Best Public Schools in Zip Code 20032

ZIP code 20032 in Washington, DC contains 23 schools serving 8,064 students across elementary, middle, and high school grades, blending District of Columbia Public Schools campuses with public charter schools from networks such as KIPP DC PCS, Friendship PCS, and Center City PCS. The area includes 13 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, and 5 high schools, with enrollment ranging from 193 students at King Elementary School to 797 at Ingenuity Prep PCS. Median enrollment is roughly 307 students, making most schools small to mid-sized.

The clear academic leader is Learn DC PCS, which ranks 24th of 124 DC elementary schools with 58.5% ELA and 46.2% math proficiency, both well above state averages. Center City PCS - Congress Heights also stands out with 54.3% ELA and 36.2% math proficiency, far ahead of its own network's averages. Among middle schools, Friendship PCS - Southeast Middle ranks 15th of 67 DC middle schools with strong reading results across 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. At the high school level, Friendship PCS - Technology Preparatory High School and Bard High School Early College DC both rank in the top 12 of 36 DC high schools with graduation rates near 92%. Leckie Education Campus is the strongest traditional DCPS school in the ZIP code, with 8th grade ELA proficiency of 55.6%.

The defining weakness across the area is math proficiency. Only Learn DC and Center City exceed the state average of 28.2%, while KIPP DC PCS - Legacy College Preparatory PCS (2.7%), Ballou High School (3.0%), and Hart Middle School (5.7%) land in single digits. ELA results are also uneven, with severe struggles at Simon Elementary School (7.3% proficiency). Graduation rates vary dramatically, from 91.9% at Bard DC to 19.8% at Ballou STAY High School, which serves a nontraditional student population. Several high schools post graduation rates above the DC average despite low test scores, and high per-pupil spending ($24,967-$41,366) with low student-teacher ratios does not guarantee strong outcomes. Performance varies widely even within the same charter networks.