Glen Head Elementary School, Glen Head NY

Original Research by School Decision on Glen Head Elementary School

Glen Head Elementary is a small, community-rooted elementary school in an affluent Long Island hamlet, serving roughly a school-sized enrollment drawn from a predominantly white, college-educated residential neighborhood in the Town of Oyster Bay. The school feeds into the North Shore Central School District's broader K-12 system, which serves Glen Head along with several neighboring hamlets.

Academic performance at Glen Head Elementary is strong across tested subjects. In mathematics, proficiency ranges from the mid-eighties in grade four to the mid-nineties in grade five, with grade three in the low nineties. English language arts shows similarly solid results, with grade three and five students reaching the high eighties to low nineties and grade four at the low eighties. Science proficiency in grade five sits in the high seventies. These results place the school in the top quartile among its county's elementary schools on overall proficiency.

The enrollment is small and reflects the neighborhood's demographics. The student body is majority white, with meaningful representation of Asian students and smaller numbers of Hispanic, Black, and multiracial students. Data on free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility and special education or English learner populations were not available, so a parent may want to reach out to the school directly to understand the full range of support services and accommodations available.

Glen Head itself is a quiet, tree-lined residential hamlet with limited commercial activity and a modest walkable district centered on Glen Head Road near the Long Island Rail Road station. The community developed from farmland into a planned suburban enclave in the early twentieth century and remains a built-out, primarily single-family residential area with a high homeownership rate. Housing values in the area are substantial, reflecting the neighborhood's affluence and proximity to the North Shore. The Gold Coast Public Library, recently relocated to a new building on Glen Head Road, serves as a civic anchor alongside waterfront access at Harry Tappen Beach and Marina in nearby Glenwood Landing.

The district recently undertook a significant curriculum overhaul, adopting evidence-based literacy programs (CKLA for kindergarten through grade three and HMH for grades four and five) in response to new state guidance and law. This phased rollout, beginning in the 2025-26 school year, means Glen Head Elementary families should expect instruction shaped by these newly adopted reading materials and methods. Voters also approved nearly a mid-range capital investment in February 2026 for athletic field upgrades, air conditioning installations, and other renovations across the district, with officials stating the bond will not increase property taxes. The district's 2026-27 operating budget represents higher per-pupil spending than many regional peers, reflecting the relatively affluent property tax base that supports North Shore schools.

Glen Head Elementary appears well-positioned for students whose families prioritize strong academic performance in a small-school setting within a well-resourced, suburban district. The school's academic results and the surrounding community's stability and investment in facilities suggest a straightforward elementary pathway. Parents should clarify directly with the school what supports exist for students with different learning needs or language backgrounds, as that data was not publicly available.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 390%

School 90% · District 93% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 32 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 484%

School 84% · District 90% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 596%

School 96% · District 94% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 45 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 388%

School 88% · District 86% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 36 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 483%

School 83% · District 85% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 591%

School 91% · District 86% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 36 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Science

Grade 579%

School 79% · District 77% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 599%

School 99% · district not reported

▲ 7 pts above state median · even with county median

This schoolNORTH SHORE CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income89%Higher-income88%1 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income100%Higher-income81%19 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income82%Higher-income93%11 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income80%Higher-income93%13 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income100%Higher-income82%18 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income100%Higher-income96%4 pp gap