Chapman School

Chapman School in Anchor Point, AK, is a small combined elementary and middle school within the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District, serving 168 students in grades PK–8 in a rural community just north of Homer. About 51% of its students qualify for free/reduced-price lunch, which is a higher share than nearby Homer elementary schools, though its 12.4:1 student-teacher ratio points to a supportive staffing level. The school has moved from elite performance a decade ago — an 88th-percentile, 4-star ranking in 2014-15 — to a more middling 2-star, 41st-percentile rating in 2025-26.

Compared with West Homer Elementary and Fireweed Academy, Chapman’s test scores are a concern. Overall English language arts proficiency is 32.5% versus 53.4% at West Homer and 50.9% at Fireweed; math is 38.1% versus 53.7% and 49.1%. Perhaps the most striking figure is 3rd-grade reading: only 15.8% of Chapman students are proficient compared with the district average of 33.7%. Middle school math is also a challenge, with 8th-grade math at 30.4% proficiency versus 40.8% districtwide.

There are bright spots: Chapman has outperformed district and state averages in science in every reported year, including a 71% proficiency rate in 2023-24. Its 5th-grade cohort topped West Homer in math and nearly matched it in science in the latest testing cycle. And parents should know that Chapman’s economically disadvantaged students rank in the 60th percentile statewide, with past years as high as the 78th percentile, suggesting that the school supports low-income learners well. Because Chapman spans PK–8 while the Homer schools end at 6th grade, its overall results include older students, so grade-by-grade data is worth examining closely before making comparisons.