The top reported proficiency rate is 67% in English language arts. The lowest is 49% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Bessie Coleman Elementary School
Bessie Coleman Elementary School sits in a northwest Corvallis neighborhood and serves students from kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school in the Corvallis School District 509J. The school is a mid-sized elementary for its grade band, drawing its community from a city that is a mixed-use college town dominated by Oregon State University but also anchored by healthcare and technology employers. Corvallis functions as the Benton County seat and has a downtown core of historic buildings integrated closely with the university campus, creating a dense, walkable, bicycle-friendly environment. The city has seen modest population growth and is actively trying to attract creative industries, though the presence of OSU, Samaritan Health Services, and a large HP Inc. R&D campus shapes the local economy and the families who live here.
The student body is diverse in racial and ethnic background. A majority of students identify as white, while Asian students and students who identify as two or more races each form a notable share of the enrollment. Hispanic students and Black students make up smaller shares, and there are very small numbers of American Indian or Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students. Slightly more than a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a figure that places the school in a moderate range of economic need for the area. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source materials.
Bessie Coleman’s academic performance stands out when placed against its peers. On Oregon’s state assessments administered in the 2024-2025 school year, the school’s combined proficiency rate across all tested subjects and grades placed it in the top quartile relative to the districts in Benton County. That is a strong showing for an elementary school, indicating that students here, as a whole, are meeting state benchmarks at rates that compare favorably with schools across the county. When you look grade by grade, proficiency in English language arts is solid across all tested grades, with the highest share of students meeting the bar in third grade and slightly lower but still strong rates in fourth and fifth. In math, third grade performance is notably strong, while fourth and fifth grade results are more moderate, showing a dip that a parent may want to ask the school about. In science, only fifth grade is tested, and the proficiency rate is just under half of students, which is a softer spot relative to the school’s own English and math performance.
Because Bessie Coleman is an elementary school, there is no graduation rate to report, and chronic absenteeism data was also not provided. The school operates as a regular public school and is not a charter, magnet, or Title I school; the school’s Title I status was not specified.
The housing context for families considering Bessie Coleman’s attendance zone reflects the broader Corvallis market. Home values in the area have been relatively high, with a slight dip over the most recent year, while rents have been rising. The typical home price relative to national median household income suggests a market that is expensive, and the estimated monthly mortgage payment is higher than the typical rent, which may be a factor for families weighing whether to buy or rent in this neighborhood. The local unemployment rate has been low and stable, consistent with a city that has a large institutional employer and a diversified base.
The district did not have major recent changes reported that would directly affect parents, such as bond measures or curriculum shifts, though the search noted that the district has undergone construction and renamed some elementary schools. No further detail was available.
For a family evaluating Bessie Coleman Elementary, the picture is of a school with a clear academic strength relative to its county, a student body that is moderately diverse economically and racially, and a location in a stable, university-anchored city that is expensive but offers a vibrant downtown and good bikeability. The softer math results in the upper elementary grades and the science proficiency rate are aspects a parent might want to explore with the school to understand how the curriculum supports students as they move from primary to intermediate grades.
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