The top reported proficiency rate is 39% in Science. The lowest is 29% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Frontier School of Innovation
Frontier School of Innovation is a charter elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Kansas City, Missouri. It is one of several schools in the Frontier Schools district, which operates charter campuses across the city. The school sits on Corporate Drive in an area east of the city’s downtown core, an industrial and commercial stretch of a very large urban footprint. Kansas City itself is a major metropolitan center, sprawling across hundreds of square miles and known for its historic stockyards, jazz heritage, and an extensive system of boulevards and fountains. Like much of the city outside the walkable downtown and Plaza districts, the area around the school is car-dependent, and families would typically drive for drop-off and pick-up.
The school’s enrollment is moderate for an elementary building. The student body is diverse, with a large majority of students identifying as Hispanic, a smaller but still substantial share as Black, and a modest number of White and multiracial students. Free and reduced-price lunch data indicate that a very high proportion of families qualify for assistance, placing the school in an economically high-need context. English learner and special education counts were not reported in the available data, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those services and supports.
On state assessments, the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) results for math and English language arts across grades three through five show that roughly a quarter to two-fifths of students scored at the proficient or advanced level, depending on the grade and subject. Grade four math was the highest area, with a share of students meeting the benchmark. Science results for grade five were in a similar range. These are modest figures in absolute terms, but they need to be read against the context of the school’s peer group. When compared with other districts in Jackson County, the school’s overall proficiency index sits above the midpoint, meaning its performance is stronger than that of many schools serving similar populations across the county. This is a meaningful positive signal for a school with a high rate of economic disadvantage.
Because the school serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and no chronic absenteeism data were available in the records provided. The school’s website and the district brief showed no major recent changes such as boundary shifts, curriculum overhauls, or referendums in the last few years. The district appears to have been operating with a steady profile.
For a family considering Frontier School of Innovation, the picture is one of a charter elementary that serves a high-need, predominantly Hispanic and Black student body, with test performance that is modest in raw terms but stands out favorably among its county peers. The school’s size is manageable for an elementary, and the charter structure may offer some flexibility in programming, though no specific program descriptions were available in the data. A parent interested in the school would likely want to visit, ask about English learner and special education supports, and get a sense of the school climate, since discipline and attendance metrics were not reported here. Housing in the surrounding zip code area is relatively affordable compared to the national average, with home values well below typical metro levels; rents are moderate. The broader Kansas City housing market has been appreciating, so affordability may be a consideration for families renting or buying near the school.
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