The top reported proficiency rate is 86% in Science. The lowest is 47% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Windber El Sch
Windber Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in a small, economically stressed borough in northern Somerset County. It is the sole elementary building for a district that also operates a middle school and high school, sitting in a community where nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch and where generational poverty and economic decline have shaped daily life.
The school tested about a quarter of the total enrollment on state math and English assessments in 2024-25, covering grades three through five. In math, about half of those students scored at or above proficiency. In English language arts, proficiency dropped to just under half. Science results, from the most recent available data from 2022-23, showed much stronger performance, with proficiency near the top range. Among Somerset County's districts, Windber Elementary's overall proficiency index ranks in the top quartile, a meaningful position that reflects particularly strong science outcomes offsetting softer performance in literacy.
The enrollment is small for its grade span, with roughly six hundred students across seven grades from pre-K through fifth. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with single-digit counts of Black, Asian, and multiracial students. Hispanic enrollment is modest. More than ninety-nine percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a stark marker of the economic condition of the families Windber Elementary serves. The school did not report special education or English learner counts; state data on those populations is not available here.
Windber is a former coal-company town that has shrunk over decades. It retains a small, tree-lined walkable downtown grid with local businesses and restaurants, but the broader housing market is soft. Median home values in the 15963 zip code are well below state and national benchmarks, and vacancy rates are notable. Property tax increases have resumed after years of stability, with the district raising millage in 2023-24 and again in 2025-26 as pandemic-relief federal funds expired. In 2024, the school board also authorized borrowing for an athletic facility acquisition, a capital commitment that will carry long-term debt. For a family considering this area, housing cost is low, but the tax trajectory is upward and the economic foundation of the community remains fragile.
The school's strength in science stands out. The math and literacy proficiency rates are below half, suggesting a younger cohort where foundational skills in reading and number sense need strengthening. A parent may want to look into further with the school what targeted support is being offered in those areas, especially for students moving into middle school. State testing data for younger grades and enrollment trends over time were not available. The school offers no information on special programs, staffing, or instructional approaches that would help a parent understand the day-to-day learning environment or how it works to close proficiency gaps.
See more original research from School Decision →