Clay Hill Public Charter School vs Fort Garrison Elementary

Fort Garrison Elementary edges out Clay Hill Public Charter School by a razor-thin margin overall — 9.3 versus 9.2 out of 10 — but that one-tenth-point gap masks meaningful differences underneath. In Maryland's statewide rankings, Fort Garrison Elementary sits at #26 of 1,363 schools while Clay Hill Public Charter School lands at #31 of 1,363, placing both schools in the top 3% of all schools in the state. Parents choosing between them are weighing two genuinely high-performing elementary options 11.6 miles apart in Baltimore.

The academic and growth scores tell opposite stories. Fort Garrison Elementary's academic proficiency score of 9.9 out of 10 outpaces Clay Hill Public Charter School's 8.1 by 1.8 points — a substantial delta that reflects stronger performance on state assessments. Clay Hill Public Charter School reverses the gap on growth, scoring a perfect 10.0 versus Fort Garrison Elementary's 9.1, meaning Clay Hill students are advancing faster relative to their starting points. Families prioritizing absolute proficiency levels lean toward Fort Garrison Elementary; those who value trajectory and learning acceleration — particularly for students entering below grade level — will find Clay Hill Public Charter School's growth numbers compelling.

The two schools serve demographically distinct populations. Clay Hill Public Charter School enrolls 61% of students on free or reduced-price lunch compared to 22% at Fort Garrison Elementary — a 39-point gap that reflects meaningfully different community contexts. Clay Hill Public Charter School has a slightly smaller student body (293 versus 286) and a lower student-teacher ratio of 12.7:1 versus Fort Garrison Elementary's 13.6:1, giving Clay Hill students marginally more individual attention per classroom. Fort Garrison Elementary extends one grade further by offering pre-kindergarten through 5th grade, while Clay Hill Public Charter School begins at kindergarten.

As a charter school, Clay Hill Public Charter School operates under a different governance model than Fort Garrison Elementary, which is a traditional neighborhood public school. Clay Hill's charter status typically means enrollment requires an active application or lottery rather than automatic assignment by address. Fort Garrison Elementary serves a predominantly higher-income catchment and has no enrollment barrier for in-boundary families. Neither school's extracurricular or special program offerings are included in the available data.