Best Elementary Schools in Zip Code 20601

Zip code 20601 in Waldorf, MD, is home to two elementary schools—J. P. Ryon Elementary School and Malcolm Elementary School—both part of the Charles County Public Schools district, which serves grades PK-5 in a suburban community.

Malcolm Elementary School stands out as the stronger performer in this area. It ranks in the 39th percentile statewide (2 stars) for the 2025-2026 school year, compared to J. P. Ryon Elementary School’s 22nd percentile (1 star). Malcolm also boasts significantly better academic results: 41.1% of its students are proficient in English Language Arts (ELA) versus 27.1% at J. P. Ryon, and 23.2% are proficient in math versus 18.2%. The most critical difference is chronic absenteeism—Malcolm’s rate is 15.1%, while J. P. Ryon’s is a troubling 32.7%, more than double and well above the district average of 26.6%. This gap is a key driver of the performance divide, as high absenteeism directly hinders learning. Both schools spend generously per student ($18,854 at J. P. Ryon and $19,293 at Malcolm), indicating funding is not the issue; rather, the challenge at J. P. Ryon is how resources are applied amid higher poverty levels, with 68.44% of its students receiving free/reduced lunch compared to 50.12% at Malcolm.

Despite Malcolm’s overall strength, it has a notable weakness in 5th-grade math, where only 6.6% of students are proficient—far below the district (18.6%) and state (30.2%) averages. This contrasts sharply with its strong 3rd-grade math performance (37.3%), suggesting a potential curriculum or instruction gap in upper grades. Meanwhile, J. P. Ryon has seen a ranking improvement from the 4th percentile in 2023-2024 to its current 22nd percentile, but this likely reflects other schools declining rather than a dramatic turnaround, as its 5th-grade math proficiency (13.1%) remains alarmingly low. For parents, Malcolm Elementary offers a more stable and higher-performing environment, while J. P. Ryon Elementary faces significant socioeconomic and attendance challenges that impact its academic outcomes.