Glenwood Leadership Academy, Evansville IN

Original Research by School Decision on Glenwood Leadership Academy

Glenwood Leadership Academy is a regular public school in Evansville, Indiana, serving kindergarten through eighth grade. It is part of the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. Located on Sweetser Avenue on the city’s south side, it is a neighborhood school for one of the older residential and industrial parts of the city.

The student body is diverse by race and ethnicity. A significant share of students are Black, a sizable share are white, and a meaningful portion are Hispanic. Smaller groups include students who are Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and students who identify as two or more races. Very few American Indian or Alaska Native students attend. No Asian students are enrolled. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that this is a school serving a high-poverty community.

On state assessments, proficiency rates are low across all tested subjects and grades. In English language arts, the share of students meeting or exceeding standards is in the single digits. In math, it is just above that. In science and social studies, tested at specific grade levels, the rates are similarly in the single digits. Compared with other districts in Vanderburgh County, Glenwood’s overall proficiency across subjects and grades sits below the midpoint. A parent considering this school will want to know how the school and district are addressing these academic outcomes and what supports are available for students who are behind grade level.

The school serves grades kindergarten through eight, so there is no high school graduation data to report, as that metric does not apply to this grade band. Program offerings such as advanced coursework, career pathways, or special academic programs were not available in the data reviewed. Similarly, information on discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, and staffing levels was not found. These are all areas a prospective family may wish to ask the school about directly.

Evansville itself is a mid-sized city that acts as the regional hub for a tri-state area covering southwestern Indiana, southeastern Illinois, and northwestern Kentucky. Its economy is diversified around manufacturing, healthcare, and retail. The city has a historic downtown with a notable civic complex, a zoo and botanic garden, a nature preserve, and a public transit system. The population has been declining modestly, and median housing values and rents are below state and national averages, making it a relatively affordable market. The local unemployment rate is near the national average.

Because no district brief was available, we cannot describe recent changes at the district level in finances, leadership, or instructional programs. A family looking into Glenwood should anticipate that the district’s broader initiatives and priorities may matter for the school’s direction, and that information is best sought directly from the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp.

Overall, Glenwood Leadership Academy is a school where student demographics reflect a low-income, racially diverse community, where state test scores are low, and where key non-academic data points are not publicly accounted for in the sources reviewed. It fits a family that is deeply invested in its neighborhood school, that is ready to engage with the school about academic support, and that may want to ask pointed questions about programs, staffing, and school climate before making a decision.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grades 3-811%

School 11% · District 35% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

English language arts

Grades 3-88%

School 8% · District 33% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Science

Grades 3-86%

School 6% · District 34% · ▼ 28 pts below district

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

Social studies

Grade 52%

School 2% · District 27% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

This schoolEvansville Vanderburgh School Corp, 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 4Lower-income0%Higher-income0%0 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income0%Higher-income10%10 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income20%Higher-income17%3 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income9%Higher-income7%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income9%Higher-income12%3 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income14%Higher-income30%16 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income5%Higher-income10%5 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income4%Higher-income17%13 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income21%Higher-income0%21 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income9%Higher-income6%3 pp gap