Summary:
The four public schools in zip code 20794 (Jessup, MD) serve students from Pre-K through 12th grade across two different districts, Howard County Public Schools and Anne Arundel County Public Schools, and are characterized by high economic diversity, with an average free and reduced-price lunch rate of 47.3%.
The most critical concern in this area is Guilford Park High, which faces a severe crisis with a 16.6% graduation rate and a 41.6% dropout rate, far worse than its district averages. This school also has the highest chronic absenteeism rate (29.1%) and the lowest math proficiency (10.8%), despite having the highest spending per student ($21,328). In contrast, Jessup Elementary stands out as a bright spot, outperforming its Anne Arundel County district in several metrics, including 5th-grade ELA proficiency (57% vs. 49%) and 5th-grade science (43.6% vs. 37.8%). Bollman Bridge Elementary shows a positive trend, improving its state percentile rank from the 42nd to the 48th over three years, while Patuxent Valley Middle reveals a troubling "middle school dip" in math, with 8th-grade proficiency dropping to just 4%.
Overall, academic proficiency in the area is mixed: math scores average 22.2% (below the state's 27.1%), while ELA scores average 49.3% (slightly below the state's 51.7%). Chronic absenteeism is a significant issue, averaging 23.6% across all schools. There is no clear link between spending and outcomes, as Guilford Park High spends the most but performs the worst, while Jessup Elementary spends the least but shows strong relative performance. The district context is also key: Howard County is a top-tier district (ranked 4th in the state), meaning schools like Patuxent Valley Middle, which is at the 50th percentile statewide, are low performers within their own high-performing district, whereas Jessup Elementary shines within its mid-tier Anne Arundel County district (ranked 13th).
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