Bridger Creative Science School vs Glencoe Elementary School

Glencoe Elementary School ranks #20 of 1,226 Oregon schools, placing it in the top 2% statewide. Bridger Creative Science School ranks #49 of 1,226 — still a strong top-4% finish, but 29 positions behind. Both schools sit within 1.5 miles of each other in Portland, making the choice genuinely competitive for families in the surrounding neighborhoods.

The sharpest difference between the two schools is in academic proficiency. Bridger Creative Science School earns an academic score of 8.4/10 while Glencoe Elementary School scores 9.9/10 — a 1.5-point gap that reflects a meaningful difference in how students perform on state assessments. Growth scores, which measure year-over-year student improvement, are nearly identical: Bridger Creative Science School posts a 9.7/10 against Glencoe Elementary School's 9.6/10. In other words, Bridger is closing ground quickly, but Glencoe students start and stay further ahead on tested proficiency.

The two schools serve meaningfully different student populations. Bridger Creative Science School enrolls 514 students versus Glencoe Elementary School's 372, and Bridger's free and reduced-price lunch rate is 37% compared to Glencoe's 21% — a 16-point gap that signals Bridger serves a substantially higher share of economically disadvantaged families. Glencoe's student-teacher ratio of 18.6:1 is slightly larger than Bridger's 17.7:1, though neither difference is dramatic in isolation.

The grade structure creates a practical fork in the road for families. Bridger Creative Science School serves grades K–8, meaning a child who enrolls in kindergarten can stay through middle school without a transition. Glencoe Elementary School covers only K–5, so families will need to plan a middle school move after fifth grade. Bridger's science-focused identity also distinguishes it programmatically from Glencoe, which operates as a traditional neighborhood elementary.