The top reported proficiency rate is 50% in English language arts. The lowest is 43% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Rockland Woods Elementary
Rockland Woods Elementary is a regular public school in Hagerstown, Maryland, serving prekindergarten through fifth grade as part of Washington County Public Schools. With an enrollment that places it at a moderate size for an elementary school, it draws families from a largely residential area of Hagerstown, a city that functions as the commercial and transportation hub for a tri-state region. The school's student body is diverse: about half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the racial composition shows a white plurality alongside substantial Black and Hispanic shares, with smaller Asian and multiracial populations. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the reporting, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those supports.
The academic picture comes from Maryland's state assessments, the MCAP for math and English language arts and the MISA for science, all from the 2024-25 school year. Performance is uneven across grades. In third grade, a majority of students scored proficient or above in both math and reading, a relatively solid showing. Fifth graders also reached a majority in reading and delivered a middling result in science. Fourth grade, however, stands out as a soft spot: reading proficiency dropped below 40 percent and math proficiency fell to 30 percent. A parent whose child is entering fourth grade or has struggled in earlier years may want to look into this further with the school. Because only a single year of data exists, there is no way to tell whether this is a one-year dip or a pattern. The school serves no tested grades beyond fifth, so there is no graduation rate or high school outcome to consider here.
The community context matters for families weighing a move. Hagerstown itself offers a walkable historic downtown with cultural venues, but the broader city is auto-oriented, shaped by Interstates 81 and 70. The greater Hagerstown metropolitan area has been growing fast relative to the rest of Maryland, though the city's own population has been stable. Home values in the school's zip code are below both state and national medians, and rents are similarly moderate, making this one of the more affordable parts of the state.
On the district level, two developments are worth noting. Washington County Public Schools is implementing the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, a state reform that has already expanded prekindergarten classrooms and is raising teacher salaries. The district also approved a redistricting plan affecting attendance boundaries for elementary schools in the Hagerstown area, set to take effect in the 2025-26 school year. That means Rockland Woods' attendance zone may shift, and families should confirm whether their address will remain assigned to this school. A voter-approved construction bond will fund a new elementary school and major renovations across the district, which could eventually relieve capacity pressures.
No comparison data with other schools in Washington County was available, because the county operates as a single school district and the comparison set was too small to produce meaningful benchmarks. That limitation leaves the test results as the primary academic reference point for a family.
Rockland Woods fits a family looking for an elementary school in an affordable, growing metro area, with a diverse student body and a mixed academic record that merits attention in fourth grade. The district's ongoing changes around boundaries and facilities suggest that the school's environment may evolve in the coming years.
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