The top reported proficiency rate is 39% in English language arts. The lowest is 22% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Menlo Park Elementary School
Menlo Park Elementary School, part of the David Douglas School District, sits in the eastern reaches of Portland, serving students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The school's student body reflects the diversity of its corner of the city. Roughly three of every ten students are white, a similar proportion are Hispanic or Latino, and the rest identify as Asian, Black, multiracial, American Indian or Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. The school serves a high-poverty population, with a very large share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on the share of students with disabilities and the share who are English learners was not available in the source materials, so a parent who wants the full support picture should ask the school directly.
State assessment results from the most recent testing year show that across math, English language arts, and science, proficiency rates are below statewide averages. In math, roughly a quarter to a third of students in grades three through five met the proficiency bar, with the highest rate in fourth grade. In English language arts, the corresponding figures ranged roughly from a third to just over two-fifths. On the fifth-grade science assessment, about a fifth of students scored proficient. There was only a single year of academic trend data available, so it is not possible to determine from the public record whether these results represent a shift from previous years or an established pattern. The school’s overall proficiency index, which combines results across all tested subjects and grades, sits above the midpoint among the districts in Multnomah County. That positioning indicates that while the school’s absolute proficiency numbers are low, they are not the lowest in the local area.
Because Menlo Park is an elementary school serving through grade five, there is no graduation rate to report, as that metric applies only to high schools. Information about chronic absenteeism, disciplinary actions, and course access was also absent from the data supplied. The school’s placement in the David Douglas School District means students feed into district middle and high schools. The district itself has made a district-wide Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework permanent, starting in the 2021-2022 school year. This framework coordinates academic interventions, behavioral supports, and social-emotional learning across three tiers, from universal supports for all students through targeted and intensive supports for those who need more help. The district also now offers the David Douglas Online Academy, a fully online K-12 learning option that was made permanent after the COVID-19 pandemic, providing a separate educational setting for families who want it.
The housing market in the school’s zip code puts the typical home value near the middle of the Oregon state benchmark, with values holding roughly flat over the past year. Rents sit near the national average for a typical apartment. Compared with the national median household income, the area is slightly above the national figure, but the cost of financing a home relative to income remains elevated. For a family looking at this school, the academic performance data suggests a setting where the majority of students are not yet meeting state proficiency standards, and the student body faces high levels of economic need. The district’s MTSS framework is designed to address those academic and behavioral challenges systematically. The school’s location in east Portland places it in a residential part of the city, distinct from the denser downtown core, with commercial corridors nearby. A parent weighing this school should consider the academic results alongside the district’s support structures and ask the school directly about the student support data that was not available in the public record.
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