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Alumni: what's one memory from CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
466
Elementary
DISTRICT 442 · STATE 418
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·VAN BUREN SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 051341001097
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
913 N 24 ST, VAN BUREN, AR 72956 · (479) 474-7059 · Crawford County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY22-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL466 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
18.4:1
25 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.1:1 · STATE 16.0:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
75%
351 students
DISTRICT 67% · STATE 70%
Community
3
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
ATLAS 2023-24 . % Proficient (Level 3+4)English Language Arts
23.1%
AR avg 33.9%
Math
31.6%
AR avg 36.5%
What this means: On the ATLAS, Arkansas's statewide test, about 23 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 32 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Arkansas schools, those numbers are about 34 and 36.
Source: ATLAS. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
25.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
31.3%
based on AR schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-5.7pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 26% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 31% typical for Arkansas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Arkansas's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
466
-61 (-12%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
18.4:1
was 14.4:1
% White
64%
was 71%
% Hispanic
16%
was 19%
% Black
3%
was 2%
% Asian
2%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of the medium-sized K-5 schools in VAN BUREN, Arkansas, one of the schools within VAN BUREN SCHOOL DISTRICT, with 466 students on its rolls from grades K through 5.
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of 11 schools operated by VAN BUREN SCHOOL DISTRICT, a district that educates 5,703 students overall.
On demographics, CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL reports that White students make up the majority at 64%. Beyond that, the school records 16% Hispanic, 15% multiracial, 3% Black. By comparison, Crawford County as a whole is about 81% White, so the school skews visibly less White than its surroundings.
Looking at the economic backdrop, CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL shows 25 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 18.4:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 16.0:1 average. About 75% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. Set against Crawford County (around 65%), the school's rate is meaningfully above typical.
Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 31.3% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 25.6%.
In the area at large, the surrounding county (Crawford County) shows that median household earnings sit near $64,132, about 20% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 10%. CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of 23 public schools in Crawford County (combined enrollment of about 10,496 students).
Nearest neighbor: KING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, around 0.5 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL at 6th of 7; the average score across the group is 36.0%.
The school occupies an outer-ring site.
Trend over the last 7 years. CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL's enrollment has edged down 12% since 2018, when it stood at 527 (now 466). White enrollment moved from 71% to 64% across the same window. Class-load math has rose: from 14.4:1 in 2018 to 18.4:1 in 2025.
On this page, the feed for CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL typically covers science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Crawford County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
61,139
Census ACS
Median income
$64,132
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
23
10,496 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in VAN BUREN SCHOOL DISTRICT
- VAN BUREN HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,232 students
- NORTHRIDGE MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 713 students
- BUTTERFIELD TRAIL MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 557 students
- VAN BUREN FRESHMAN ACADEMYHigh · 468 students
- JAMES R. TATE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 459 students
- OLIVER SPRINGS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 441 students
Other schools in VAN BUREN
- VAN BUREN HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,232 students
- NORTHRIDGE MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 713 students
- BUTTERFIELD TRAIL MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 557 students
- VAN BUREN FRESHMAN ACADEMYHigh · 468 students
- JAMES R. TATE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 459 students
- OLIVER SPRINGS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 441 students
Nearby schools
- KING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.5 mi · 437
- BUTTERFIELD TRAIL MIDDLE SCHOOL0.9 mi · 557
- VAN BUREN HIGH SCHOOL0.9 mi · 1,232
- PARKVIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL1.1 mi · 437
- VAN BUREN FRESHMAN ACADEMY1.2 mi · 468
- OLIVER SPRINGS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL2.2 mi · 441
Frequently asked questions
About CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLHow large is CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL?
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL enrolls approximately 466 students in grades KG-05.
Is CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL an elementary, middle, or high school?
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
How many teachers does CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL have?
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL employs 25 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 18.4:1.
What is the student diversity at CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL?
Student demographics at CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL are roughly 64% White, 16% Hispanic, 3% Black, 2% Asian, 15% Two or more.
What district is CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL in?
CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is part of VAN BUREN SCHOOL DISTRICT.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.