Best Schools in Akron, OH — 2026 Rankings

The State of Education in Akron

Akron sits at the heart of Summit County in northeast Ohio, a mid-size city where families navigate a school landscape shaped by decades of economic transition. With 88 schools serving 31,072 students, the metro area offers a mix of traditional public schools, community learning centers, and 17 charter schools. The city average composite score lands at 5.0 out of 10 — right at the midpoint of our scale and slightly below the Ohio statewide average.

What makes Akron’s school picture distinctive is the spread. The top-scoring school, Bath Elementary, earns a 7.7 composite, while many schools cluster in the 4.0-5.0 range. That gap signals real variation in outcomes across neighborhoods and school types, which means the choice of where to enroll matters more here than in cities with tighter score distributions. The average student-teacher ratio across Akron is 14.7:1, though individual schools range from under 11:1 to nearly 20:1.

The district operates 50 elementary schools, 13 middle schools, 19 high schools, and 2 K-12 or alternative campuses. Akron Public Schools runs most of these, but the charter sector — with 17 schools — plays a meaningful role, particularly for families seeking specialized programs or alternative learning environments.

Where the Top Schools Cluster

Akron’s highest-performing schools are not evenly distributed. Several geographic and institutional patterns emerge from the data.

Bath Township / Northwest Corridor — Bath Elementary School and Coventry Elementary School anchor this area with composite scores of 7.7 and 7.2 respectively. These schools serve the suburban ring north and west of Akron proper, drawing from neighborhoods with larger enrollments (639 and 448 students). Bath Elementary posts the highest academic score in the metro at 9.9/10.

Coventry Cluster — Coventry Middle School (7.5) and Coventry Elementary (7.2) form a natural K-8 pipeline. Both score well across multiple dimensions, with the middle school standing out for its environment score of 8.3 — the strongest of any school in the Coventry feeder pattern. Families in this area benefit from consistency across grade transitions.

Norton / Southwest Suburbs — Ritzman Community Learning Center (7.4) and Nolley Elementary (7.1) represent the southwest suburban options. Ritzman has the lowest student-teacher ratio among the top 10 at 10.6:1 and the highest environment score at 9.7/10, making it a standout for families prioritizing small class sizes.

Akron City Center / Alternative Programs — Several Akron Public Schools sites rank highly through growth and environment rather than raw academics. Case Community Learning Center, Akron Alternative Academy, and Cascade Career Prep all score 7.1 and demonstrate that strong growth trajectories (scores of 9.3-10.0) can offset lower baseline academic performance.

Top 10 Schools in Akron — Deep Dives

1. Bath Elementary School — Composite: 7.7/10 | Academic: 9.9 | Growth: 8.5 | Environment: 4.0 Bath Elementary leads the Akron metro with the highest academic score of any local school at 9.9/10. Serving 639 students with an 18.8:1 student-teacher ratio, it ranks #208 statewide in Ohio. The environment score of 4.0 reflects those larger class sizes, but the academic and growth results speak for themselves.

2. Greater Summit County Early Learning Center — Composite: 7.5/10 | Academic: 8.7 | Growth: 9.7 | Environment: 3.2 This small elementary campus enrolls just 118 students but delivers exceptional results. A growth score of 9.7 means students are making significant year-over-year gains. The 19.7:1 student-teacher ratio is the highest in the top 10, and the environment score reflects that, but the academic trajectory here is among the strongest in the region.

3. Coventry Middle School — Composite: 7.5/10 | Academic: 6.4 | Growth: 8.0 | Environment: 8.3 Coventry Middle is the highest-ranked middle school in the Akron area. With 437 students and a 14.1:1 ratio, it balances solid growth with the second-best environment score in the top 10 at 8.3. The academic score of 6.4 is above average and pairs with a strong growth trajectory to suggest students are improving each year.

4. Ritzman Community Learning Center — Composite: 7.4/10 | Academic: 6.7 | Growth: 6.2 | Environment: 9.7 Ritzman earns the highest environment score of any school in the top 10 at 9.7, driven by a 10.6:1 student-teacher ratio — the lowest (best) among ranked schools. With 298 students, it hits a sweet spot for families who prioritize small class settings and strong teacher access. Ranked #290 in Ohio.

5. Coventry Elementary School — Composite: 7.2/10 | Academic: 7.7 | Growth: 7.6 | Environment: 6.1 Coventry Elementary is the most balanced school in the top 10, with no score below 6.1 and solid marks across all three measured dimensions. Serving 448 students, it feeds into Coventry Middle School — giving families in this district a consistent K-8 experience with above-average results at both levels.

6. Cascade Career Prep High School — Composite: 7.1/10 | Academic: 2.8 | Growth: 10.0 | Environment: 9.7 Cascade Career Prep is a small, specialized high school with just 78 students and an 11.1:1 ratio. It earns a perfect 10.0 growth score — the highest possible — meaning students here are making the most progress of any school in the metro. The low academic baseline of 2.8 reflects the population it serves, but the growth numbers demonstrate that the school is moving students forward aggressively.

7. Case Community Learning Center — Composite: 7.1/10 | Academic: 3.2 | Growth: 9.3 | Environment: 9.2 Case CLC serves 347 elementary students in Akron’s urban core with a 12.4:1 student-teacher ratio. Like Cascade, it demonstrates that growth and environment can drive strong composite scores even when baseline academics are lower. A 9.3 growth score puts it among the top improvers in the city.

8. Akron Alternative Academy — Composite: 7.1/10 | Academic: 2.7 | Growth: 10.0 | Environment: 9.7 This alternative high school serves 107 students and shares a profile similar to Cascade Career Prep: a perfect 10.0 growth score paired with a near-perfect 9.7 environment score. The 11.9:1 ratio and small enrollment suggest a highly personalized learning model. It ranks #414 statewide.

9. Nolley Elementary School — Composite: 7.1/10 | Academic: 9.5 | Growth: 6.9 | Environment: 4.3 Nolley posts the second-highest academic score in the top 10 at 9.5, trailing only Bath Elementary. With 442 students and an 18.4:1 ratio, the school profile mirrors Bath’s in many ways — high academics, larger class sizes, moderate growth. Families seeking strong test-score outcomes will find Nolley a compelling option.

10. National Inventors Hall of Fame School Center for STEM — Composite: 7.0/10 | Academic: 5.3 | Growth: 7.6 | Environment: 8.6 This STEM-focused middle school enrolls 398 students at a 13.7:1 ratio within Akron Public Schools. The environment score of 8.6 reflects its focused program model, and the growth score of 7.6 is solid for a school with a mid-range academic baseline. It ranks #493 statewide and offers a distinctive curricular approach not found elsewhere in the top 10.

Making the Right Choice in Akron

Akron’s top 10 reveals two very different school models succeeding for different reasons, and understanding which matters to your family is the most important first step.

• High-academic schools (Bath Elementary, Nolley Elementary, Greater Summit County ELC) post strong test scores but tend to have larger class sizes and lower environment scores. These work well for students who thrive independently in traditional classroom settings.
• High-growth schools (Cascade Career Prep, Akron Alternative Academy, Case CLC) have lower baseline academics but demonstrate the strongest student improvement trajectories. These schools excel at meeting students where they are and pushing them forward, often with much smaller class sizes.
• Balanced schools (Coventry Elementary, Coventry Middle, Ritzman CLC) score solidly across all dimensions without extreme strengths or weaknesses. These are often the safest bet for families who want consistent quality without trade-offs.

Beyond scores, consider practical factors: commute time, before/after-school care availability, and whether the school feeds into a middle or high school you are also considering. The Coventry Elementary-to-Coventry Middle pipeline is the clearest example of a strong K-8 pathway in the data.

How Akron Compares Statewide

Akron’s city average of 5.0/10 falls slightly below the Ohio statewide average. The top school score of 7.7 is competitive but does not reach the 8.0+ tier found in some of Ohio’s suburban districts. Bath Elementary’s state rank of #208 puts it solidly in the top quartile of all Ohio schools, but no Akron-area school cracks the top 200.

The 17 charter schools in the metro add options but do not dominate the top of the rankings — traditional public schools hold most of the top 10 slots. For broader context on how Ohio’s school landscape breaks down and where Akron fits within it, visit our Ohio state page.

Explore Akron Schools

Every school listed here has a detailed profile on MySchoolScout with full score breakdowns, enrollment data, and demographic information. Start with the top performers:

• Bath Elementary School — #1 in Akron, 7.7 composite
• Greater Summit County Early Learning Center — #2, 7.5 composite
• Coventry Middle School — #3, 7.5 composite
• Ritzman Community Learning Center — #4, 7.4 composite
• Coventry Elementary School — #5, 7.2 composite
• Cascade Career Prep High School — #6, 7.1 composite
• Case Community Learning Center — #7, 7.1 composite
• Akron Alternative Academy — #8, 7.1 composite
• Nolley Elementary School — #9, 7.1 composite
• National Inventors Hall of Fame School Center for STEM — #10, 7.0 composite

For the full picture of all 88 schools, head to our Akron city page to browse every school, compare scores, and filter by level.

Explore more Ohio schools on our Ohio overview page, or read about how we calculate scores on our methodology page.

The Growth vs. Academics Split

One of the most striking patterns in Akron’s data is the inverse relationship between academic scores and growth scores among the top 10. Schools with the highest academic marks — Bath Elementary (9.9) and Nolley Elementary (9.5) — post growth scores of 8.5 and 6.9 respectively. Meanwhile, Cascade Career Prep and Akron Alternative Academy each earn a perfect 10.0 growth score but have academic scores below 3.0.

This is not a flaw in the ranking system. It reflects a real dynamic: schools serving students who arrive with stronger academic foundations have less room to demonstrate growth on state assessments, while schools serving students who start further behind can show dramatic improvement. Both patterns represent genuine school quality — just different kinds.

For parents, the takeaway is clear: if your child is already performing at or above grade level, the high-academic schools will likely maintain that trajectory. If your child needs acceleration or has fallen behind, the high-growth schools have the track record of closing gaps. Akron’s diversity of strong school models means there is likely a good fit regardless of where your child starts.