked for information on staffing ratios, attendance patterns, discipline, course offerings, and Title I status, and found little in the materials reviewed. The school's designation as a regular public school with no charter or magnet status tells us it operates as a neighborhood assignment school within the district's attendance framework. The Boise Independent District brief returned no recent parent-relevant changes of lasting impact, so we have nothing specific to report on district-level initiatives or shifts.
The housing market around Grace Jordan tells its own story about who can comfortably settle here. Typical home values in the school's zip code run above the Idaho state benchmark and well above the national one, reflecting Boise's broader growth and demand. Estimated monthly mortgage costs sit notably higher than local rents, which means renting in the area is meaningfully more affordable than buying at current interest rates. Home values have appreciated modestly year over year, and rents have risen a touch faster. For a family weighing a move into the attendance zone, renting may offer a lower barrier to entry, while buying requires absorbing a premium relative to much of the state.
Grace Jordan fits a family looking for a neighborhood elementary in a growing, economically diverse slice of west Boise. The school's ELA results in the upper grades are a relative bright spot, while math outcomes, particularly in fourth grade, are an area to probe. The surrounding city offers the cultural and recreational amenities of a capital city with a major university, and the housing market reflects the demand that has come with that growth.
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