The top reported proficiency rate is 81% in Math. The lowest is 62% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Crestwood Primary School
Crestwood Primary School serves kindergarten through third grade in Mantua, a small village along the Cuyahoga River in northern Portage County, Ohio. The school is one of two elementary-level buildings in Crestwood Local Schools; the other, an intermediate school serving grades four through six, sits nearby on the same campus in Mantua Township. The high school occupies Main Street in the village proper.
The school enrolls a modest number of students across its grade band, with nearly balanced class sizes from pre-K through third grade. About half the enrollment qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly white, with a small number of students from Hispanic, multiracial, and Asian backgrounds. Data on special education rates and English learner enrollment were not available.
On Ohio's most recent state assessments, third graders at Crestwood Primary tested in math and English language arts. In math, proficiency ran well above the state median; students demonstrated strong fundamentals and calculation skills. In reading and writing, proficiency was noticeably lower, sitting closer to the middle range for schools across Portage County. The two subjects show a meaningful gap in student performance, suggesting that while many third graders have solid math skills, reading comprehension and writing remain areas where the school may want to strengthen instruction. All tested students participated in the assessments.
Placed against the fourteen districts in Portage County, Crestwood's overall proficiency index across tested subjects places it in the top quartile of the county. No graduation rate or chronic absenteeism data apply to a primary school serving only early grades.
The district undertook a significant grade reconfiguration beginning in the 2021-22 school year, moving third grade from the intermediate school into the primary building. For families, this meant a shift in which building houses third graders and adjustments to daily schedules. The change was designed to reduce expenses and use staff and facilities more efficiently. In late 2022, a long-standing elementary school bond was paid off, which reduced residential property tax for homeowners in the district by a modest amount. Voters renewed the district's emergency operating levy in 2023, a four-year renewal supporting technology, transportation, buildings and grounds, and curriculum development.
Mantua itself is a small, settled community with a walkable historic downtown along Main and Prospect Streets, featuring locally owned shops, restaurants, and annual events like the Potato Festival and Art on the Hill. The village sits along major trail networks, including the Headwaters Trail, a rail-trail running to Garrettsville, and the Buckeye Trail, with river access at Buchert Memorial Park. Housing in Mantua is mostly owner-occupied, with a mix of older pre-WWII homes and newer single-family construction through developers like Alron Homes, as well as a manufactured-housing community. Median home values sit modestly below the Ohio state benchmark. Most working residents commute to jobs in surrounding metros like Akron, Kent, and Cleveland rather than working locally. The school district itself is the largest institutional employer in the village.
The housing market in Mantua remains stable and modest in activity, with inventory limited and median values reflecting a rural-suburban community. A buyer with school-age children would find a primary school serving a stable, familiar-feeling student body in a place with outdoor recreation and downtown walkability, but would need to weigh the gap between math and reading proficiency and should inquire directly with the school about specific approaches to literacy instruction and intervention.
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