Glennallen Elementary

Glennallen Elementary is a small rural school in Glennallen, AK, serving 126 students in grades PK–5 within the Copper River School District. The school has improved dramatically over the past decade, climbing from the 31st percentile statewide in 2014–2015 to a peak of the 74th percentile in 2024–2025. It currently ranks 71st out of 166 Alaska elementary schools (57th percentile) with a 3-star rating, a strong showing for a school in a remote area with a high-poverty population.

Academically, the school's clearest strengths are English Language Arts and science. ELA proficiency stands at 44.44%, well above the state average of 32.89%, and appears to climb through the grades, reaching about 58% in 5th grade. Fifth-grade science proficiency is 52.63%, compared with the state's 44.04%—although that is down from an extraordinary 80% the prior year. Such swings are common with small cohorts, where a few students can shift results sharply. Math proficiency, at 33.33%, tracks close to Alaska's 32.20% average. Overall, Glennallen generally outperforms district and state averages in ELA and math, while the Copper River district itself ranks 8th among 23 Alaska districts.

The most pressing concern is rising economic disadvantage. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility jumped from about 49% to 71% in just two years, while the student-teacher ratio rose from 13.3 to 16.1. Low-income and migrant students currently rank near the 25th percentile statewide, well below the school's overall standing. A wide gender gap has also emerged, with female students ranking in the 66th percentile and male students in the 30th. On a positive note, the school is comparatively effective for its Native American students, who rank above the school's overall percentile. Glennallen is a school that has made genuine progress, but sustaining those gains will require focused support for its most vulnerable students.