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Test scores delayed: 2025-2026 science scores will be released by the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education in October, at which point rankings will be updated.

Center City PCS - Capitol Hill

Public, Charter Grades PK, KG-8

117^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 124 District Of Columbia Elementary Schools

Better than 6% of District Of Columbia elementary schools

Summary

Center City PCS - Capitol Hill is a small PK–8 public charter school in Washington, DC's Capitol Hill neighborhood, serving 257 students across ten grade levels. The school is part of the Center City PCS charter network, but it is performing far below both the network and the District of Columbia Public Schools. In 2025-26, the school ranked 117th out of 124 DC schools, placing it in the 6th percentile with a 0-star rating — a dramatic drop from just a few years ago when it ranked in the 59th percentile in 2011-12 and even the 39th percentile in 2021-22.

Academically, the school's results are deeply concerning. Only 13% of students were proficient in ELA and 10.3% in math in 2025-26, far below the DC state averages of 39.6% and 28.2%, and also below the Center City PCS network's averages of 30.7% in ELA and 21.9% in math. Grade-level scores are particularly low in early grades, with 3rd grade ELA proficiency at just 4.4% and 3rd grade math at 8.7%. Outcomes for the school's African American students ranked in the 6th percentile statewide, and low socioeconomic status students ranked in the 4th percentile. The one bright spot is 8th grade math, where 27.8% proficiency exceeds both the District of Columbia Public Schools average of 21.7% and the state average of 24.7%.

What makes this particularly hard to understand for parents is the contrast with nearby schools. Within a mile, several schools achieve dramatically better results: Maury Elementary (80.6% proficiency in both ELA and math, ranked 5th), Ludlow-Taylor Elementary (72.1% ELA and 56.5% math, ranked 19th), and Shirley Chisholm Elementary (49% ELA and 48.5% math, ranked 26th) all outperform the school by wide margins. Only Miner Elementary performs at a similar low level. The school spends $28,984 per student, more than Maury Elementary, Ludlow-Taylor Elementary, Watkins Elementary, Shirley Chisholm Elementary, and Payne Elementary, yet gets far less in return. This is a school that appears to be on a rapid downward trajectory, and families considering it should weigh these trends carefully.

257

Students ?

10.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$29,008

Per pupil spending ?

99.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1503 East Capitol Street SE
Washington, DC 20003

(202) 547-7556

District: Center City PCS

Racial breakdown:

African American:

89.9%

Two or more races:

7.0%

Hispanic:

2.7%

See top rated District Of Columbia elementary schools

Compare Center City PCS - Capitol Hill to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 59th percentile in 2012 → 6th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the District Of Columbia average (12% vs 34% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (6th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 53 percentile points since 2012

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school12%

District avg26%

District Of Columbia avg34%

Elementary school

117^th of 124

District Of Columbia public elementary schools ?

Bottom 6%▼ down 42 pts since 2018

From bottom 48% (2018) to bottom 6% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of District Of Columbia Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

50^th of 68

District Of Columbia public middle schools ?

Bottom 26%▲ up 3 pts since 2018

See the entire ranking list of District Of Columbia Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 4Elementary Schools in the Center City PCS

31^st of 46Center City PCS among District Of Columbia districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	13.9	117 of 124	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	22.0	101 of 128	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.7	85 of 126	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.0	82 of 128	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.4	59 of 97	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	27.4	89 of 122	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.5	63 of 120	47.5%	★★☆☆☆
2015	17.4	90 of 97	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	25.1	85 of 109	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	53.5	46 of 112	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2011	47.4	48 of 111	56.8%	★★★☆☆
2010	28.6	84 of 111	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	17.5	90 of 96	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	30.5	77 of 108	28.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	15.8	59 of 60	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	41.8	21 of 35	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.6	67 of 106	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	52.0	46 of 100	54.0%	★★★☆☆

At Risk

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	48.5	42 of 91	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	70.9	22 of 90	75.6%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	31.1	82 of 117	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.8	61 of 110	44.5%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	18.8	77 of 80	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	39.3	60 of 92	34.8%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	22.4	97 of 113	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.7	61 of 113	46.0%	★★☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	26.4	50 of 68	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	28.7	48 of 69	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.3	45 of 70	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	22.5	61 of 69	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	35.1	48 of 75	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	27.3	55 of 72	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	27.0	37 of 49	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	52.4	30 of 57	47.4%	★★★☆☆
2012	58.9	23 of 57	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2011	50.4	27 of 57	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2010	33.2	39 of 56	30.4%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	36.7	40 of 62	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	34.2	39 of 68	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	46.8	14 of 27	48.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	43.2	32 of 55	41.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.6	41 of 55	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆

At Risk

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	42.6	28 of 50	44.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.0	27 of 46	41.3%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	38.6	33 of 52	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.4	40 of 53	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	32.9	39 of 52	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	50.9	28 of 64	56.3%	★★★☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Elementary school

At Risk (2019)54th percentile+27 vs school

Female (2019)30th percentile+3 vs school

Male (2019)14th percentile-13 vs school

African American (2026)6th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)4th percentile~ school

Middle school

At Risk (2019)44th percentile+8 vs school

Female (2019)37th percentile~ school

African American (2026)35th percentile+9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)25th percentile~ school

By subject vs District Of Columbia (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts13%-27 vs state

Mathematics10%-18 vs state

★

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Schools Near Center City PCS - Capitol Hill

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				DC CAPE English Language Arts (2026)							DC CAPE Mathematics (2026)							Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2016)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	DC CAPE English Language Arts 3rd Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 4th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 5th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 6th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 7th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 8th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts All Grades	DC CAPE Mathematics 3rd Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 4th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 5th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 6th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 7th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 8th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Center City PCS - Capitol Hill	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	1503 East Capitol Street SE	Washington	20003	District Of Columbia	Center City PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 547-7556	257	25	10.2	99.2%	0 (0.0%)	231 (89.9%)	7 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.0%)	13.9	117^th of 124 public elementary schools	5.6%		22	101^st of 128 public elementary schools	21.1%	16	4.4	10.7		14.2	11.2		13.0	8.7	10.7	4.6	3.6	11.2	27.8	10.3	$29,008	$2,215	$26,793
Payne Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1445 C St. SE	Washington	20003	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 698-3262	398	33	12.0	100.0%	143 (35.9%)	205 (51.5%)	23 (5.8%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (6.0%)	70.5	27^th of 124 public elementary schools	78.2%		68.5	27^th of 128 public elementary schools	78.9%		54.2	42.5	42.8				46.7	65.9	42.5	42.8				50.7	$27,406	$2,380	$25,027
Maury Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1250 Constitution Ave. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 698-3838	559	38	14.7	22.7%	332 (59.4%)	113 (20.2%)	51 (9.1%)	18 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	44 (7.9%)	97.1	5^th of 124 public elementary schools	96.0%		92.3	15^th of 128 public elementary schools	88.3%	10	74.7	86.7	81.1				80.6	88.0	77.9	75.4				80.6	$21,634	$2,088	$19,546
Watkins Elementary School (Capitol Hill Cluster)	Public	K-5	420 12th St. SE	Washington	20003	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 698-3355	415	30	13.8	33.5%	94 (22.7%)	273 (65.8%)	22 (5.3%)	6 (1.4%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	16 (3.9%)	64.2	36^th of 124 public elementary schools	71.0%		61.2	33^rd of 128 public elementary schools	74.2%	3	35.2	51.5	51.8				46.9	47.9	50.5	26.0				41.7	$22,287	$2,067	$20,220
Miner Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	601 15th St. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 397-3960	433	39	11.2	100.0%	58 (13.4%)	345 (79.7%)	20 (4.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.1%)	10.6	123^rd of 124 public elementary schools	0.8%		12.9	126^th of 128 public elementary schools	1.6%	3		4.1	2.5				5.4		6.3	2.4				6.0	$33,217	$2,671	$30,547
Friendship PCS - Blow Pierce Elementary	Public, Charter	PK, KG-3	725 19th Street NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	Friendship PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 572-1070	271	25	10.7	99.3%	1 (0.4%)	266 (98.2%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)															$34,253	$2,746	$31,506
Friendship PCS - Chamberlain Elementary	Public, Charter	PK, KG-3	1345 Potomac Avenue SE	Washington	20003	District Of Columbia	Friendship PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 547-5800	256	26	9.7	99.2%	1 (0.4%)	246 (96.1%)	9 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	29.6							37.1							$35,028	$2,492	$32,536
Shirley Chisholm Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1001 G St. SE	Washington	20003	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 939-4810	542	46	11.7	100.0%	122 (22.5%)	298 (55.0%)	86 (15.9%)	5 (0.9%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (5.4%)	71.5	26^th of 124 public elementary schools	79.0%		68.1	28^th of 128 public elementary schools	78.1%	2	49.1	54.6	43.4				49.0	56.4	52.7	35.9				48.5	$25,435	$2,422	$23,013
Peabody Elementary School (Capitol Hill Cluster)	Public	PK-K	425 C St. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 698-3277	209	17	12.6	17.6%	125 (59.8%)	56 (26.8%)	13 (6.2%)	6 (2.9%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.8%)								(n/a)															$25,023	$2,098	$22,924
Ludlow-Taylor Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	659 G St. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 698-3244	489	36	13.5	100.0%	252 (51.5%)	161 (32.9%)	26 (5.3%)	8 (1.6%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	39 (8.0%)	85.3	19^th of 124 public elementary schools	84.7%		82.2	17^th of 128 public elementary schools	86.7%	2	70.8	76.1	68.0				72.1	69.4	59.2	34.0				56.5	$23,406	$2,090	$21,316

Frequently Asked Questions about Center City PCS - Capitol Hill

What is the racial makeup of Center City PCS - Capitol Hill?

Students at Center City PCS - Capitol Hill are 90% African American, 7% Two or more races, 3% Hispanic.

How many students attend Center City PCS - Capitol Hill?

In the 2024-25 school year, 257 students attended Center City PCS - Capitol Hill.

Is Center City PCS - Capitol Hill a good school?

Center City PCS - Capitol Hill ranks in the bottom 5.6% of District Of Columbia elementary schools.

What district is Center City PCS - Capitol Hill in?

Center City PCS

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Latest District Of Columbia data All new data »

2024–25 school spending dataSep 2, 2026

2025–26 DC CAPE test scoresAug 20, 2026

2024–25 DC Science test scoresDec 5, 2025

2024–25 graduation ratesDec 4, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.