Watson Elementary School

Summary:

Watson Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Fairmont, West Virginia, serving grades PK-4 with a total enrollment of 415 students. The school is part of the Marion County Schools district, which is ranked 9 out of 55 districts in West Virginia and is rated 4 stars out of 5 by SchoolDigger.

While Watson Elementary School has a more diverse student population compared to nearby schools, with 71.57% White, 8.43% African American, 2.65% Hispanic, 0.72% Asian, and 16.14% two or more races, its academic performance has been consistently below the district and state averages. In the 2023-2024 school year, only 48.9% of 3rd-grade students and 34.8% of 4th-grade students were proficient or better in mathematics, compared to the district's 51.9% and 52.4%, respectively, and the state's 53.2% and 47.6%. The school also has a higher percentage of students with special needs and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds compared to the nearby schools, such as Blackshere Elementary School and Big Elm Elementary School.

Over the past several years, Watson Elementary School's statewide ranking has steadily declined, from a high of 106 out of 422 schools in the 2013-2014 school year to a low of 262 out of 368 schools in the 2023-2024 school year. This trend suggests that the school's academic performance has been declining relative to other schools in the state, and the school may need to implement targeted interventions, collaborate with higher-performing nearby schools, and explore ways to provide additional support and resources to its most vulnerable student populations to address these challenges.


Detail:

Public PK, KG-4

 1579 Mary Lou Retton Dr
       Fairmont, WV  26554-2220


(304) 367-2156

District: Marion County Schools

SchoolDigger Rank:
262nd of 368 West Virginia Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $12,949 Help


Students who attend Watson Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    West Fairmont Middle School
High:    Fairmont Senior High School

Student/teacher ratio:  15.3 Help
Number of students:  415

Racial breakdown:

White:
71.6%
Two or more races:
16.1%
African American:
8.4%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  60.2% Help


 See top rated West Virginia elementary schools

 Compare Watson Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends
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Compare Details Watson Elementary School ranks worse than 71.2% of elementary schools in West Virginia. It also ranks 9th among 10 ranked elementary schools in the Marion County Schools District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 34.14. (See more...)
Student Body
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Compare Details Watson Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Marion County Schools District. Racial makeup is: White (71.6%), two or more races (16.1%), African American (8.4%). (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Watson Elementary School is 15.3, which is the highest among 11 elementary schools in the Marion County Schools District! (See more...)
Help
Compare Watson Elementary School employs 27 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Watson Elementary School is $12,949. 6 elementary schools in the Marion County Schools District spend more per student.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Watson Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Watson Elementary School 262nd of 368 West Virginia public elementary schools. (See Watson Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
White students:


Marion County Schools:

SchoolDigger ranks Marion County Schools 9th of 55 West Virginia school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Your rating for Watson Elementary School?

Rank History for Watson Elementary School

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Compare

Rank History for all students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2009 54.33 187th 420 55.5%
2010 33.19 325th 427 23.9%
2011 32.44 325th 426 23.7%
2012 33.05 326th 426 23.5%
2013 56.50 156th 428 63.6%
2014 64.23 106th 422 74.9%
2015 33.05 313th 408 23.3%
2016 15.08 380th 402 5.5%
2017 22.77 358th 399 10.3%
2018 20.15 359th 392 8.4%
2019 27.80 307th 383 19.8%
2021 25.14 319th 380 16.1%
2022 31.03 284th 375 24.3%
2023 29.06 289th 368 21.5%
2024 34.14 262nd 368 28.8%
See the entire list of West Virginia Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 54.06 88th 218 59.6%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 25.10 350th 377 7.2%
2018 29.94 208th 258 19.4%
2019 30.70 137th 185 25.9%
2023 50.45 86th 180 52.2%
2024 46.09 95th 183 48.1%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 26.74 335th 382 12.3%
2018 17.97 356th 368 3.3%
2021 30.91 270th 335 19.4%
2022 35.86 255th 347 26.5%
2023 32.81 248th 333 25.5%
2024 30.90 258th 336 23.2%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 30.58 314th 381 17.6%
2018 18.53 349th 366 4.6%
2019 21.31 304th 339 10.3%
2021 31.74 243rd 322 24.5%
2022 24.53 273rd 325 16.0%
2023 27.30 258th 317 18.6%
2024 29.68 251st 316 20.6%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 23.33 347th 382 9.2%
2018 33.71 274th 364 24.7%
2019 40.49 206th 338 39.1%
2021 25.09 280th 333 15.9%
2022 40.21 197th 330 40.3%
2023 31.58 252nd 322 21.7%
2024 37.06 223rd 325 31.4%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 46.41 91st 187 51.3%
2018 42.87 22nd 31 29.0%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for White students at Watson Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools WV State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 16.54 366th 382 4.2%
2018 22.14 337th 374 9.9%
2019 33.06 271st 373 27.3%
2021 30.69 285th 376 24.2%
2022 36.70 245th 373 34.3%
2023 42.98 207th 366 43.4%
2024 47.32 189th 367 48.5%
See the entire list of Best West Virginia Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: West Virginia Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Watson Elementary School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 




Data source: West Virginia Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 2.5)
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50%

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50%

  

by a teacher
Thursday, August 18, 2022

Open Quote Watson Elementary has made a lot of improvements in the past 2-3 years. We have been able to keep teachers, so our turn over rate have went down! We are trying to rebrand our school with all the new and great improvements to our school and our teaching of students. We always get a bad rap from the community, but Watson is moving the needle trying to improve all facets of our school community. A large group of our teachers have attended Model Schools Conference for the past 3-4 years, working diligently to improve in all areas!! I feel Watson is an awesome school with great teachers, students, and families!! #WatsonStrong Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, October 11, 2010

Open Quote This school is in poor shape, both physically- with its outdated and ineffective "open classroom" concept, and from a leadership position. The principle appears to be a position for which she is not qualified and is doing a grave disservice to the children forced to attend the school with her lack of personal involvement and commitment to helping the children get a quality education in a safe atmosphere. I think it is rather telling that three of my child's kindergarten peers have already been pulled out by their parents and enrolled in other elementary schools within the first few weeks of the year. We are fortunate to have an excellent teacher this year, but have already started looking for a school that will accept transfers for first grade. There is no excuse for the chaos that reigns at this elementary school. Close Quote



Enrollment information for Watson Elementary School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1989 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 442 442
1990 382 45 4 0 0 n/a n/a 0 431
1991 398 41 3 0 1 n/a n/a 0 443
1992 383 62 2 1 0 n/a n/a 0 448
1993 379 53 4 0 0 n/a n/a 0 436
1994 367 52 4 0 0 n/a n/a 0 423
1995 336 40 1 1 2 n/a n/a 0 380
1996 336 40 1 1 2 n/a n/a 0 380
1997 305 44 1 2 1 n/a n/a 0 353
1998 296 37 1 2 0 n/a n/a 0 336
1999 296 51 3 1 0 n/a n/a 0 351
2000 291 53 1 3 1 n/a n/a 0 349
2001 247 58 1 1 0 n/a n/a 0 307
2002 243 96 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 340
2003 243 96 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 340
2004 258 104 1 5 0 n/a n/a 0 368
2005 261 103 2 8 4 n/a n/a 0 378
2006 297 95 1 8 8 n/a n/a 0 409
2007 304 103 1 8 8 n/a n/a 0 424
2008 296 82 1 9 5 n/a n/a 0 393
2009 332 88 3 8 4 n/a n/a 0 435
2010 330 93 5 7 3 0 17 0 455
2011 325 85 4 9 1 0 26 0 450
2012 292 67 2 6 1 0 32 0 400
2013 313 61 1 7 1 1 52 0 436
2014 310 55 1 5 0 0 58 0 429
2015 299 65 2 5 0 0 43 0 414
2016 285 72 3 5 0 2 40 0 407
2017 317 66 7 5 0 2 39 0 436
2018 328 80 9 7 1 2 39 0 466
2019 275 65 3 11 0 3 48 0 405
2020 327 55 3 13 0 0 47 0 445
2021 298 47 4 4 0 0 41 0 394
2022 260 29 3 10 0 0 55 0 357
2023 297 35 3 11 0 2 67 0 415

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Watson Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1989 442 25.0 17.6 n/a
1990 431 24.0 17.9 23.7
1991 443 24.5 18.0 30.7
1992 448 25.5 17.5 27.7
1993 436 24.5 17.8 33
1994 423 25.5 16.6 31.7
1995 380 23.0 16.5 35.3
1996 380 23.0 16.5 35.3
1997 353 23.0 15.3 36.3
1998 336 23.0 14.6 37.5
1999 351 24.0 14.6 48.4
2000 349 24.0 14.5 47.6
2001 307 23.0 13.3 51.8
2002 340 26.0 13.1 59.1
2003 340 26.0 13.1 59.1
2004 368 30.0 12.3 62.8
2005 378 30.0 12.6 61.1
2006 409 32.0 12.8 56
2007 424 28.0 15.1 56.6
2008 393 30.0 13.1 63.1
2009 435 29.0 15.0 66
2010 455 31.0 14.6 64.8
2011 450 29.8 15.0 63.8
2012 400 29.0 13.7 70
2013 436 27.0 16.1 62.2
2014 429 29.0 14.7 n/a
2015 414 28.0 14.7 57
2016 407 27.0 15.0 60.7
2017 436 33.0 13.2 60.8
2018 466 26.0 17.9 70
2019 405 27.0 15.0 64.7
2020 445 26.0 17.1 58.9
2021 394 30.0 13.1 60.2
2022 357 27.0 13.2 n/a
2023 415 27.0 15.3 n/a

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Watson Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1989 442 25.0 17.6 n/a
1990 431 24.0 17.9 23.7
1991 443 24.5 18.0 30.7
1992 448 25.5 17.5 27.7
1993 436 24.5 17.8 33
1994 423 25.5 16.6 31.7
1995 380 23.0 16.5 35.3
1996 380 23.0 16.5 35.3
1997 353 23.0 15.3 36.3
1998 336 23.0 14.6 37.5
1999 351 24.0 14.6 48.4
2000 349 24.0 14.5 47.6
2001 307 23.0 13.3 51.8
2002 340 26.0 13.1 59.1
2003 340 26.0 13.1 59.1
2004 368 30.0 12.3 62.8
2005 378 30.0 12.6 61.1
2006 409 32.0 12.8 56
2007 424 28.0 15.1 56.6
2008 393 30.0 13.1 63.1
2009 435 29.0 15.0 66
2010 455 31.0 14.6 64.8
2011 450 29.8 15.0 63.8
2012 400 29.0 13.7 70
2013 436 27.0 16.1 62.2
2014 429 29.0 14.7 n/a
2015 414 28.0 14.7 57
2016 407 27.0 15.0 60.7
2017 436 33.0 13.2 60.8
2018 466 26.0 17.9 70
2019 405 27.0 15.0 64.7
2020 445 26.0 17.1 58.9
2021 394 30.0 13.1 60.2
2022 357 27.0 13.2 n/a
2023 415 27.0 15.3 n/a

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Watson Elementary School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $1,514 (11.7%) $11,434 (88.3%) $12,949

Data source: West Virginia Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Watson Elementary School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 307th of 383 Elementary schoolsRanks 289th of 368 Elementary schools
 1.6%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Mathematics (Watson Elementary School)4939
 10%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Marion County Schools)55.651.2
 4.4%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (West Virginia)50.951.6
 0.7%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Watson Elementary School)39.224.4
 14.8%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Marion County Schools)50.841.2
 9.6%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (West Virginia)4439.9
 4.1%
4th Grade Mathematics (Watson Elementary School)35.538.7
 3.2%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Marion County Schools)54.155.1
 1%
   4th Grade Mathematics (West Virginia)47.345.7
 1.6%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Watson Elementary School)25.840.3
 14.5%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Marion County Schools)52.153.2
 1.1%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (West Virginia)48.844.2
 4.5%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students405415
 2.5%
African American6535
 46.2%
American Indian00
Asian33
Hispanic1111
Pacific Islander32
 33.3%
White275297
 8%
Two or More Races4867
 39.6%


Schools Near Watson Elementary School









Frequently Asked Questions about Watson Elementary School

Watson Elementary School ranks 262nd of 368 West Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Students at Watson Elementary School are 72% White, 16% Two or more races, 8% African American, 3% Hispanic.

In the 2022-23 school year, 415 students attended Watson Elementary School.

Students who attend Watson Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : West Fairmont Middle School
High : Fairmont Senior High School


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





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