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James A. Garfield Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

1221^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,560 Ohio Elementary Schools

Better than 22% of Ohio elementary schools

Summary

James A. Garfield Elementary School is a PK–5 school in Marion, Ohio, serving 343 students as part of the Marion City school district.

By state rankings, Garfield is a below-average school that is slowly improving: it placed 1221st of 1560 Ohio elementary schools in 2025–26 (22nd percentile, 1 star), up from the 13th percentile in 2023–24 and the 10th percentile in 2018–19. That is real progress, but it still leaves the school in the bottom quarter statewide. Within Marion City, Garfield sits mid-pack — ahead of William McKinley Elementary School and George Washington Elementary School, roughly level with William H. Taft Elementary School, and behind Benjamin Harrison Elementary School and Rutherford B. Hayes Elementary School. Test proficiency is close to the district average but far below the state: about 43% across tested subjects, versus roughly 64% statewide. Fifth grade is the bright spot, with Garfield beating the district in Math 5 (44.7% vs 36.8%) and ELA 5 (57.9% vs 53.7%), though still below state levels. Chronic absenteeism has dropped sharply from 62.9% in 2021–22 to 27.6% in 2025–26, now below the district average.

Compared with nearby schools outside Marion City, Garfield lags well behind. Heritage Elementary School, Elgin Elementary School, Ridgedale Elementary School, and Pleasant Elementary School all rank substantially higher, and Heritage's chronic absenteeism is just 7.2% versus Garfield's 27.6%. On staffing, Garfield's student-teacher ratio of 13.1 (2024–25) is lower than most nearby schools despite lower per-student spending ($7,667 in 2018–19). Subgroup results are uneven: special education students ranked 57th percentile in 2024–25, a relative strength, while gifted and talented students ranked 8th percentile in 2025–26.

343

Students ?

13.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,103

Per pupil spending ?

81.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1170 Brookside Rd
Marion, OH 43302-5900

(740) 223-4444

District: Marion City

Students who attend James A. Garfield Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Ulysses S. Grant Middle School
High:	Harding High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

72.0%

Two or more races:

14.0%

Hispanic:

8.5%

See top rated Ohio elementary schools

Compare James A. Garfield Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 20th percentile in 2016 → 22nd in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Ohio average (43% vs 64% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (22nd percentile)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school43%

District avg43%

Ohio avg64%

1,221^st of 1,560

Ohio public elementary schools ?

Bottom 22%▲ up 2 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of Ohio Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 6Elementary Schools in the Marion City

650^th of 773Marion City among Ohio districts

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

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	23.3	1221 of 1560	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.8	1276 of 1558	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.2	1367 of 1577	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.8	1308 of 1596	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.9	1263 of 1588	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.8	1319 of 1610	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	10.3	1503 of 1676	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.3	1315 of 1636	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	17.7	1358 of 1651	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	19.5	1350 of 1678	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	24.2	1339 of 1684	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	28.9	1317 of 1687	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	27.1	1352 of 1701	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	33.4	1318 of 1709	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	43.1	1202 of 1686	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	38.3	1225 of 1662	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	18.5	1389 of 1610	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	18.2	1370 of 1582	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	14.1	1435 of 1609	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	14.4	1357 of 1504	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	21.8	1281 of 1501	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2022	23.4	678 of 824	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	15.4	946 of 1021	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	15.1	1235 of 1452	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.7	1316 of 1452	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.2	1364 of 1466	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.2	1314 of 1483	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.6	1228 of 1488	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.1	1222 of 1467	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	6.5	1410 of 1502	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	33.7	1111 of 1518	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	18.9	83 of 90	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	29.4	1110 of 1467	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.2	1184 of 1473	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.5	1281 of 1484	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.7	1163 of 1447	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.4	1096 of 1419	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.6	1145 of 1404	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	14.4	1306 of 1465	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.4	1143 of 1465	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	30.1	1076 of 1467	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	24.5	1131 of 1466	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.7	1272 of 1485	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.1	1237 of 1498	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.2	1253 of 1518	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	7.6	1356 of 1499	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.7	1350 of 1535	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.6	1365 of 1536	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2025	47.9	402 of 935	57.0%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Ohio percentile	Rating
2026	8.4	1118 of 1181	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	6.7	1117 of 1175	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.8	1167 of 1190	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	1.6	1197 of 1215	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	2.9	1199 of 1242	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	1.8	1220 of 1249	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.3	1253 of 1271	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	4.6	1269 of 1309	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Special Education (2025)57th percentile+39 vs school

Male (2026)27th percentile+5 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)24th percentile+3 vs school

Disabled (2022)18th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2026)15th percentile-7 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)8th percentile-14 vs school

White (2026)5th percentile-16 vs school

By subject vs Ohio (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts47%-18 vs state

Mathematics44%-19 vs state

Science32%-31 vs state

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What people are saying

by a parent
Monday, October 29, 2012

Greetings! My name is Jeff Street, I'm the PTA President at Garfield. I've had many conversations with the principle about how the 2 5th grade teachers talk and treat the students. They yell,scream,intimadate and humiliate the students. Up until the last couple weeks it was a rule at lunch to take a childs lunch and throw it away and make them stand with their nose against the wall . This would happen for something as simple as talking when told not to. I've had conversations with the superintendent about what is going on at Garfield and was told that he has never seen it their for it does not happen.It has come down to me reaching out to the parents and grouping together in order to try to make changes in this school.This is the worst school I have ever seen and Marion City Schools is a horrible district! Close Quote

Schools Near James A. Garfield Elementary School

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Ranking:

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				Ohio State Tests Science (2026)	Ohio State Tests Mathematics (2026)				Ohio State Tests English Language Arts (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	Ohio State Tests Science 5th Grade	Ohio State Tests Mathematics 3rd Grade	Ohio State Tests Mathematics 4th Grade	Ohio State Tests Mathematics 5th Grade	Ohio State Tests Mathematics 7th Grade	Ohio State Tests English Language Arts 3rd Grade	Ohio State Tests English Language Arts 4th Grade	Ohio State Tests English Language Arts 5th Grade	Ohio State Tests English Language Arts 7th Grade	Total
James A. Garfield Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1170 Brookside Rd	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4444	343	26	13.1	81.4%	247 (72.0%)	19 (5.5%)	29 (8.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (14.0%)	23.3	1221^st of 1560 public elementary schools	21.7%		18.8	1276^th of 1558 public elementary schools	18.1%	55	31.6	40.8	45.8	44.7		40.8	41.7	57.9		$11,103
William McKinley Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	925 Chatfield Rd	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4600	444	25	17.7	91.6%	332 (74.8%)	18 (4.1%)	34 (7.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	60 (13.5%)	18.5	1277^th of 1560 public elementary schools	18.1%		10.9	1390^th of 1558 public elementary schools	10.8%	113	31.0	34.4	46.8	32.8		35.5	37.1	56.9		$11,330
Rutherford B. Hayes Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	750 Silver St	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4950	230	18	12.7	83.1%	178 (77.4%)	10 (4.3%)	15 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (11.7%)	31.6	1114^th of 1560 public elementary schools	28.6%		32.9	1092^nd of 1558 public elementary schools	29.9%	22	47.1	45.9	41.4	58.8		40.5	41.4	66.7		$12,109
Benjamin Harrison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	625 Brightwood Dr	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4999	361	21	17.1	65.6%	245 (67.9%)	15 (4.2%)	37 (10.2%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	62 (17.2%)	35.7	1079^th of 1560 public elementary schools	30.8%		41.6	1004^th of 1558 public elementary schools	35.6%	75	49.0	51.2	50.9	54.0		51.2	42.9	64.7		$12,965
Academy of Arts and Technology	Public, Charter	K-8	1001 Mount Vernon Ave	Marion	43302	Marion County	Academy of Arts and Technology	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 914-3050	151	14	10.5		102 (67.5%)	32 (21.2%)	2 (1.3%)	1 (0.7%)	3 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (7.3%)	11	1393^rd of 1560 public elementary schools	10.7%		12	1367^th of 1558 public elementary schools	12.3%	26	20.0			30.0	20.0			40.0	30.0	$7,456
George Washington Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	400 Pennsylvania Ave	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-3883	452	28	16.1	95.3%	309 (68.4%)	15 (3.3%)	42 (9.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	86 (19.0%)	21	1246^th of 1560 public elementary schools	20.1%		21.5	1238^th of 1558 public elementary schools	20.5%	8	30.8	49.2	55.6	25.5		45.9	41.7	38.5		$10,775
William H. Taft Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1000 Robinson St	Marion	43302	Marion County	Marion City	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4500	377	22	17.1	93.8%	242 (64.2%)	33 (8.8%)	33 (8.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	68 (18.0%)	23.8	1213^th of 1560 public elementary schools	22.2%		21.7	1235^th of 1558 public elementary schools	20.7%	22	25.0	40.0	56.4	25.0		48.9	53.8	50.0		$12,928
Pleasant Elementary School	Public	K-4	1105 Owens Rd W	Marion	43302	Marion County	Pleasant Local	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 389-4815	480	32	15.0	47.4%	422 (87.9%)	7 (1.5%)	26 (5.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.0%)	57.4	771^st of 1560 public elementary schools	50.6%		61.5	710^th of 1558 public elementary schools	54.4%	61		72.6	62.5			73.6	54.2			$11,639
Elgin Elementary School	Public	K-5	1250 Keener Rd S	Marion	43302	Marion County	Elgin Local	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 223-4301	490	31	16.0	55.8%	449 (91.6%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.3%)	54.5	824^th of 1560 public elementary schools	47.2%		55.4	813^th of 1558 public elementary schools	47.8%	11	74.4	50.0	78.3	64.4		54.2	61.0	65.6		$11,938
Ridgedale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3105 Hillman Ford Rd	Morral	43337	Marion County	Ridgedale Local	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(740) 382-6065	306	21	14.4	54.7%	285 (93.1%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.9%)	42.1	1004^th of 1560 public elementary schools	35.6%		49.3	904^th of 1558 public elementary schools	42.0%	100	63.4	65.2	44.7	55.0		47.8	38.3	73.2		$14,114

Frequently Asked Questions about James A. Garfield Elementary School

What schools do graduates of James A. Garfield Elementary School attend?

Students who attend James A. Garfield Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Ulysses S. Grant Middle School
High : Harding High School

How many students attend James A. Garfield Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 343 students attended James A. Garfield Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of James A. Garfield Elementary School?

Students at James A. Garfield Elementary School are 72% White, 14% Two or more races, 8% Hispanic, 6% African American.

Is James A. Garfield Elementary School a good school?

James A. Garfield Elementary School ranks in the bottom 21.7% of Ohio elementary schools.

What district is James A. Garfield Elementary School in?

Marion City

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Latest Ohio data All new data »

2025–26 attendance data & graduation ratesSep 15, 2026

2025–26 Ohio State Tests scoresSep 15, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJan 6, 2026

2024–25 attendance data & graduation ratesSep 17, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Ohio Department 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.