The top reported proficiency rate is 21% in English language arts. The lowest is 14% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Lincoln Park Elementary School
Lincoln Park Elementary School serves preschool through fifth grade in the David Douglas School District, located in a residential area of east Portland. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet school. The school’s enrollment is large for an elementary building, and the student body is diverse. The composition is roughly broken into three groups of similar size: students who identify as Hispanic, students who identify as white, and students who identify as Asian. Smaller shares of students identify as Black, two or more races, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and American Indian or Alaska Native. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure that signals the school serves a high-poverty population. Data on the share of students with individualized education programs or who are English learners is not available in this record.
On state assessments administered in the 2024-2025 school year, Lincoln Park’s students as a group scored below many peers across Oregon. This was a single-year snapshot, and only one year of assessment data is available here, so there is no year-over-year trend to compare. In English language arts, the share of students meeting proficiency standards was lower than the share of students statewide who typically meet those standards in a given year, and the same was true in math. Performance in science, tested only in fifth grade, was similarly low. Because the school serves only through fifth grade, there is no graduation rate; this is not a gap in the school’s work but simply a limit of the grade band. Within the context of all districts in Multnomah County, the school’s overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades places it in the bottom quartile. A parent considering the school will likely want to ask what academic interventions and supports are in place for students who are not yet meeting grade-level benchmarks.
The school’s neighborhood is part of Portland, Oregon’s largest city, a major Pacific Northwest metropolitan center. Portland has a strong identity around sustainability and urban planning and manages growth through an urban growth boundary. The economy is driven by technology, athletic and outdoor brands, healthcare, and shipping. The central city has a walkable downtown grid, extensive public transit including light rail and streetcars, and a nationally recognized bike network. Lincoln Park is on the east side of the Willamette River, in a predominantly residential area with commercial corridors. Housing in the surrounding zip code is priced near the middle range for the city, and the typical cost of a home is a bit below Oregon’s statewide typical value. Rents are at a level that absorbs about a quarter of the median household income nationally, which means the neighborhood is not the most expensive part of Portland but is not a low-cost area either.
The David Douglas School District has made some notable institutional changes that affect Lincoln Park. The district implemented a district-wide Multi-Tiered System of Supports framework starting a few years ago. This framework coordinates academic interventions, behavioral supports, and social-emotional learning across all schools, meaning Lincoln Park uses a tiered system to identify and support students who need extra help before they fall far behind. The district also made its K-12 online learning program, launched during the pandemic, a permanent option for families. That program is separate from Lincoln Park, but it is an option a family could choose if they want a fully online elementary experience instead of this in-person school.
For a family deciding whether this school fits, the biggest factor is the academic performance picture. The assessment results are a concern, and a parent would want to understand the specific instruction and support their child would receive, especially in reading and math. The MTSS framework the district emphasizes suggests there is a system for identifying struggling students, but the outcomes so far have not lifted proficiency to levels comparable with higher-performing schools in the county. The school is in a large, diverse, mid-market Portland neighborhood, with a student population that is mostly low-income. The school itself does not offer the sorts of advanced coursework or specialized programs that some elementary schools highlight; no program offerings are listed in this data. It is a straightforward neighborhood elementary school within a larger district that has made some structural moves toward student support but is still working through a period of low measured achievement.
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