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Downey School

Q: Is Downey School a good school?

Downey School ranks in the bottom 0.0% of Pennsylvania elementary schools.

Q: How many students attend Downey School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 405 students attended Downey School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Downey School?

Students at Downey School are 50% African American, 40% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races, 1% White.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

1511^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,511 Pennsylvania Elementary Schools

Better than 0% of Pennsylvania elementary schools

Summary

Downey School is an elementary school in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, serving 406 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the Harrisburg City School District, which is ranked 579 out of 606 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Downey School's academic performance is significantly below state and district averages. In the 2024-2025 school year, the school's proficiency rates in PSSA Math and English Language Arts (ELA) were only 3.4% and 2.7%, respectively, compared to the state averages of 41.7% and 48.5%. The school's performance is particularly concerning for certain student subgroups, ranking among the lowest in the state for African American and Hispanic students in PSSA Math. Despite relatively high spending per student, ranging from $12,072 to $24,370 over the past few years, Downey School has consistently ranked among the lowest-performing elementary schools in Pennsylvania.

When comparing Downey School to other nearby schools within the Harrisburg City School District, the academic performance gap is significant. For example, Foose School and Benjamin Franklin School have proficiency rates that are nearly double those of Downey School in both Math and ELA. Expanding the comparison to schools outside the district, the performance gap becomes even more pronounced, with schools like West Creek Hills Elementary and Washington Heights Elementary having proficiency rates that are 10-15 times higher than Downey School.

405

Students ?

13.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,596

Per pupil spending ?

100.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1313 Monroe St
Harrisburg, PA 17103

(717) 703-1240

District: Harrisburg City School District

Racial breakdown:

African American:

49.9%

Hispanic:

39.5%

Two or more races:

8.6%

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Compare Downey School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 3rd percentile in 2015 → <1st in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Pennsylvania average (3% vs 45% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (<1st percentile)

!English Language Arts scores 46 pts below the Pennsylvania average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school3%

District avg10%

Pennsylvania avg45%

1,511^th of 1,511

Pennsylvania public elementary schools ?

Bottom 1%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

From bottom 3% (2015) to bottom 1% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Pennsylvania Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 5Elementary Schools in the Harrisburg City School District

579^th of 606Harrisburg City School District among Pennsylvania 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	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	2.6	1511 of 1511	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.2	1525 of 1526	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	2.3	1533 of 1534	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.5	1527 of 1534	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	4.0	1402 of 1433	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.8	1541 of 1544	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	1.4	1529 of 1530	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	3.1	1501 of 1547	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	2.5	1527 of 1554	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	3.4	1427 of 1474	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	9.4	412 of 413	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.9	435 of 437	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.2	433 of 437	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2024	18.7	189 of 200	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	16.0	188 of 196	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	2.3	1466 of 1466	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.0	1488 of 1488	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	7.4	427 of 429	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.1	454 of 454	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.9	431 of 432	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	4.1	1369 of 1369	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.0	1430 of 1432	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.3	1413 of 1414	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	3.4	1471 of 1475	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.7	1494 of 1495	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

English Language Learner (2024)6th percentile+5 vs school

Hispanic (2025)<1st percentile~ school

Male (2025)<1st percentile~ school

African American (2025)<1st percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)<1st percentile~ school

Female (2025)<1st percentile~ school

By subject vs Pennsylvania (2024-2025) ?

Math3%-38 vs state

English Language Arts3%-46 vs state

★

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Schools Near Downey School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				PSSA Math (2025)				PSSA English Language Arts (2025)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSSA Math 3rd Grade	PSSA Math 4th Grade	PSSA Math 5th Grade	PSSA Math All Grades	PSSA English Language Arts 3rd Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 4th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 5th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Downey School	Public	PK, KG-5	1313 Monroe St	Harrisburg	17103	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 703-1240	405	31	13.2	100.7%	6 (1.5%)	202 (49.9%)	160 (39.5%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (8.6%)	2.6	1511^th of 1511 public elementary schools	0.0%		2.2	1525^th of 1526 public elementary schools	0.1%	14	2.1	6.1	1.9	3.4	2.2	4.1	1.9	2.7	$24,596	$82	$24,514
Benjamin Franklin School	Public	PK, KG-5	1205 N 6th Street	Harrisburg	17110	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 703-1200	678	66	10.2	109.1%	28 (4.1%)	307 (45.3%)	291 (42.9%)	12 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (5.9%)	3.8	1500^th of 1511 public elementary schools	0.7%		3.7	1502^nd of 1526 public elementary schools	1.6%	2	6.0	1.2	3.4	3.6	14.3	8.6	7.0	10.0	$23,011	$77	$22,934
Scott at Lincoln School	Public	K-5	1601 State St	Harrisburg	17103	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 703-4560	484	30	16.5	101.0%	6 (1.2%)	203 (41.9%)	258 (53.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.5%)	4	1495^th of 1511 public elementary schools	1.1%		3	1519^th of 1526 public elementary schools	0.5%	24	5.1	9.1	1.3	4.6	6.4	5.6	13.0	8.6	$21,248	$71	$21,176
Pennsylvania STEAM Academy Charter School	Public, Charter	K-6	1500 North Third Street	Harrisburg	17102	Dauphin County	Pennsylvania STEAM Academy Charter School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(717) 884-0950	360	22	16.3	77.5%	26 (7.2%)	241 (66.9%)	79 (21.9%)	6 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	7 (1.9%)	20.1	1198^th of 1511 public elementary schools	20.7%		20.7	1209^th of 1526 public elementary schools	20.8%	11	55.0	17.5	13.1	28.9	32.5	22.5	15.8	23.7	$14,465	$1,070	$13,395
Steele School	Public	K-5	2537 N 5th St	Harrisburg	17110	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(717) 703-4000	362	21	16.9		21 (5.8%)	160 (44.2%)	133 (36.7%)	15 (4.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (8.8%)								(n/a)
Melrose School	Public	K-5	2041 Berryhill St	Harrisburg	17104	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 703-1440	536	34	16.0	112.9%	24 (4.5%)	198 (36.9%)	247 (46.1%)	29 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (7.1%)	10.5	1345^th of 1511 public elementary schools	11.0%		5.3	1460^th of 1526 public elementary schools	4.3%	115	16.0	26.2	12.4	18.1	16.5	25.0	12.3	17.9	$22,276	$75	$22,201
Sylvan Heights Science Charter School	Public, Charter	K-4	915 S 13th Street	Harrisburg	17104	Dauphin County	Sylvan Heights Science Charter School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(717) 232-9220	217	15	14.7	96.3%	4 (1.8%)	148 (68.2%)	57 (26.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.7%)	15.3	1267^th of 1511 public elementary schools	16.1%		16.9	1259^th of 1526 public elementary schools	17.5%	8	28.2	22.5		25.3	22.5	31.7		27.2	$18,585	$4,371	$14,215
Foose School	Public	PK, KG-5	1301 Sycamore St	Harrisburg	17104	Dauphin County	Harrisburg City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 703-1280	522	46	11.2	97.9%	13 (2.5%)	201 (38.5%)	279 (53.4%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.0%)	5	1485^th of 1511 public elementary schools	1.7%		3.4	1510^th of 1526 public elementary schools	1.0%	25	8.1	4.3	5.1	5.8	5.3	14.3	15.0	11.6	$23,539	$78	$23,461
Washington Heights Elementary School	Public	K-4	531 Walnut St	Lemoyne	17043	Cumberland County	West Shore School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 761-8040	324	26	12.7	68.5%	150 (46.3%)	64 (19.8%)	55 (17.0%)	20 (6.2%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	31 (9.6%)	50	823^rd of 1511 public elementary schools	45.5%		44.4	955^th of 1526 public elementary schools	37.4%	132	55.5	45.9		50.5	44.6	50.9		47.9	$21,672	$1,212	$20,460
Sara Lindemuth Elementary School	Public	K-2	1201 N Progress Ave	Harrisburg	17109	Dauphin County	Susquehanna Township School District	No	No	No	Yes	(717) 657-5122	758	44	17.1	73.2%	134 (17.7%)	227 (29.9%)	133 (17.5%)	150 (19.8%)	2 (0.3%)	4 (0.5%)	108 (14.2%)								(n/a)									$15,583	$1,078	$14,505

Frequently Asked Questions about Downey School

How many students attend Downey School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 405 students attended Downey School.

Is Downey School a good school?

Downey School ranks in the bottom 0.0% of Pennsylvania elementary schools.

What district is Downey School in?

Harrisburg City School District

What is the racial makeup of Downey School?

Students at Downey School are 50% African American, 40% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races, 1% White.

Rate Downey School!

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PAPennsylvania Elementary School Rankings

PAPennsylvania District Rankings

Schools in Harrisburg, PA

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Latest Pennsylvania data All new data »

2024–25 graduation ratesMar 29, 2026

2024–25 dropout ratesMar 27, 2026

2023–24 school spending dataJan 29, 2026

2024–25 Keystone Exams & PSSA scoresNov 13, 2025

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