The top reported proficiency rate is 29% in English language arts. The lowest is 10% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Gladys Noon Spellman Elementary
Gladys Noon Spellman Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through sixth grade in Cheverly, a small, planned residential suburb just inside the District of Columbia border in Prince George’s County. The school is a regular public elementary and sits within the Prince George’s County Public Schools system, the state’s second-largest district. It is not a charter or magnet school.
Enrollment is moderate for an elementary school serving this grade span, and the student body is diverse. The largest groups are Hispanic and Black students, followed by a sizeable Asian population and a smaller share of white students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, reflecting an economically diverse but predominantly lower-income community. The school does not report data on students with disabilities or English learners in the available information, which is a gap a family may want to follow up on directly.
On the state’s standardized assessments—the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program for math and English language arts and the Maryland Integrated Science Assessment for science—the share of students scoring proficient or above was well below the statewide average across all tested grades. In math, the proportion of students reaching that benchmark was modest, and in English language arts it was somewhat higher but still low. Science results were lower still. State testing data from prior years was not available in this profile, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent a trend or a single-year picture. The school serves grades that participate in state testing, so these results are relevant for families evaluating academic performance.
Cheverly itself is a stable, built-out community of mostly single-family homes from the 1920s through 1960s, with a few garden-style apartment complexes. There is no traditional downtown; civic life centers on the town hall and community center. The Cheverly Metro station on the Orange Line provides rail access to Washington, D.C., and the town is bounded by two major freeways. Housing values in the zip code are in the middle range for the Washington area and dipped slightly year over year; rents rose modestly. The town’s largest employer, a major hospital, closed in 2021 and relocated to a nearby community, leaving a redevelopment site that has not yet been replaced with a new anchor.
The district, Prince George’s County Public Schools, has adopted a district-wide literacy initiative aligned with the science of reading, which affects how reading is taught in all elementary schools, including Spellman. The district also approved a budget increase and conducted a boundary review that may change attendance zones for some schools starting in the 2025–2026 school year. Families should be aware that the boundary review could affect which elementary school their child is assigned to if they live in the area.
No information was available about specific programs, such as gifted education, art, music, or after-school offerings. The school’s website or a direct inquiry would be the best way to fill that in. For a family considering this school, the core picture is a diverse, high-poverty elementary in a compact inner-ring suburb, with state test results that are below the levels most families would hope for. The district’s new literacy initiative may eventually shift those results, but the most recent data does not show that change yet. Parents who place a high priority on demonstrated academic proficiency may want to look into how the school supports students who are not yet at grade level.
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