The top reported proficiency rate is 46% in Social studies. The lowest is 12% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Firestone Park Elementary School
Firestone Park Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Akron's Firestone Park neighborhood, a part of the city that is slightly more walkable than Akron's average. The school enrolls a small to mid-sized population of about the size typical for its grade band, with enrollment distributed fairly evenly across grades. The racial and ethnic composition is diverse: the school is roughly half Black students, with meaningful numbers of white and multiracial students, and smaller populations of Hispanic and Asian students.
The state testing data from the most recent year paints a picture of below-benchmark academic performance across tested subjects and grades. In English language arts, proficiency rates range from the low twenties to mid-thirties across third, fourth, and fifth grades. Math proficiency is lower still, with third-grade proficiency in the single digits, fourth grade in the low twenties, and fifth grade in the mid-twenties. Fifth-grade science proficiency sits in the low teens. These results place the school in the bottom quartile relative to other elementary schools in Summit County, measured by overall proficiency. A parent may want to look into further detail about the school's literacy and numeracy instruction and what supports the school offers to students below grade level, since proficiency data at this level suggests many students are not yet meeting state benchmarks.
Free and reduced price lunch data is not available in public records for this school. Staffing details, enrollment in special education or English learner programs, chronic absenteeism rates, and discipline information are similarly unavailable. School climate and academic supports exist but are not documented in the sourced data, so a parent would benefit from asking the school directly about intervention programs, reading and math support, professional development focus, and class sizes in different grades.
The Akron City School District, of which Firestone Park is part, has undergone significant structural change. In November, voters approved new school taxes for the first time in a decade, combining an operating levy with a bond to fund construction of a new high school. Ahead of that vote, the district eliminated hundreds of positions, including roughly fifty teaching jobs, as it faced budget pressures. On the positive side, Akron has implemented a district-wide College and Career Academies model using inquiry-based learning, and the district's state performance improved notably on the most recent report card, though this pedagogical model is now expanding to elementary grades so its full effect at the Firestone Park level is still unfolding.
The neighborhood surrounding the school sits within Akron's economic and housing context. Median home values in the area are modest compared to state and national benchmarks, and rents are lower as well, making the area relatively accessible from a housing affordability standpoint. Akron is a city in transition, still shaped by its industrial past but increasingly investing in downtown revitalization, healthcare, and tech. The elementary school is embedded in a neighborhood with older residential stock and sits in a city whose population has been flat or slowly declining, though recent city initiatives are focused on infill development and retention.
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