The top reported proficiency rate is 94% in Science. The lowest is 81% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Dover Intermediate School
Dover Intermediate School serves grades five and six in Westlake, an affluent suburb roughly a dozen miles west of downtown Cleveland. The school enrolls a student body that is predominantly white, with smaller populations of Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial students, and about a fifth of the enrollment qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. The enrollment sits just under five hundred students across the two grade levels.
On state assessments, Dover's academic performance is solid. In English language arts, the proficiency rate is in the mid-eighties, with nearly all students participating in the test. Math proficiency runs somewhat lower, in the low eighties, with similarly strong participation. Science is the school's strongest subject, with proficiency well into the nineties. A single historical snapshot of social studies proficiency from the mid-2010s showed proficiency in the upper eighties, though current data for that subject is not available. Across the tested subjects, Dover's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile among the county's schools.
The school sits in a housing market shaped by affluence and stability. Home values in the Westlake zip code are mid-range for the region, with annual appreciation modest. Rents remain moderate relative to ownership costs. The broader Cuyahoga County market has been absorbing new inventory over the past year, and days to sale have lengthened slightly, suggesting a shift toward somewhat more balanced conditions after a tight seller's market.
Westlake itself is a car-oriented suburb built around the commercial and office spine of Crocker Park and nearby corridors. The city has grown slowly in recent years, with population holding relatively stable. The school district has not sought a new operating levy in decades, a fiscal practice that district leadership has defended publicly. A recent state law change will alter how Ohio districts approach levy renewals going forward, eliminating emergency-levy and replacement-levy tools and likely requiring Westlake to ask voters for new funding at some point, though the timing and scope remain to be seen by families considering the area.
Dover's student profile and test performance suggest a school embedded in a prosperous community with broadly engaged families and steady academic results. The intermediate grades are not assessed in the full range of subjects, so a complete picture of curriculum breadth is not available from the testing data. A parent considering Dover would want to connect directly with the school about program offerings, electives, and transitions to the high school to understand the full scope of what the intermediate years include.
See more original research from School Decision →