The top reported proficiency rate is 21% in English language arts. The lowest is 9% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Independence Elementary School
Independence Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in the Central School District 13J, located in the town of Independence in Polk County. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. The student body is a few hundred children, with enrollment across the elementary grades generally well-balanced in size from one grade to the next. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals.
The student population is diverse. Hispanic or Latino students make up close to three-fifths of the enrollment, and white students account for most of the remainder. There are very small numbers of students from other racial and ethnic backgrounds. The available data does not include information on the share of students with disabilities or English learners, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about these support populations.
When it comes to state assessment results, the picture is a significant area of concern. Proficiency rates are notably low across all three tested grades and subjects. Results for the third and fourth grade show a small percentage of students meeting the state standard in both English language arts and math. The fifth grade numbers are somewhat higher in English language arts but still low, while fifth-grade math proficiency was so limited that the result is reported only as a narrow range, meaning very few students met the bar. Science results for fifth grade are also low. The proficiency index, which averages all tested subjects and grades, places this school below the midpoint among the four districts in Polk County. A parent considering this school should want to understand what interventions and supports the school provides for students who are below grade level and inquire about any improvement initiatives underway.
The school is housed in Independence, a town with a walkable downtown corridor of Main Street shops and restaurants, as publicly reported. Housing in the area as of recent data had a median home value near the middle of the range relative to Oregon, with rents reflecting an area where homeownership costs outpace renting on a monthly basis. The national economic context showed a modest unemployment rate and a median household income near the mid-eighties.
The school itself has no graduation rate to report because it does not serve high school grades. There is no information on course access, staffing ratios, disciplinary rates, chronic absenteeism, or Title I status in the available data. The academic trend data covers only a single year, so there is no way to see whether these low proficiency numbers represent a recent decline or an ongoing pattern.
Independence Elementary serves a high-needs student body in a walkable small town. For a family, the central question is how the school is working to close the very wide gap between current academic performance and state expectations. Without information on interventions or supports, a parent will need to tour the school and speak directly with the principal and teachers about the school's approach to instruction and academic intervention.
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