Original Research by School Decision on Lewis and Clark Elementary School
Lewis andClark Elementary School sits on 16th Street South in Fargo, part of the Fargo 1 school district, serving kindergarten through fifth grade. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and it carries the standard neighborhood-elementary identity that comes with that designation. Enrollment sits at a moderate size for an elementary building in this district, with a fairly even spread across the six grade levels.
The school's state assessment results come from the current ND A-PLUS test, and because the assessment name and proficiency cut scores changed this year, trend comparisons against prior years are not yet reliable. What the current results show is a school where proficiency rises as students move up through the grades. Third-grade math and English language arts proficiency are low, with more students scoring below the proficient threshold than above it. By fourth grade, both subjects move into a middling band. Fifth grade is the clear bright spot, with a majority of students reaching proficiency in both math and reading, and fourth-grade science lands in the same middle range as the other fourth-grade subjects. Participation is strong across every tested grade and subject. The overall school-level proficiency summaries, which pool all tested grades together, land in the low-to-mid range for math, English language arts, and science. A parent looking at these results would want to understand how the school supports students in the earlier grades, where proficiency is weakest, and what drives the upward trajectory by fifth grade.
Demographically, Lewis and Clark reflects a reasonably diverse student body for a Fargo elementary school. White students make up the largest share, with Black, Hispanic, multiracial, and American Indian or Alaska Native students also represented. The free and reduced-price lunch rate is substantial, approaching half of the student population, which points to a community with meaningful economic need. Data on English learners and students with individualized education programs was not available, so those populations cannot be characterized here.
Fargo itself is the regional anchor for southeastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. The city's economy has moved well beyond its agricultural roots into healthcare, higher education, technology, manufacturing, and retail. Sanford Health and Microsoft both maintain regional campuses, North Dakota State University is a major presence, and the West Acres Shopping Center near the I-29 and I-94 interchange serves as a retail hub. The city has grown steadily through the postwar period, with interstate construction pushing development south and west of the original downtown core. A major flood diversion project on the Red River is under construction, and the metro area has maintained one of the lowest unemployment rates among U.S. metropolitan areas since the late 1990s. Fargo Public Schools is itself one of the larger employers in the city.
Housing in the school's zip code is modestly priced relative to the state and well below national levels. Typical home values sit somewhat below the statewide benchmark, and rents are affordable relative to local incomes. Renting costs substantially less per month than carrying a mortgage at current rates, which may matter for families weighing whether to buy into the attendance area or rent nearby. Year-over-year home and rent values have risen modestly.
The district brief did not surface specific parent-relevant changes such as referendums, curriculum shifts, or property-tax adjustments, so there is little to report on that front. Program offerings, staffing details, discipline data, attendance figures, and Title I status were also not available in the materials provided, leaving gaps that a parent may want to look into further with the school directly. What the available picture does show is a neighborhood elementary school in a growing, economically diverse section of Fargo, with assessment results that start low and build to a stronger finish by fifth grade.
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