The top reported proficiency rate is 89% in Math. The lowest is 57% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Holz Elementary School
Holz Elementary School sits on Hampton Road in Charleston, the state capital and cultural center of West Virginia. A regular public school in the Kanawha County Schools district, it serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The enrollment is modest for its grade band, with fairly even distribution across the early grades, and the student body is predominantly white with small representations of Black, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, Pacific Islander, and multiracial students.
The academic results from the most recent state assessments are strong, particularly in the early tested grades. Third graders posted exceptionally high proficiency in both math and English language arts, with nearly all tested students clearing the state bar. Fourth grade held close to that level in math and dipped only modestly in ELA. By fifth grade, math proficiency declined somewhat and science proficiency fell further, sitting at a level where roughly half the tested students met the standard. This is the clearest soft spot in the data, and a parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly how the upper elementary science instruction connects to the transition year. Participation rates were full or near-full across all tested grades, which means the results reflect the actual student body rather than a partial sample. Average scale scores were not reported, so the proficiency figures are the only window into performance the state provides here.
No multi-year trend data is available, so it is impossible to say whether these results represent a stable pattern or a single-year snapshot. Free-or-reduced-price lunch counts, individualized education program data, and English learner counts were all missing from the available data, so the economic and special-population context for the school cannot be characterized from what was provided.
Charleston itself is a small capital city anchored by state government employment, healthcare, and a legacy chemical manufacturing sector. The Kanawha River runs through downtown, with Haddad Riverfront Park hosting festivals like the Sternwheel Regatta and FestivALL. The Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences, the state capitol complex, and the Kanawha County Public Library system serve as civic and cultural anchors. Three interstates converge in the city, making it car-dependent outside the walkable downtown core. Publicly reported sources note that Charleston's population has been declining modestly in recent years, and the development trajectory leans toward downtown revitalization rather than large-scale new housing expansion.
The housing market around Holz reflects this context. The typical home value in the school's zip code sits above the statewide benchmark for West Virginia but well below the national figure, and the year-over-year appreciation has been modest. The estimated monthly mortgage on a typical home is quite manageable relative to national income norms, and renting remains cheaper than owning by a wide margin in this area. For a family weighing the cost of living against school quality, the housing here is relatively affordable compared with much of the country.
Kanawha County Schools, the parent district, did not return evidence of recent parent-relevant changes such as levy votes, consolidation decisions, or curriculum overhauls in the available research, so there is nothing to report on that front. Information on specific programs, magnet status, Title I designation, discipline data, staffing ratios, and course access was either absent or not provided, which leaves gaps in the picture of day-to-day school environment.
What the data does show is a small, neighborhood elementary school with strong early-grade academic results, a mostly homogeneous student body, and a fifth-grade science result that stands apart from the otherwise solid performance. Families looking at this school would be choosing a setting in an established Charleston neighborhood, with access to the cultural amenities of a state capital, at a housing cost that runs below national levels. The absence of economic and special-population data means questions about how the school serves students from different income levels or with different learning needs should be directed to the school directly.
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