The top reported proficiency rate is 58% in English language arts. The lowest is 45% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Sam Salem Community Learning Center
Sam Salem Community Learning Center is a small elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Akron's working neighborhoods, situated in a city that has turned toward healthcare, research, and downtown revitalization even as it faces persistent economic headwinds.
The school enrolls a diverse student body of a modest size, with white and Black students making up the largest shares, and a smaller but meaningful number of students identifying as multiracial or Hispanic. The enrollment spans all seven grade levels from pre-K onward, with most grades in the low-to-mid range typical of neighborhood elementary schools.
On Ohio's state assessments, Sam Salem's performance sits in the lower range for schools in Summit County. In the most recent year, about half the tested students reached proficiency in English language arts, and just under half in mathematics. Science proficiency was lower, around half. The school tested nearly all enrolled students, so participation was complete, but the proportion meeting grade-level benchmarks trails the county median substantially. This picture is consistent: the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among county schools. A parent considering Sam Salem should have a direct conversation with the building about what instruction looks like, what support systems exist for students below benchmark, and what the school's response strategy is. The absence of free-or-reduced-price-lunch data, special education enrollment data, and English learner enrollment data prevents a fuller picture of need and available support, so parents may want to ask the school about those specifics.
The school sits in Akron proper, a rust-belt city that historically centered on rubber manufacturing and has spent the last two decades rebuilding around health care, polymer research, tech startups, and a renewed downtown. Housing values in the surrounding neighborhood are modest by state standards; monthly rent and estimated mortgage payments are both well below state norms, making homeownership more accessible here than in much of Ohio. The Akron School District as a whole has just passed a major combined operating and bond levy for the first time in years, funding both daily operations and construction of a new high school. Alongside that financial commitment, the district has eliminated a substantial number of positions over the past year, which may affect class sizes and program breadth. The district is also deploying a college and career academy model across all grades, a structural shift toward inquiry-based learning and career pathways. That system-wide change will shape what happens in Sam Salem's classrooms going forward.
No state-provided data exists on the school's attendance, discipline, staffing, or course offerings, and no graduation rate applies to an elementary school. The school's website was not available to the project, so specifics about extended-day programming, special offerings, or family engagement mechanisms cannot be reported here. For a family weighing this school, obtaining that information directly from the building, plus clarity on the academic supports available to students currently below state benchmarks, would be essential steps.
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