The top reported proficiency rate is 35% in Math. The lowest is 28% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Nora Elementary School
Nora Elementary School serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in the MSD Washington Township district on the north side of Indianapolis. It is a regular public school, neither a charter nor a magnet. The enrollment is moderate for an elementary school, and nearly two-thirds of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a metric that signals a high proportion of families working with limited household income.
The student body is racially and ethnically diverse with no single group forming a majority. Black and Hispanic students each compose roughly a third of the school, white students make up about a fifth, and smaller shares of Asian, multiracial, and Pacific Islander students round out the mix. For a family choosing a school where their child will encounter a wide range of backgrounds, Nora reflects the broader diversity of the northside Indianapolis communities it draws from.
Performance on the state's ILEARN assessments is mixed. In math, roughly a third of students scored at the proficient level or above. In English language arts, the share was a bit below that. In science and social studies, both tested in specific grades at Nora, just under a third and just over a third of students respectively reached proficiency. When compared with other schools in Marion County, Nora's combined proficiency across all tested subjects and grades places it in the top quartile. That is a meaningful distinction: relative to many elementary schools in the county, Nora's overall academic results are stronger. A county-level frame matters here because Marion County includes Indianapolis Public Schools, several township districts, and a large number of charter schools, so the comparison set is broad and the top-quartile position carries weight.
Still, a third of students meeting the bar in math and less than a third in reading means the majority of Nora students are not yet at grade-level proficiency by the state's standard. A parent considering the school may want to understand how the school and district address that gap. The data on record for special education and English learner populations is absent, so it is not possible to say from this information how the school's services or subgroup performance might factor into the picture. The graduation rate metric does not apply because Nora serves only elementary grades.
The housing market in the area shows a home value that is above the statewide median for Indiana and roughly in line with the national median. Apartment rents have ticked down slightly from a year ago, though the difference between the estimated monthly mortgage payment and median rent is narrow enough that renting may be the more feasible option for many households. The national unemployment rate has been stable, and real median household income has risen modestly at the national level, but those figures are broad context rather than a specific portrait of the neighborhoods around Nora.
The district has undergone a recent boundary change. Greenbriar Elementary School closed after the 2024-2025 school year and its students were consolidated into Fox Hill Elementary, which now also hosts the district's Dual Language Immersion Program. The school board cited declining enrollment and financial pressures. For families zoned for Nora, the closure does not directly shift Nora's attendance boundary, but the district's fiscal constraints and enrollment trends are part of the broader context. A referendum appeared on the November 2024 ballot, but the outcome could not be confirmed from available sources. That uncertainty matters for any resident who wants to know whether the district's funding and programming will remain stable in the years ahead.
Nora Elementary looks like a school where a parent will find a diverse student body in an area with housing costs above much of the rest of Indiana, test results that are comparatively strong within a competitive county but show substantial room for growth in absolute terms, and a district that is actively managing enrollment decline and budget pressures. The fit is likely best for a family that values diversity and is comfortable following up directly with the school about how it supports students who are below the proficiency mark.
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