The top reported proficiency rate is 67% in English language arts. The lowest is 41% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Windy Hill Elementary
Windy Hill Elementary is a regular public school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in Owings, Maryland, part of Calvert County Public Schools. The school occupies a contiguous campus with Windy Hill Middle School at the eastern edge of the Owings census-designated place, a setting that is exurban and car-dependent. Owings itself is a primarily residential community of farmland, wooded lots, and subdivisions with minimal commercial activity; its few businesses cluster at the intersection of two state routes, and most residents commute elsewhere for work. The area grew rapidly over past decades before leveling off, and a 2025 county proposal to double the size of the town center signals potential for continued development. Housing in the ZIP code is priced well above national and state medians.
Windy Hill Elementary enrolls more than 600 students in its grade band, making it a mid-sized elementary school. The student body is predominantly white, with a smaller share of Hispanic students, a still smaller share who identify as two or more races, and modest shares of Black and Asian students. About a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a share that indicates a moderate level of economic diversity. Data on special education enrollment and English learner status were not available; a parent may want to follow up with the school directly for those figures.
State testing results from the 2024-25 school year, drawn from Maryland’s MCAP assessments, give a picture of academic performance that shifts by grade and subject. In third grade, a strong majority of students scored proficient or above in both English language arts and math. Fourth-grade performance remained solid in English but dropped notably in math, where just over half of students reached proficiency. By fifth grade, math proficiency was below the midpoint, while English held steady at a level comparable to fourth grade. Fifth-grade science results, measured by the Maryland Integrated Science Assessment, were the lowest of any tested subject and grade; fewer than half of students scored proficient. A parent considering this school may want to ask how the school addresses the decline in math as students move through the grades and how science instruction is supported.
Because only a single year of testing data is available, there is no trend line to show whether these results represent a change from prior years. The multi-year academic trend data contains only the 2024-25 point, so it is not possible to say whether proficiency has been rising or falling. This is a gap worth noting; families looking for trajectory may want to ask the school or district for prior results.
The comparison fact-set that would place Windy Hill’s performance relative to other districts in Calvert County could not be generated because the cohort was too small. The county contains only one school district, so no within-county peer comparison is possible. That leaves state averages as the implicit benchmark, though those figures are not presented in the data provided.
The district brief for Calvert County Public Schools did not surface any recent parent-relevant changes such as budget shifts, redistricting, or curriculum updates. What this means in practice is that the district context for Windy Hill appears stable, but a family moving into the area may want to check the school system’s website or attend a school board meeting to get a sense of current priorities and any upcoming shifts.
Owings offers few civic or recreational anchors. Hutchins Pond, a public fishing pond managed by the Calvert Nature Society, is one local amenity, and a Boys & Girls Club affiliate runs football and basketball programs. There is no public library branch or fixed-route transit within Owings itself. The community is built for car travel, and school campuses are spread across the CDP rather than clustered in a downtown core.
Windy Hill Elementary presents a profile of a solid elementary school in a residential, commuter-oriented community. English language arts performance is a strength, particularly in the earlier grades. Math and science results are more uneven, and the single-year data limits what can be said about academic trajectory. The school’s size and moderate economic diversity are characteristics that families with young children will weigh according to their own priorities. For a parent trying to decide whether this school fits, the key questions are about how the school approaches the proficiency drops in upper-elementary math and science, and whether the car-dependent, low-amenity setting of Owings matches the lifestyle they want.
See more original research from School Decision →