The top reported proficiency rate is 78% in Math. The lowest is 74% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Whittier Elementary School
Whittier Elementary School, serving kindergarten through third grade in Massillon, closed at the end of the 2024–2025 school year as part of a major district consolidation. The school and its counterparts, Franklin and Gorrell elementary schools, were replaced in fall 2025 by two new PK-3 buildings—East Elementary on the Washington High School campus and West Elementary behind the Massillon Intermediate and Junior High School. Families choosing homes in Massillon should be aware of these new attendance boundaries and adjusted district start and end times that came with the transition.
Because Whittier operated through the 2024–2025 school year, its most recent assessment data reflects its final cohort. In math, the school's students in grades three through eight showed proficiency at a rate above the midpoint among districts in Stark County. English language arts proficiency was somewhat lower but still solidly in the mainstream for the county. The school tested every student who was enrolled, and the overall proficiency index across both subjects placed Whittier above the county median when comparing school-level performance within Stark County.
The enrollment was small, centered at around the size typical for a neighborhood elementary serving its local attendance zone. The student body was predominantly white, with smaller shares of Black students, students identifying as two or more races, and Hispanic students. State assessment data did not include counts for free-and-reduced-price lunch eligibility, special education enrollment, or English learners, so a parent looking at Whittier's demographic profile in its final year would not have had a full picture of economic need or support services the school provided.
Massillon itself is a small city in western Stark County along the Tuscarawas River, roughly eight miles west of Canton and fifty miles south of Cleveland. The city has deep industrial and manufacturing roots—anchored by employers like Shearer's Foods, Fresh Mark, and Affinity Medical Center—and a strong civic identity around its football tradition, earning the nickname "City of Champions." Downtown has historic brick streets, the Massillon Museum, the Lions Lincoln Theatre, and regular community events. Housing in the area is modest and stable in value, with new residential development appearing on the city edges in communities like Augusta Lakes and Walnut Woods rather than in the downtown core. Public transit via SARTA connects residents to Canton, the Akron–Canton Regional Airport, and beyond.
The district's decision to consolidate three aging neighborhood elementaries into two modern, air-conditioned PK-3 buildings was funded through a combination of state facilities grants and existing district reserves, with no new tax levy required. While this represents a significant infrastructure investment and modernization, families with children in those grades will attend one of the two new schools rather than Whittier going forward.
See more original research from School Decision →