The top reported proficiency rate is 66% in Science. The lowest is 29% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Logan El Sch
Logan Elementary serves grades kindergarten through fifth in Altoona, a former railroad city centered around a traditional downtown and older residential neighborhoods of rowhouses and worker homes. The school enrolls approximately 440 students, nearly all of whom (99.3%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing Logan in a community with very high economic need. The enrollment is distributed fairly evenly across the grade spans, with slightly more fifth graders than younger grades.
The student body is predominantly white, with the balance made up of multiracial students, Black students, Hispanic students, and Asian students in smaller shares. Data on students with individualized education plans or English learners was not available in the school's reporting.
Logan's state assessment results show uneven performance across subjects. In mathematics, measured across grades three through five, about forty percent of tested students reached proficiency in the most recent school year. English language arts results are notably lower, with proficiency around thirty percent of tested students. The school's science results, from the prior school year, are substantially stronger, with roughly two-thirds of students reaching proficiency. When averaged across subjects, Logan's overall proficiency sits above the midpoint among the ten districts in Blair County, the county in which Altoona sits. A parent may want to look into the gap between mathematics and language arts performance with the school directly, as that spread is meaningful and the underlying reasons matter for understanding where support is strongest.
Altoona itself is in a period of mixed economic transition. The city's population declined significantly over decades but has begun to show signs of stabilization and local investment. Recent years have seen substantial new building permits issued, with residential development leading in the most recent year. Civic anchors include Penn State Altoona's Ivyside Park campus, the Altoona Area Public Library, the Mishler Theatre, and the Railroaders Museum. Public transit connects the downtown to the Penn State campus, UPMC Altoona, and surrounding communities. Housing values in the Altoona area are modest relative to state and national benchmarks, and rent-to-income ratios are favorable, making the area relatively affordable for families.
The Altoona Area School District, which operates Logan, has managed significant infrastructure investment in recent years, including the completion of a new performing arts and science wing at the high school. The district's budget trajectory has been marked by property tax increases in two consecutive years (2023-24 and 2024-25), though the board adopted a flat tax rate for 2025-26 after initially proposing another increase. Homeowners and prospective buyers in the district should factor in that multi-year tax history when considering housing cost.
Logan is a regular public elementary school with a traditional neighborhood character, serving a student population with substantial economic need and wide variation in state assessment performance by subject.
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