Is Penn Hills Elementary School a good school?

Penn Hills Elementary School ranks in the bottom 24.6% of Pennsylvania elementary schools.

How many students attend Penn Hills Elementary School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 1,279 students attended Penn Hills Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Penn Hills Elementary School?

Students at Penn Hills Elementary School are 61% African American, 24% White, 9% Two or more races, 5% Hispanic.

What schools do graduates of Penn Hills Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Penn Hills Elementary School usually go on to attend: Middle : Linton Middle School High : Penn Hills Senior High School

Penn Hills Elementary School

Summary:

Penn Hills Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, serving 1,279 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Penn Hills School District, which is ranked 525 out of 610 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Penn Hills Elementary School consistently ranks in the bottom 25% of Pennsylvania elementary schools, with a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's proficiency rates in PSSA Math, Science, and English Language Arts are significantly lower than the state averages across all grade levels. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, only 22.4% of students were proficient or better in PSSA Math, compared to the state average of 40.4%. The school has a very high percentage of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, with 99.92% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in the 2022-2023 school year. Additionally, the school has experienced a significant decrease in per-student spending, from $16,634 in 2018-2019 to $9,149 in 2021-2022, and an increase in the student-teacher ratio from 13.6 in 2022-2023 to 16.7 in 2020-2021.

Compared to nearby schools, such as Propel Cs-Pitcairn, Pivik Elementary School, and Turtle Creek Elementary STEAM Academy, Penn Hills Elementary School generally underperforms in academic proficiency rates. For example, Pivik Elementary School, which is part of the Plum Borough School District, had 68.7% of students proficient or better in PSSA Math, compared to Penn Hills Elementary School's 22.4%. However, Penn Hills Elementary School's African American and Hispanic students perform relatively better than their white and low-socioeconomic status peers, suggesting the school may be able to leverage the success of its minority student populations to improve overall academic outcomes.

Detail:

Public K-5

1079 Jefferson Rd
Pittsburgh, PA 15235

(412) 793-7000

District: Penn Hills School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
1150^th of 1,526 Pennsylvania Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $9,149

Students who attend Penn Hills Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Linton Middle School
High:	Penn Hills Senior High School

Student/teacher ratio: 13.6

Number of students: 1,279

Racial breakdown:

African American:

61.0%

White:

23.7%

Two or more races:

9.3%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 99.9%

See top rated Pennsylvania elementary schools

Compare Penn Hills Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Penn Hills Elementary School ranks worse than 75.4% of elementary schools in Pennsylvania. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 25.33. (See more...)

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (61%), White (23.7%), two or more races (9.3%). (See more...)

Compare Details 99.9% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Penn Hills Elementary School is 13.6. (See more...)

Compare Penn Hills Elementary School employs 93.5 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Penn Hills Elementary School is $9,149.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Penn Hills Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Penn Hills Elementary School 1150^th of 1526 Pennsylvania public elementary schools. (See Penn Hills Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Multi-racial students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Male students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Penn Hills School District:

SchoolDigger ranks Penn Hills School District 525^th of 610 Pennsylvania school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

Read all reviews and ratings detail for Penn Hills Elementary School.

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Your rating for Penn Hills Elementary School?

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Rank History for Penn Hills Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile
2017	17.57	1278^th	1547	17.4%
2018	20.87	1234^th	1530	19.3%
2019	28.72	1165^th	1544	24.5%
2021	12.43	1226^th	1433	14.4%
2022	18.70	1230^th	1534	19.8%
2023	16.46	1257^th	1534	18.1%
2024	25.33	1150^th	1526	24.6%

See the entire list of Pennsylvania Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	42.01	65^th	117	44.4%
2024	51.82	52^nd	128	59.4%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	21.11	1142^nd	1414	19.2%
2024	28.31	1093^rd	1432	23.7%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	24.20	1145^th	1488	23.1%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	20.57	872^nd	1043	16.4%
2024	33.06	732^nd	1084	32.5%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Male students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	26.37	1130^th	1495	24.4%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	45.70	203^rd	437	53.5%
2024	53.96	170^th	437	61.1%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	74.47	92^nd	454	79.7%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	17.31	1112^th	1236	10.0%
2024	30.51	946^th	1229	23.0%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Pennsylvania Dept 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.

Data source: Pennsylvania Dept of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 2)

100%

Reviews:

by a parent
Thursday, April 4, 2019

Penn Hills Elementary School is not a good school. I had to pay a private tutor to teach my child things he should be learning at this school. My son does good in class and is a hard worker, but he is not learning everything he should be to enter the 3rd grade. The gap has been closed by me getting extra help from an outside source. Communication with teachers is okay, but it could be a lot better. I had a few problems with my son and other kids at this school, and things should've been handled in a manner that would be acceptable. Too many times a slap on the wrist. I would not recommend this school to any parent unless they had no other options. Close Quote

Enrollment information for Penn Hills Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
2015	450	770	14	32	3	0	131	1400
2016	427	865	13	42	5	0	15	1367
2017	373	769	14	46	1	0	87	1290
2018	361	714	10	43	1	0	100	1229
2019	332	700	10	36	1	1	99	1179
2020	303	705	11	46	0	1	96	1162
2021	329	813	9	63	0	1	116	1331
2022	321	803	9	56	0	1	122	1312
2023	303	780	12	65	0	0	119	1279

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 Penn Hills Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2015	1400	98.0	14.2	67.3
2016	1367	97.0	14.0	72.9
2017	1290	84.0	15.3	71.5
2018	1229	81.5	15.0	99.5
2019	1179	78.0	15.1	99.8
2020	1162	74.0	15.7	99.8
2021	1331	79.3	16.7	99.9
2022	1312	85.8	15.2	99.8
2023	1279	93.5	13.6	99.9

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 Penn Hills Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2015	1400	98.0	14.2	67.3
2016	1367	97.0	14.0	72.9
2017	1290	84.0	15.3	71.5
2018	1229	81.5	15.0	99.5
2019	1179	78.0	15.1	99.8
2020	1162	74.0	15.7	99.8
2021	1331	79.3	16.7	99.9
2022	1312	85.8	15.2	99.8
2023	1279	93.5	13.6	99.9

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 Penn Hills Elementary School

Year	Expenditures from Federal Funds	Expenditures from State and Local Funds	Total Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019	$1,449 (8.7%)	$15,184 (91.3%)	$16,634
2020	$1,536 (10.0%)	$13,770 (90.0%)	$15,306
2021	$1,785 (13.5%)	$11,409 (86.5%)	$13,194
2022	$2,234 (24.4%)	$6,915 (75.6%)	$9,149

Data source: Pennsylvania Department of Education

Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Penn Hills 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 1165^th of 1544 Elementary schools	Ranks 1257^th of 1534 Elementary schools	6.5%

Test Scores

	% proficient Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	% proficient Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
3rd Grade Math (Penn Hills Elementary School)	35.3	22.9	12.4%
3rd Grade Math (Pennsylvania)	56	51.7	4.3%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Penn Hills Elementary School)	42.7	36.7	6%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	61.9	54	7.9%
4th Grade Math (Penn Hills Elementary School)	36.4	23.6	12.8%
4th Grade Math (Pennsylvania)	46.2	46.5	0.3%
4th Grade Science (Penn Hills Elementary School)	75.4	60.2	15.2%
4th Grade Science (Pennsylvania)	77.8	74.1	3.7%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Penn Hills Elementary School)	50.7	25.4	25.3%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	63.6	51.8	11.8%
All Grades Math (Penn Hills Elementary School)	35.8	19.1	16.7%
All Grades Math (Pennsylvania)	42.4	39.3	3.1%
All Grades Science (Penn Hills Elementary School)	75.4	60.2	15.2%
All Grades Science (Pennsylvania)	68	65.6	2.4%
All Grades English Language Arts (Penn Hills Elementary School)	46.7	29.9	16.8%
All Grades English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	60.9	53.8	7.1%

Student Body

	Number of students Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Number of students Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Total Students	1179	1279	8.5%
African American	700	780	11.4%
American Indian	1	0	100%
Asian	10	12	20%
Hispanic	36	65	80.6%
Pacific Islander	1	0	100%
White	332	303	8.7%
Two or More Races	99	119	20.2%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	99.8%	99.9%	0.1%

Schools Near Penn Hills Elementary School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				PSSA Math (2024)							PSSA Science (2024)			PSSA English Language Arts (2024)							Per Pupil Expenditures (2022)
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 (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSSA Math 3rd Grade	PSSA Math 4th Grade	PSSA Math 5th Grade	PSSA Math 6th Grade	PSSA Math 7th Grade	PSSA Math 8th Grade	PSSA Math All Grades	PSSA Science 4th Grade	PSSA Science 8th Grade	PSSA Science 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 7th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Penn Hills Elementary School	Public	K-5	1079 Jefferson Rd	Pittsburgh	15235	Allegheny County	Penn Hills School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 793-7000	1,279	94	13.6	99.9%	303 (23.7%)	780 (61.0%)	65 (5.1%)	12 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	119 (9.3%)	25.3	1150^th of 1526 public elementary schools	24.6%		16.5	1257^th of 1534 public elementary schools	18.1%	107	24.8	32.6	8.9				22.4	81.5		81.5	39.3	35.0	26.8				33.7	$9,149	$2,234	$6,915
Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship	Public, Charter	K-8	2501 Main Street	Pittsburgh	15235	Allegheny County	Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship	Yes	No	No	Yes	(412) 793-6471	456	38	12.0	100.0%	46 (10.1%)	345 (75.7%)	23 (5.0%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (8.8%)	27.3	1135^th of 1526 public elementary schools	25.6%		38.3	1045^th of 1534 public elementary schools	31.9%	90	32.3	10.5	30.6	23.9	25.5	7.3	22.2	60.7	31.7	48.4	40.3	30.3	40.9	56.5	57.5	36.5	43.2	$16,755	$1,925	$14,830
Wilkins Elementary STEAM Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	362 Churchill Rd	Pittsburgh	15235	Allegheny County	Woodland Hills School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 824-3231	416	43	9.6	100.0%	80 (19.2%)	270 (64.9%)	20 (4.8%)	2 (0.5%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (10.1%)	23.6	1169^th of 1526 public elementary schools	23.4%		17.1	1252^nd of 1534 public elementary schools	18.4%	83	33.4	19.2	23.3				25.1	73.1		73.1	51.0	19.3	26.7				31.9	$24,362	$2,154	$22,208
Evergreen Elementary School	Public	K-4	3831 Evergreen Dr	Monroeville	15146	Allegheny County	Gateway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 373-5842	305	22	13.7	100.0%	111 (36.4%)	95 (31.1%)	29 (9.5%)	29 (9.5%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (12.5%)	85.1	191^st of 1526 public elementary schools	87.5%		70.8	478^th of 1534 public elementary schools	68.8%	287	73.2	73.6					73.4	92.4		92.4	76.8	75.5					76.1	$17,396	$1,193	$16,203
Dr Cleveland Steward Junior Elementary School	Public	K-4	5000 Gateway Campus Blvd	Monroeville	15146	Allegheny County	Gateway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 373-5874	327	28	11.5	100.0%	138 (42.2%)	112 (34.3%)	14 (4.3%)	13 (4.0%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (14.1%)	46.8	912^th of 1526 public elementary schools	40.2%		54.5	792^nd of 1534 public elementary schools	48.4%	120	46.3	37.8					42.4	86.0		86.0	57.4	38.7					49.0	$18,916	$1,857	$17,059
Propel Cs-East	Public, Charter	K-8	1611 Monroeville Ave	Turtle Creek	15145	Allegheny County	Propel CS-East	Yes	No	No	Yes	(412) 325-7305	346	27	13.0		86 (24.9%)	212 (61.3%)	12 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (10.1%)	21.4	1196^th of 1526 public elementary schools	21.6%		23.2	1188^th of 1534 public elementary schools	22.6%	8	22.2	23.6	23.5	8.4	19.4	8.1	17.3	70.6	21.6	45.1	19.5	23.5	33.3	51.5	48.4	37.8	35.5	$18,285	$2,155	$16,129
Turner Intermediate School	Public	3-6	1833 Laketon Rd	Wilkinsburg	15221	Allegheny County	Wilkinsburg Borough School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 731-5883	305	31	9.8	100.0%	12 (3.9%)	273 (89.5%)	7 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.3%)	9.8	1364^th of 1526 public elementary schools	10.6%		11.4	1335^th of 1534 public elementary schools	13.0%	29	25.0	5.4	15.2	5.6			12.0	42.2		42.2	25.0	18.2	32.6	24.1			24.6	$16,153	$6,358	$9,795
O'Block Elementary School	Public	K-4	201 Center New Texas Rd	Pittsburgh	15239	Allegheny County	Plum Borough School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 795-4420	492	33	14.9	34.3%	390 (79.3%)	43 (8.7%)	18 (3.7%)	11 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (6.1%)	60.4	703^rd of 1526 public elementary schools	53.9%		66.1	573^rd of 1534 public elementary schools	62.6%	130	63.7	51.7					57.9	85.3		85.3	57.6	48.4					53.2	$5,856	$151	$5,705
Turtle Creek Elementary STEAM Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	126 Monroeville Ave	Turtle Creek	15145	Allegheny County	Woodland Hills School District	No	No	No	Yes	(412) 824-2450	561	43	12.9	100.0%	166 (29.6%)	301 (53.7%)	39 (7.0%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (9.3%)	28.8	1118^th of 1526 public elementary schools	26.7%		38.6	1042^nd of 1534 public elementary schools	32.1%	76	22.5	27.8	39.4				29.6	70.9		70.9	31.0	36.7	46.9				38.0	$22,077	$1,952	$20,125
Propel Cs-Pitcairn	Public, Charter	K-8	435 Agatha Street	Pittsburgh	15140	Allegheny County	Propel CS-Pitcairn	Yes	No	No	Yes	(412) 325-7305	209	19	11.0		35 (16.7%)	142 (67.9%)	5 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (12.4%)	15.5	1281^st of 1526 public elementary schools	16.1%		25.9	1162^nd of 1534 public elementary schools	24.3%	119	13.3	4.2	0.0	26.1	21.1	4.8	11.4	62.5	42.9	53.3	20.0	37.5	15.0	30.4	26.4	33.4	27.9	$24,623	$3,054	$21,569

Penn Hills Elementary School

Penn Hills Elementary School:

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Penn Hills School District:

Average Parent Rating:

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Rank History for Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for all students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Female students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Disabled students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Male students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for African American students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for Hispanic students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Rank History for White students at Penn Hills Elementary School

Review counts

Enrollment information for Penn Hills Elementary School

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Penn Hills Elementary School

Student/Teacher Ratio Penn Hills Elementary School

Per Pupil Expenditures for Penn Hills Elementary School

Impact of COVID-19 on Penn Hills Elementary School

Rankings

Test Scores

Student Body

Schools Near Penn Hills Elementary School

Frequently Asked Questions about Penn Hills Elementary School

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