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Portage Area Elementary School

Q: Is Portage Area Elementary School a good school?

Portage Area Elementary School ranks 270 th of 1511 Pennsylvania elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-6

270^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,511 Pennsylvania Elementary Schools

Better than 82% of Pennsylvania elementary schools

Summary

Portage Area Elementary School is a public elementary school serving 413 students in grades PK-6 in Portage, Pennsylvania. The school is part of the Portage Area School District, which is ranked 147 out of 606 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Portage Area Elementary School consistently outperforms the state average in PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) Math and English Language Arts (ELA) scores across all grade levels. In 2024-2025, the school's overall PSSA Math proficiency rate was 71%, compared to the state average of 41.7%, and its PSSA ELA proficiency rate was 59.8%, compared to the state's 48.5%. The school's performance is particularly strong in Math, with 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade students scoring well above the state averages. Additionally, the school excels in supporting its low socioeconomic status (SES) students, ranking 113 out of 1,369 Pennsylvania elementary schools in this category for the 2024-2025 school year.

Compared to nearby schools, such as Foot of Ten Elementary, Conemaugh Valley Elementary, and Claysburg-Kimmel Elementary, Portage Area Elementary School outperforms them in academic metrics, including PSSA Math and ELA proficiency rates. The school's high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch (100% in 2023-2024) suggests a significant economically disadvantaged student population, but its strong academic performance, particularly for its low-SES students, is impressive and indicates effective strategies for supporting these students.

401

Students ?

10.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,860

Per pupil spending ?

103%

Free/discounted lunch ?

84 Mountain Ave
Portage, PA 15946-1806

(814) 736-9636

District: Portage Area School District

Students who attend Portage Area Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Portage Area Junior/Senior High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

94.5%

Two or more races:

2.5%

Hispanic:

2.2%

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At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 59th percentile in 2015 → 82nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Pennsylvania average (65% vs 45% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 18% of Pennsylvania elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 23 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school65%

District avg58%

Pennsylvania avg45%

270^th of 1,511

Pennsylvania public elementary schools ?

Top 18%▲ up 23 pts since 2015

From top 41% (2015) to top 18% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Pennsylvania Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

147^th of 606Portage Area 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	80.6	270 of 1511	82.1%	★★★★☆
2024	81.1	260 of 1526	83.0%	★★★★☆
2023	81.7	248 of 1534	83.8%	★★★★☆
2022	81.5	261 of 1534	83.0%	★★★★☆
2021	76.5	318 of 1433	77.8%	★★★★☆
2019	71.3	474 of 1544	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	70.2	496 of 1530	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2017	64.3	637 of 1547	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2016	62.0	707 of 1554	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2015	64.5	607 of 1474	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2014	67.8	551 of 1467	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2013	63.6	683 of 1519	55.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	59.2	847 of 1599	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2011	68.2	557 of 1597	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2010	65.9	610 of 1579	61.4%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2024	83.7	117 of 1084	89.2%	★★★★☆
2023	69.4	225 of 1043	78.4%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	76.3	320 of 1466	78.2%	★★★★☆
2024	79.4	271 of 1488	81.8%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	83.8	113 of 1369	91.7%	★★★★★
2024	83.5	135 of 1432	90.6%	★★★★★
2023	82.9	147 of 1414	89.6%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	80.0	272 of 1475	81.6%	★★★★☆
2024	79.9	268 of 1495	82.1%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Pennsylvania percentile	Rating
2025	70.6	330 of 1201	72.5%	★★★★☆
2024	70.4	344 of 1229	72.0%	★★★★☆
2023	73.2	303 of 1236	75.5%	★★★★☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)92nd percentile+10 vs school

Disabled (2024)89th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)82nd percentile~ school

Female (2025)78th percentile-4 vs school

White (2025)73rd percentile-10 vs school

By subject vs Pennsylvania (2024-2025) ?

Math71%+29 vs state

English Language Arts60%+11 vs state

5.0

1 rating

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Schools Near Portage Area Elementary School

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	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 6th 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 6th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Portage Area Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	84 Mountain Ave	Portage	15946	Cambria County	Portage Area School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 736-9636	401	37	10.8	103.0%	379 (94.5%)	1 (0.2%)	9 (2.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.5%)	80.6	270^th of 1511 public elementary schools	82.1%		81.1	260^th of 1526 public elementary schools	83.0%	10	82.2	81.1	68.9	53.4	71.0	58.9	67.9	57.8	55.0	59.8	$16,860	$2,453	$14,408
Penn Cambria Intrmd School	Public	3-5	376 Wood St	Lilly	15938	Cambria County	Penn Cambria School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 886-8532	290	19	15.6	34.5%	277 (95.5%)	3 (1.0%)	3 (1.0%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.7%)	45.9	882^nd of 1511 public elementary schools	41.6%		53.1	824^th of 1526 public elementary schools	46.0%	58	50.0	48.1	33.7		43.5	47.0	48.1	40.6		45.0	$14,903	$1,132	$13,772
Penn Cambria Primary School	Public	1-2	400 Main St	Lilly	15938	Cambria County	Penn Cambria School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 886-2151	175	13	13.8	54.3%	162 (92.6%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (4.6%)								(n/a)											$14,537	$1,941	$12,596
Forest Hills Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	547 Locust Street	Sidman	15955	Cambria County	Forest Hills School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 487-7613	994	70	14.1	97.2%	952 (95.8%)	5 (0.5%)	17 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	19 (1.9%)	65.1	575^th of 1511 public elementary schools	61.9%		69.9	497^th of 1526 public elementary schools	67.4%	78	49.3	68.7	64.4	45.9	56.6	49.6	55.9	51.3	53.3	52.5	$12,859	$1,549	$11,309
Penn Cambria Pre-Primary	Public	PK-K	205 6th St	Cresson	16630	Cambria County	Penn Cambria School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 886-8166	103	10	10.1	58.3%	95 (92.2%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (5.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.9%)								(n/a)											$18,745	$1,124	$17,620
Cambria Elementary School	Public	K-5	212 Schoolhouse Rd	Ebensburg	15931	Cambria County	Central Cambria School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 472-8432	542	33	16.5	36.7%	511 (94.3%)	5 (0.9%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (3.9%)	67.4	521^st of 1511 public elementary schools	65.5%		65.1	584^th of 1526 public elementary schools	61.7%	63	74.8	49.5	72.9		65.4	59.6	42.2	53.3		51.5	$10,284	$1,092	$9,192
Jackson Elementary School	Public	K-2	3704 William Penn Avenue	Johnstown	15909	Cambria County	Central Cambria School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 749-8421	105	15	7.1	95.2%	99 (94.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.9%)								(n/a)											$10,740	$1,017	$9,723
Blacklick Valley Elementary Center	Public	PK, KG-6	1000 W Railroad St	Nanty Glo	15943	Cambria County	Blacklick Valley School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 749-9211	316	28	11.2	104.1%	295 (93.4%)	9 (2.8%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.2%)	39.1	979^th of 1511 public elementary schools	35.2%		51.8	838^th of 1526 public elementary schools	45.1%	141	64.8	34.1	63.9	18.9	44.8	48.6	31.8	33.4	16.2	32.5	$17,104	$4,696	$12,408
Foot of Ten Elementary School	Public	K-6	450 Foot of Ten Rd	Duncansville	16635	Blair County	Hollidaysburg Area School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 695-1941	476	38	12.4	42.4%	453 (95.2%)	2 (0.4%)	5 (1.1%)	12 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.6%)	75.7	360^th of 1511 public elementary schools	76.2%		70.4	483^rd of 1526 public elementary schools	68.3%	123	79.4	53.2	57.0	68.2	64.8	60.3	45.2	54.5	71.8	58.9	$13,558	$774	$12,784
Conemaugh Valley Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	1340 William Penn Avenue	Johnstown	15906	Cambria County	Conemaugh Valley School District	No	No	No	Yes	(814) 535-6970	374	31	11.9		318 (85.0%)	18 (4.8%)	11 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (7.2%)	24	1148^th of 1511 public elementary schools	24.0%		39.8	1009^th of 1526 public elementary schools	33.9%	139	33.4	35.0	23.0	17.0	26.6	36.9	40.0	19.7	33.9	31.7	$18,708	$1,522	$17,186

Frequently Asked Questions about Portage Area Elementary School

What district is Portage Area Elementary School in?

Portage Area School District

What schools do graduates of Portage Area Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Portage Area Elementary School usually go on to attend:

High : Portage Area Junior/Senior High School

How many students attend Portage Area Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 401 students attended Portage Area Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Portage Area Elementary School?

Students at Portage Area Elementary School are 95% White, 2% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic.

Is Portage Area Elementary School a good school?

Portage Area Elementary School ranks 270^th of 1511 Pennsylvania elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate Portage Area Elementary School!

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Schools in Portage, PA

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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.