Lanakila Elementary School vs Aliiolani Elementary School

Aliiolani Elementary School ranks #11 of 292 in Hawaii, placing it nine spots above Lanakila Elementary School at #20 of 292 — a meaningful separation in a state with nearly 300 elementary schools. Aliiolani's overall rating of 9.2/10 edges Lanakila's 8.9/10 by 0.3 points, but both schools sit firmly in Hawaii's top 7 percent, making this a comparison between two high performers rather than a strong school versus a weak one.

The sharpest academic delta sits in proficiency scores: Aliiolani Elementary School holds a 9.6/10 academic rating against Lanakila Elementary School's 9.0/10 — a 0.6-point gap that reflects meaningfully higher tested proficiency in reading and math. The growth story flips, however. Lanakila scores 9.4/10 on growth versus Aliiolani's 9.1/10, meaning Lanakila is accelerating student progress at a faster rate relative to starting points. Families weighing absolute achievement against year-over-year trajectory will find a genuine trade-off here, not a clear winner.

On enrollment and demographics, Lanakila Elementary School serves 317 students compared to Aliiolani Elementary School's 228 — a 39 percent larger student body. Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility stands at 68 percent at Lanakila versus 48 percent at Aliiolani, a 20-point gap that reflects meaningfully different socioeconomic compositions. Student-teacher ratios are nearly identical: 13.2:1 at Lanakila and 13.4:1 at Aliiolani, so classroom attention per child is effectively the same at both schools despite the enrollment difference.

Both Lanakila and Aliiolani serve grades PK through 5 and sit 4.5 miles apart in Honolulu, making them plausible alternatives for families in overlapping catchment zones. Neither school distinguishes itself through program or grade-level structure — the differentiation is entirely in the numbers above.