The top reported proficiency rate is 25% in English language arts. The lowest is 10% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Holly Hall Elementary
Holly Hall Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through fifth grade in Elkton, within the Cecil County Public Schools district. It is a regular public school and not a charter or magnet school. The school enrolls a student body that is roughly evenly split between white students and students of color, with substantial shares of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial students. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, making this a school serving a primarily low-income population.
The school’s academic performance on Maryland’s state assessments is an area that parents will want to understand closely. In reading, across grades three through five, about one in five test takers scored proficient or above on the MCAP assessment. In math, the results are lower, with roughly one in seven students reaching that same proficiency threshold. In grade five science, fewer than one in ten students met the mark on the MISA assessment. Proficiency rates decline notably across the elementary grades in math, with the third-grade rate higher than the fifth-grade rate. These results position the school well below the state average, and a parent considering the school would want to discuss with the school what academic supports and interventions are in place.
The district itself has been through a recent period of budget pressure. In the spring of 2024, Cecil County Public Schools warned it might need to cut positions and programs, including prekindergarten and class-size increases, if the county did not fully fund its budget request. The request was ultimately fully funded in the county’s fiscal year 2026 budget, described as record funding, but the cycle of budget uncertainty may be a factor for families to watch. Meanwhile, a major capital project is underway to combine Bohemia Manor High School and Bohemia Manor Middle School into a single shared building, set to open by August 2026. That project is located in the Chesapeake City region of the county and does not directly affect Holly Hall Elementary.
Elkton, where the school is located, is the county seat of Cecil County. The town has a traditional downtown along Main Street with government buildings, a hospital, and retail, set within a mix of historic structures and suburban-style development. The town has grown modestly since the 2020 census. Housing in the area, measured by typical home values, sits slightly below the Maryland statewide benchmark. Public transit is limited to a countywide curb-to-curb service that requires advance scheduling.
This is a school where the academic results are the centerpiece of what a parent needs to investigate. The enrollment is moderate for an elementary school serving these grades, and the student body is economically diverse. For a family whose priority is a school with strong test scores, Holly Hall Elementary does not present that profile, and the data suggests many students are not meeting grade-level benchmarks in reading, math, or science. For a family comfortable with a school that serves a high-needs community and where the academic challenges are known, the next step is to learn about the school’s specific reading and math intervention programs, its approach to supporting students who are behind, and how it uses its Title I resources, if it receives them. State testing data for the school is available; chronic absenteeism rates, special education and English learner counts, and discipline data were not available in the materials reviewed, so those topics would need to be addressed directly with the school.
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