Best Public Schools in Parkersburg, WV

Summary:

The city of Parkersburg, West Virginia is home to 16 schools, including 10 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, and 2 high schools. The schools in this area show a wide range of academic performance, with some standout institutions like Gihon Elementary School and Criss Elementary School ranking among the top 10 elementary schools in the state. These high-performing schools boast impressive proficiency rates of 72-86% in English Language Arts and 73-86% in math.

In contrast, other schools in the Wood County Schools district struggle, with proficiency rates as low as 12-30% in math and 27-35% in ELA. The data suggests that school spending and student-teacher ratios are key factors in academic performance, with the top-performing schools spending over $18,000 per student and maintaining lower student-teacher ratios around 10-14 students per teacher. Racial demographics do not appear to be a significant factor, as schools with diverse and homogeneous student populations both show a wide range of performance.

Overall, the schools in Parkersburg demonstrate the importance of targeted investment and resource allocation to support student success. While the district as a whole is highly ranked, individual schools within the system vary greatly in their academic outcomes. Parents in the area should carefully research their options to find the best fit for their children, taking into account factors like test scores, spending, and staffing ratios.

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				WV Assessment Mathematics (2024)							WV Assessment English Language Arts (2024)							WV Assessment Science (2024)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
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	WV Assessment Mathematics 3rd Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 4th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 5th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 6th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 7th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 8th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 11th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 3rd Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 4th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 5th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 6th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 7th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 8th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 11th Grade	WV Assessment Science 5th Grade	WV Assessment Science 8th Grade	WV Assessment Science 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Criss Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2800 22nd St	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9522	258	18	14.3		228 (88.4%)	3 (1.2%)	7 (2.7%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.0%)	95.1	8^th of 368 public elementary schools	97.8%		93.7	13^th of 368 public elementary schools	96.5%	5	79.3	79.5	68.4					72.4	74.4	71.1					57.9			$11,672	$800	$10,872
Edison Middle School	Public	6-8	1201 Hillcrest St	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9525	568	40	14.1		531 (93.5%)	5 (0.9%)	9 (1.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	19 (3.3%)	72.6	29^th of 169 public middle schools	82.8%		64.7	44^th of 168 public middle schools	73.8%	15				40.7	43.1	42.8					48.0	44.8	42.8			34.1		$9,854	$590	$9,264
Emerson Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1605 36th St	Parkersburg	26104	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9528	407	32	12.7		371 (91.2%)	7 (1.7%)	5 (1.2%)	7 (1.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.9%)	59.8	129^th of 368 public elementary schools	64.9%		81.2	48^th of 368 public elementary schools	87.0%	81	42.9	59.1	47.0					36.5	66.7	48.5					40.9			$12,715	$1,868	$10,848
Fairplains Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	615 Broadway Ave	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9531	162	17	9.5		152 (93.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (6.2%)	38.5	243^rd of 368 public elementary schools	34.0%		51.4	163^rd of 368 public elementary schools	55.7%	80	30.8	65.5	32.0					34.6	62.1	28.0					20.0			$14,327	$2,337	$11,991
Gihon Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2000 Belmont Rd	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9539	234	20	11.7		214 (91.5%)	4 (1.7%)	3 (1.3%)	2 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (4.7%)	94.3	10^th of 368 public elementary schools	97.3%		96.1	8^th of 368 public elementary schools	97.8%	2	73.3	75.9	77.3					80.0	86.2	72.7					47.7			$12,272	$885	$11,387
Hamilton Middle School	Public	6-8	3501 Cadillac Dr	Parkersburg	26104	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9547	413	34	12.1		371 (89.8%)	12 (2.9%)	4 (1.0%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (5.3%)	74.1	28^th of 169 public middle schools	83.4%		74.7	26^th of 168 public middle schools	84.5%	2				41.9	48.0	25.0					46.8	59.6	48.4			34.2		$11,504	$780	$10,724
Jefferson Elementary Center	Public	PK, KG-5	1103 Plum St	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9554	525	57	9.2		443 (84.4%)	14 (2.7%)	20 (3.8%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (8.6%)	40.7	233^rd of 368 public elementary schools	36.7%		43.5	209^th of 368 public elementary schools	43.2%	24	23.9	54.0	31.1					23.9	54.0	48.3					31.1			$17,103	$3,012	$14,091
Madison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1426 32nd St	Parkersburg	26104	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9563	270	24	11.2		232 (85.9%)	4 (1.5%)	13 (4.8%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (7.4%)	59.9	128^th of 368 public elementary schools	65.2%		67.5	95^th of 368 public elementary schools	74.2%	33	44.1	53.3	41.7					41.2	53.3	55.6					52.8			$12,729	$2,014	$10,714
Parkersburg High School	Public	9-12	2101 Dudley Ave	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9595	1,552	98	15.8		1,404 (90.5%)	33 (2.1%)	37 (2.4%)	14 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	63 (4.1%)	77.4	21^st of 112 public high schools	81.3%		46	56^th of 112 public high schools	50.0%	35							20.7							52.8			35.3	$10,798	$752	$10,046
Parkersburg South High School	Public	9-12	1511 Blizzard Dr	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9610	1,385	90	15.3		1,298 (93.7%)	20 (1.4%)	26 (1.9%)	6 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	33 (2.4%)	54.5	49^th of 112 public high schools	56.3%		70.6	26^th of 112 public high schools	76.8%	23							13.9							50.1			27.4	$11,564	$1,033	$10,531
Van Devender Middle School	Public	6-8	918 31st St	Parkersburg	26104	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9645	286	31	9.2		252 (88.1%)	9 (3.1%)	6 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (6.3%)	24.6	139^th of 169 public middle schools	17.8%		27.3	136^th of 168 public middle schools	19.0%	3				12.5	23.3	16.3					32.5	35.5	27.5			23.8		$13,193	$2,710	$10,483
Franklin Elementary Center	Public	PK, KG-5	1511 Division Street Ext	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9534	266	24	11.0		240 (90.2%)	3 (1.1%)	10 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.9%)	30.5	277^th of 368 public elementary schools	24.7%		19.5	320^th of 368 public elementary schools	13.0%	43	56.3	41.7	18.9					48.5	29.2	27.0					21.6			$16,495	$3,055	$13,440
Martin Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1301 Hillcrest St	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 420-9625	224	28	7.9		198 (88.4%)	1 (0.4%)	5 (2.2%)	5 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (6.7%)	69.4	87^th of 368 public elementary schools	76.4%		42.6	214^th of 368 public elementary schools	41.8%	127	70.4	51.7	46.2					63.0	44.8	57.7					38.5			$18,101	$3,376	$14,725
Wood County Vocational Technical Center	Public	9-12	1515 Blizzard Dr	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 420-9501	0	17	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Summit Success Center	Public	K	2507 9th Ave	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 893-9737	0	4	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Caperton Center For Applied Technology	Public	9-12	212 Technology Dr	Parkersburg	26104	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 424-8365																			(n/a)
Blennerhassett Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	448 Jewell Rd	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 863-5128	527	36	14.6		484 (91.8%)	6 (1.1%)	5 (0.9%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (5.7%)	83.2	41^st of 368 public elementary schools	88.9%		83	42^nd of 368 public elementary schools	88.6%	1	60.0	62.2	61.2					62.7	63.5	64.7					50.6			$10,868	$330	$10,539
Blennerhassett Middle School	Public	6-8	444 Jewell Rd	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 863-3356	520	34	15.2		487 (93.7%)	5 (1.0%)	7 (1.3%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (3.7%)	60.8	53^rd of 169 public middle schools	68.6%		55.5	67^th of 168 public middle schools	60.1%	14				40.2	30.7	25.5					47.6	40.7	44.9			34.2		$12,198	$1,316	$10,882
Lubeck Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	206 Lubeck Rd	Parkersburg	26101	Wood County	Wood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 863-3321	381	26	14.6		371 (97.4%)	4 (1.0%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	90.1	19^th of 368 public elementary schools	94.8%		88.3	26^th of 368 public elementary schools	92.9%	7	79.0	85.4	64.6					71.9	75.5	57.3					42.5			$12,471	$705	$11,766

Cities Near Parkersburg

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Vienna	4.19 mi	4	16^th
Davisville	6 mi	1	19^th
Mineral Wells	6.09 mi	1	46^th
Williamstown	10.31 mi	2	13^th
Walker	13.35 mi	1

See the top WV West Virginia cities

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.