The top reported proficiency rate is 59% in Math. The lowest is 33% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Alyce Taylor Elementary
Alyce Taylor Elementary sits on Egyptian Way in Sparks, Nevada, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Washoe County School District. The enrollment is moderate for an elementary campus of this grade band, with most students concentrated in the early elementary grades and a small pre-kindergarten presence. The school draws from a community where housing values run well above both the state and national benchmarks, and the price-to-income ratio indicates that buying a home here demands a substantial income relative to much of the country. Monthly mortgage costs far exceed typical rents in the area, which shapes who can move into the attendance zone.
On state assessments, Alyce Taylor posts solid results in the core subjects that parents usually watch most closely. In math, a clear majority of tested students reached proficiency on the SBAC, and English language arts was nearly as strong, with just over half clearing the proficient bar. Participation was high across the board. Science tells a different story. Only fifth graders sit for the science exam, and the proficiency rate there was notably lower than the school's math and reading results. A parent may want to look into how the school approaches elementary science instruction and whether this reflects a broader pattern or a single year's outcome. No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these results are improving, holding steady, or slipping over time.
The student body is predominantly white, with a Hispanic population making up the next largest share. A smaller group of American Indian and Alaska Native students and students of two or more races round out the enrollment. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch is relatively modest, suggesting that many families in the attendance area sit above the income thresholds that trigger those benefits. Data on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not reported, so the picture of how the school serves those populations is incomplete here. Title I status was also not available.
Sparks itself is a city with a layered identity. It began as a Southern Pacific Railroad switching yard and repair center and grew into a residential suburb of Reno after a postwar housing boom. The area south of the railroad filled with warehouses and light industry, and Sparks remains a distribution and manufacturing hub within the Reno-Sparks metro. The Tesla and Panasonic Gigafactory anchors the eastern edge of the city and is a major employer. Victorian Square, a redeveloped pedestrian district near the Nugget Casino Resort, provides the closest thing Sparks has to a walkable downtown, with open-air events and a plaza. Away from that core, the city is largely car-dependent and suburban, organized around Interstate 80 and major arterials like Pyramid Way and McCarran Boulevard. Sparks Marina Park offers a strong recreational anchor with aquatic activities, walking paths, and picnic areas. The city has grown rapidly over decades, with development pushing northward into Spanish Springs, and major road projects continue to reshape commuting patterns between Sparks and Reno.
Several categories of information that would help a parent round out their understanding were absent from the available data. No program offerings were listed, so it is unclear what enrichment, intervention, or specialist instruction the school provides beyond the standard curriculum. Staffing, attendance, discipline, and course access details were not reported. Civil-rights data was empty. A district brief on curriculum changes or strategic initiatives in Washoe County was not available. These gaps mean the portrait here is built largely from assessment results, demographics, and community context. A family considering Alyce Taylor would benefit from asking the school directly about support services, gifted programming, and how the lower science proficiency compares to district-wide patterns.
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