The top reported proficiency rate is 84% in Social studies. The lowest is 65% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Hanby Building Elementary School
Hanby Building Elementary is a regular public elementary school serving first through fifth grade in Westerville, located in Franklin County just north of Columbus. It sits in a neighborhood context shaped by a northeastern suburb that mixes older residential sections near a walkable historic downtown with newer subdivisions and commercial corridors built over the last few decades.
The school enrolls a student body of moderate size for its grade band, with enrollment distributed across the grades and a composition that is primarily white, with representation of Black, multiracial, Asian, and Hispanic students. A modest share of the enrollment qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the broader economic character of Westerville as a stable middle to upper-middle-income suburb. Data on special education enrollment and English learner status were not available.
Academic performance on Ohio's State Tests places the school above the midpoint among Franklin County's elementary schools. In the most recent school year, about three-quarters of tested students in grades three through five demonstrated proficiency in English language arts and math. Science proficiency runs lower, around two-thirds, which a parent may want to ask the school about in context of how science is resourced and taught at the elementary level. Social studies data comes from an earlier testing cycle and is not current enough to reflect present practice. All tested students participated in the assessments. Only one year of recent proficiency data was available, so trend direction cannot be assessed.
The school serves Westerville City Schools, which recently navigated significant fiscal and policy changes that will affect families. In November 2025, voters approved an earned income tax levy to avert operational cuts that had been planned after a levy failure the previous year. That defeat had triggered reductions including elimination of staff positions and cuts to gifted enrichment services, facility improvement delays, and stadium and playground project deferrals. The new earned income tax, unlike a property tax, applies only to wages and self-employment income and does not touch retirement income, pensions, or similar distributions, so the tax impact varies by household composition. Additionally, the district rescinded and then reinstated a religious release time policy, now allowing one class period per week of optional off-site religious instruction under state law, with core curriculum excluded from release time.
Westerville itself is a mixed-character community. Its historic core around State Street and Otterbein University offers genuine walkability with independent shops, restaurants, and a preserved small-town feel, supported by university foot traffic. The wider city, particularly areas north of Schrock Road developed in the 1990s and 2000s, follows conventional suburban patterns of cul-de-sac subdivisions and auto-oriented retail corridors. Housing values are stable and moderate, with a rental market that supports both long-term residents and those on shorter leases. The area has extensive parks and trails, and transit connections to downtown Columbus exist but are limited compared to the city core. Civic life anchors around Uptown and nearby Otterbein's campus, while public school campuses, including Hanby's, are dispersed across the broader municipality.
Growth is active. The city is preparing an 88-acre employment site for industrial and logistics uses and advancing a high-profile mixed-use proposal near Uptown that would bring apartments, a hotel, and restaurants to a city-owned site. New residential subdivisions are also under construction, and zoning changes are moving toward housing diversity, including accessory dwelling units and affordable rental developments. For families, this signals a community in expansion and evolution, with both the stability of an established suburb and the dynamism of new investment.
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