Central Elementary, Ferndale WA - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Central Elementary

Central Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Ferndale, Washington, a city in Whatcom County. It is a regular public school within the Ferndale School District. The school enrolls a few hundred students, which is a typical size for an elementary school in its grade band.

The student body at Central Elementary is majority white, with a significant Hispanic population and a smaller but noticeable share of students who identify as two or more races. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a community with considerable economic need. Data on the number of students with individualized education programs or who are English learners was not available.

Academic performance at Central Elementary shows a mix of results across grade levels and subjects. In math, proficiency rates varied significantly by grade. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, as the strongest math performance came from fourth graders, while third and fifth graders posted considerably lower rates. In English language arts, fourth graders again stood out with a solidly proficient result, while third and fifth graders were at or below the midpoint. Fifth graders also took the state science assessment, where roughly half of students met proficiency. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages results across tested subjects and grades, placed it above the midpoint among districts in Whatcom County, though a few county districts posted higher composite numbers.

Because the state testing data available covers only a single year, there is no trend to describe. A multi-year view would provide a better sense of whether these numbers reflect a typical year or an outlier.

Central Elementary does not serve high school grades, so it has no graduation rate to report. Likewise, no data on chronic absenteeism or discipline was present.

Ferndale sits in the northern part of Whatcom County, near the Canadian border. It is a suburban community with a mix of residential neighborhoods and commercial corridors. The housing market in the area has experienced significant price appreciation, with home values and rents well above the national average. For a family considering moving here, the cost of housing is a meaningful factor. The broader economic context shows a national unemployment rate that has been stable, and mortgage rates have been at elevated levels, which influences affordability.

No information was available on specific programs offered at Central Elementary, such as special education services, gifted programs, or enrichment activities. A family with a student who has specific academic needs or interests would want to contact the school directly. Similarly, no details on the school’s staffing ratios or teacher qualifications were in the data.

The Ferndale School District, of which Central is a part, has been the subject of publicly reported discussions about funding, including referendum and bond measures in recent years. No curriculum changes were reported in the available material. A parent considering the district may want to investigate the district’s financial and facility planning, as these factors can shape the classroom experience.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 334%

School 34% · District 37% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 455%

School 55% · District 43% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 35% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 338%

School 38% · District 34% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▼ 9 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 462%

School 62% · District 43% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 43% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Science

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 47%

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolFerndale School District, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income30%Higher-income62%32 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income48%Higher-income76%29 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income36%Higher-income56%20 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income27%Higher-income54%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income33%Higher-income76%43 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income28%Higher-income36%8 pp gap