Clay Hill Public Charter School vs Powhatan Elementary

Clay Hill Public Charter School holds a 0.8-point overall rating advantage over Powhatan Elementary — 9.2/10 versus 8.4/10 — a gap that translates into a significant state rank difference: Clay Hill sits at #31 of 1,363 Maryland schools while Powhatan Elementary lands at #182 of the same pool. Both are genuinely strong performers, but Clay Hill's top-5% statewide position places it in a different tier for families prioritizing rank-based selection in Baltimore.

On academics, the two schools are nearly identical: Powhatan Elementary scores 8.2/10 versus Clay Hill Public Charter School's 8.1/10, a difference too small to be meaningful. Where Clay Hill separates itself is growth — a perfect 10.0/10 growth score compared to Powhatan Elementary's already-strong 9.6/10. That four-tenths gap signals that Clay Hill is accelerating student progress at an exceptional rate relative to peers statewide, regardless of where students start.

Both schools serve nearly identical free and reduced-price lunch populations — 61% at each — so neither has a demographic advantage in terms of equity challenges faced. Clay Hill Public Charter School enrolls 293 students against Powhatan Elementary's 222, giving Powhatan the smaller community feel. Powhatan also edges Clay Hill on student-teacher ratio: 11.1 students per teacher versus 12.7 at Clay Hill, meaning Powhatan students get marginally more individual teacher attention in a given classroom.

The clearest structural difference is school type and grade range. Clay Hill Public Charter School is a charter serving kindergarten through fifth grade, while Powhatan Elementary is a traditional public school that adds a pre-K year, covering PK through fifth grade. Families with pre-K-aged children have an automatic reason to look at Powhatan first. The two campuses sit 10.1 miles apart, so proximity may also factor into the decision for Baltimore families weighing commute against ratings.