The top reported proficiency rate is 46% in English language arts. The lowest is 43% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Romney Elementary School
Romney Elementary School sits in the small rural town of Romney, the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia. The town has colonial-era roots and a quiet, small-town texture with limited commercial activity. It is home to the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind, a state institution and major employer that anchors the community alongside county government offices. Residents are heavily car-dependent, with most driving alone to work. A few fixed bus routes run through town via the Potomac Valley Transit Authority, but daily life centers on personal vehicles. The town has been experiencing population decline, though employment and median household income have shown modest recent growth. Housing in the area is affordable by national standards, with typical home values well below the national benchmark and a price-to-income ratio that looks reasonable compared to much of the country.
The school served pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within Hampshire County Schools. Its enrollment was modest for an elementary school, with students fairly evenly distributed across each grade level. The student body was overwhelmingly white, with very small numbers of students identifying as Black, Hispanic, or two or more races. Data on free and reduced-price lunch eligibility was not reported, and information on students with individualized education programs or English learners was not available, so the full economic and special-population picture of the school is incomplete from what was provided.
State assessment results from the most recent reported year offer a mixed academic picture. In math, third-grade proficiency was on the lower side, while fourth and fifth grades performed better, landing in a middling range. English language arts showed a similar pattern, with third grade being the weakest and fourth grade standing out as the strongest, with more than half of tested fourth graders reaching proficiency. Fifth-grade ELA landed in the middle. In science, only fifth grade was tested, and just under half of those students demonstrated proficiency. Participation rates were strong across all tested grades and subjects, which means the results reflect nearly the entire eligible student body. No trend data was available to show whether performance is improving or declining over time. No average scale scores were reported, so the proficiency rates are the sole academic measure on record.
Because the school serves only elementary grades, there are no graduation rate, no middle school assessment results, and no high school course or program offerings to report. The absence of those measures reflects the grade band, not a gap in reporting. Information on staffing, discipline, attendance, and civil rights topics was also not available in the data provided, so a parent looking into those areas would need to contact the school or district directly.
One critical piece of context that a parent should know is that Romney Elementary School has been consolidated out of existence. According to publicly reported information, Hampshire County Schools opened three new consolidated elementary schools between December 2024 and February 2025. South Branch Elementary, which opened in February 2025, replaced Romney Elementary along with John J. Cornwell Elementary and Springfield-Green Spring Elementary. This restructured the district's elementary attendance map. The assessment data and profile here describe the school as it operated in the prior school year, before consolidation. A family considering this area should look into South Branch Elementary, the new school that now serves Romney-area elementary students, to understand current programming, staffing, and enrollment.
For families living in or considering Romney, the community offers affordable housing, a quiet rural setting, and the civic anchors of a county seat. The academic results at the former Romney Elementary were uneven across grades and subjects, with some bright spots in fourth grade and some softer results in third grade. Whether the new consolidated school carries forward or changes that pattern is an open question worth asking the district about directly.
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