The top reported proficiency rate is 70% in Science. The lowest is 40% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Forest City Regional El Sch
Forest City Regional Elementary School serves pre-kindergarten through sixth grade in a compact small borough in northeastern Pennsylvania, roughly twenty miles northeast of Scranton. The school sits downtown on Susquehanna Street, integrated into the civic fabric rather than isolated on an outlying campus, and enrolls about four hundred twenty students from the Forest City area.
The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. State testing data from the most recent year shows that in English language arts, roughly midway through the student body met or exceeded proficiency; in mathematics, the proficiency rate was somewhat lower. Science results, measured at a less frequent interval, ran meaningfully higher. On a proficiency index that averages performance across tested subjects and grades, this school ranks in the top quartile among the seven districts in Susquehanna County. That is a noteworthy position; it means the school's overall tested achievement sits above where most comparable county districts land.
The gap between math and English results, and the stronger showing in science, merit a parent's attention. The variation itself is worth asking the school about directly: whether it reflects differences in instructional focus, assessment timing, or student engagement across subjects, and what the school is doing to shore up mathematics. The school serves all grade bands from pre-K through sixth, so most students have not yet reached the middle school stage; anyone considering this school for a younger child should understand that tested performance is only available for grades three through six.
Forest City itself is a walkable small town with a traditional downtown grid and much of its housing stock predating World War II, giving the setting a historic, dense feel. The borough's economy is a mix of small businesses, professional services, and some warehousing and manufacturing operations nearby. Population has aged over generations, but in recent years younger adults have begun to move back or stay put, and housing remains more affordable than state and national benchmarks. There is no public transit; families drive locally or walk. Civic anchors include two municipal parks with recreational facilities, a branch of the county library, and a historical society museum. The downtown commercial corridor was significantly affected by a major fire in recent years, which has thinned the streetscape.
The school itself is a regular public school, not a charter. The district brief turned up no recent major curriculum changes, bond referenda, or facility shifts worth noting for parents. A facility planning study has been conducted but specifics were not publicly available. Enrollment data shows the school draws fairly evenly across grade bands, suggesting stable or balanced class sizes. Special-population counts for students with IEPs and English learners were not reported, so a parent seeking that information should contact the school directly.
For families in the Forest City area choosing between public schooling options, this school's strong county-level proficiency ranking and its integration into the small-town setting are concrete anchors. The mathematics proficiency rate and its gap from English results are real gaps worth understanding more deeply before enrollment.
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