Summary:
There are three elementary schools serving grades PK-5 in zip code 21613 (Cambridge, MD), all part of the Dorchester County Public Schools district, which faces significant systemic challenges as it ranks in the bottom 16% of Maryland districts.
Maple Elementary School is the standout performer in the area, earning a 2-star rating and ranking in the 31st percentile statewide—the only school showing a consistent upward trend. It has the highest enrollment (483 students), the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (24.5%), and the best academic results, with 19.8% proficiency in Math and 37.7% in English Language Arts. In contrast, Choptank Elementary School faces the most severe challenges, with a 0-star rating, a 94.98% Free and Reduced Lunch rate, and a staggering 46% chronic absenteeism rate. Its academic performance is critically low, including 0% proficiency in 5th-grade Math and Science. Sandy Hill Elementary sits in the middle with a 1-star rating, but its 39.5% chronic absenteeism rate is alarmingly high—nearly 16 percentage points above Maple's.
A key finding is that higher spending does not guarantee better results: Sandy Hill and Choptank spend over $25,000 per student, yet produce far worse outcomes than Maple, which spends $23,531. Chronic absenteeism emerges as the strongest predictor of performance, with a near-perfect inverse correlation to academic proficiency across all three schools. The extreme concentration of poverty at Choptank (nearly 95% FARL) appears to be a primary driver of its 46% absenteeism rate and catastrophic academic results. While Maple shows a positive trend, rising from the 14th to the 31st percentile over three years, all schools remain well below state averages in every subject, indicating systemic challenges tied to broader socioeconomic factors in the district.
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