Inquiry Charter School

Inquiry Charter School is the sole elementary school in the Inquiry Charter School District, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 268 students. The school is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is part of a district that is ranked 502 out of 610 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Inquiry Charter School has consistently ranked in the bottom 25% of Pennsylvania elementary schools over the past three school years, with rankings between 1170 and 1198 out of around 1,500 schools. The school's proficiency rates on the PSSA tests are significantly below the state averages in both math and English language arts across all grade levels. For example, in 2023-2024, the school's overall math proficiency rate was 30.8% compared to the state average of 40.4%. Additionally, 100% of the school's students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a very high poverty rate.

Despite the low academic performance, Inquiry Charter School spends a relatively high amount per student ($21,050 in 2021-2022) compared to the state average. This raises questions about the effectiveness of the school's resource allocation and the need to ensure that funding is being used in the most impactful way to support student learning. With only 268 students, the school is relatively small, which may provide opportunities for more personalized attention but could also present challenges in terms of staffing, resources, and economies of scale.