The top reported proficiency rate is 21% in Math. The lowest is 13% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Dorothy Lemelson S.t.e.m. Academy Es
Dorothy Lemelson S.T.E.M. Academy is a regular public elementary school in the Washoe County School District, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade on Soaring Eagle Drive in Reno. The school's name signals a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics orientation, though specific program details were not available in the data provided. It is not a charter school, and its magnet status was not reported.
The school sits in a part of Reno where housing values run below both state and national benchmarks. The surrounding zip code has seen a modest year-over-year decline in home values, while rents have edged upward slightly. For families considering the area, the price-to-income ratio remains elevated relative to national norms, and the gap between monthly mortgage costs and rents is wide, making renting considerably less expensive than buying at current rates. Reno itself is a mid-sized city with a concentrated, walkable downtown core anchored by casino resorts, the Truckee River corridor, and the University of Nevada, Reno. Beyond downtown, the city is sprawling and largely car-dependent. Publicly reported sources describe Reno as having absorbed major technology and logistics investment from companies including Tesla, Amazon, Panasonic, Microsoft, Apple, and Google, which has reshaped parts of the regional economy and contributed to ongoing population growth. Outdoor recreation access near the Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe is a defining feature of life in the area.
At Dorothy Lemelson, the student body is small for an elementary school spanning pre-K through grade five. Every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which reflects a school serving an economically disadvantaged community. The enrollment is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller groups of White, Black, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, Asian, multiracial, and American Indian or Alaska Native students. We looked for English Learner and special education enrollment figures, but those were not reported in the available data.
On the most recent state assessments, proficiency rates were low across all tested subjects. In both mathematics and English language arts, roughly one in five tested students reached proficiency. Science results were lower still, with only a small fraction of tested students meeting the proficiency bar. Participation rates met the federal threshold. These results sit well below where most schools aim, and a parent weighing this school may want to look into this further with the school and district, asking what supports and interventions are in place and how the STEM-focused mission translates into classroom practice and academic growth over time. Trend data that would show whether proficiency is improving or declining was not available, so it is not possible to characterize a direction from the data alone.
Several categories of information that would help round out a parent's understanding were absent. Title I status was not reported, though the universal free-or-reduced-price-lunch rate suggests the school likely operates under that federal designation. Staffing ratios, discipline data, attendance patterns, and course access details were not provided. No neighbor comparison or program offerings were included. The district brief for Washoe County School District did not yield specific curriculum or strategic changes for recent years, so we left that out rather than guess. Civil rights data was also empty.
What the data does show is a small, economically disadvantaged elementary school with a STEM-identified mission and proficiency results that indicate substantial academic challenges. Families drawn to the STEM theme and seeking a smaller school environment may find the mission appealing, but the current proficiency picture suggests asking direct questions about instruction, intervention, and growth before enrolling.
See more original research from School Decision →