Dayton Ohio School Ratings: District by District

How Ohio rates school districts

If you are new to Ohio, the state report card is the place to start. Every public district and school gets an overall rating from 1 to 5 stars, in half star steps. The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce runs it, and the full data lives at reportcard.education.ohio.gov.

Here is the part most people miss. According to the Dayton Daily News, 3 to 3.5 stars means a district is meeting state expectations. So a 3 star district is not failing. It is right where the state wants it.

What goes into the stars

The overall rating is built from components that include achievement (state test results), progress (how much students grow from one year to the next), gap closing, early literacy, graduation rate, and college, career, military and workforce readiness. The Dayton Daily News notes that achievement and progress carry the most weight. That matters, because a district can post a modest overall score and still show strong growth.

2026 overall ratings for Dayton area districts

These are the overall star ratings reported by WHIO and the Dayton Daily News when the state released the 2026 report cards in mid September. I only listed districts where a local outlet printed the number. If your town is not here, that does not mean anything good or bad. Look it up on the state site.

District by district: what stood out

The top tier: Oakwood, Bellbrook Sugarcreek, Centerville

Oakwood is small, walkable and sits right up against the city of Dayton. It earned 5 stars. Bellbrook Sugarcreek, out on the southeast edge of Greene County, also earned 5 stars. Centerville is the biggest of the three, with a wide range of housing on the south side of town. If schools are your number one filter, start with our Oakwood, Bellbrook and Centerville guides.

Just behind: Beavercreek, Springboro, Tipp City

Beavercreek earned 4.5 stars per WHIO, and it is a favorite for families working at Wright Patt because of the short drive to base. Springboro slipped from 5 stars to 4.5 this year. The district told the Dayton Daily News the change came from an adjustment in the gap closing measure. Tipp City, up north off I 75, also posted 4.5 stars.

Solid value: Kettering

Kettering earned 4 stars overall, with 4 stars in achievement, progress, graduation and early literacy, plus 5 stars in gap closing, according to the Dayton Daily News. For buyers who want good schools and a lower entry price than Oakwood or Centerville, Kettering is usually the first town I show. See the Kettering neighborhood guide.

Meeting expectations and improving

Xenia and Mad River both earned 3 stars, which lands right in the state's meeting expectations range. Trotwood Madison moved up from 2 stars to 2.5, and the Dayton Daily News reported its progress rating jumped from 2 stars to 4. Jefferson Township climbed from 1.5 stars to 2.

Dayton Public Schools

Dayton Public earned 2 stars overall. The Dayton Daily News also reported that its career technical education report card scored 4.5 stars, which is worth knowing if you have a student headed toward a trade. As with any district, individual buildings vary, so look at the specific school, not just the district number.

How to use school ratings when you buy a home

• •Check the district, not the mailing address. Around here a Dayton or Kettering mailing address does not always tell you which district a home sits in. Verify the school district on the county auditor record or the listing before you write an offer.
• •Read past the overall stars. Open the progress and early literacy pieces. Growth tells you how a district is trending, which matters if you plan to stay a while.
• •Price in the taxes. School levies show up on your property tax bill, and rates differ from district to district. Run the full payment, taxes included, in the mortgage calculator.
• •Visit. A star rating will not tell you about class sizes, the bus ride, or how a school handles a new kid in October. Call the district and ask for a tour.

Want to compare towns side by side? Try the schools tool and the neighborhood compare tool. If you are coming in for Wright Patt, our guide to schools near WPAFB covers enrollment tips for military kids, and the 2026 Dayton market report shows what homes cost in each of these suburbs.

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