Enrollment
335
Elementary
DISTRICT 242 · STATE 436
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SOUTH PUTNAM COMMUNITY SCHOOLS·NCES 181050002253
Central Elementary School
1888 E US Hwy 40, Greencastle, IN 46135 · (765) 653-6175 · Putnam County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL335 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 33% of Indiana public elementary schools
- B-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Indiana public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
12.2:1
28 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.6:1 · STATE 15.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
43%
145 students
DISTRICT 45% · STATE 50%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 65 | 19% |
| Grade 1 | 54 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 57 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 58 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 41 | 12% |
| Grade 5 | 60 | 18% |
This year's kindergarten class (65) is 8% larger than its 5th grade class (60).
Student demographics
13%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 12% · STATE 57% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within South Putnam Community Schools. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
ILEARN 2024-25 . % At or Above ProficiencyEnglish Language Arts
42.0%
IN avg 39.2%
Math
46.3%
IN avg 41.1%
What this means: On the ILEARN, Indiana's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 46 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Indiana schools, those numbers are about 39 and 41.
Source: ILEARN. 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
39.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
44.9%
based on IN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-5.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 39% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 45% typical for Indiana 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 Indiana'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 →
Schools most like Central Elementary School
Central Elementary School's state test result (39.3% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Elementary School this school | 335 | 43.3% | 39.3% |
| Eastbrook South Elementary Upland | 336 | 43.8% | 43.1% |
| South Central Elementary Elizabeth | 344 | 44.8% | 45.5% |
| Morristown Elementary School Morristown | 338 | 44.4% | 33.6% |
| William W Borden Elementary School Borden | 333 | 44.1% | 51.9% |
| Waldron Elementary School Waldron | 298 | 43.0% | 47.0% |
Matched among Indiana elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Central Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Indiana | In Putnam County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 39.3% | #532 of 983 | #6 of 6 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 46.3% | #487 of 986 | #6 of 6 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 42.0% | #403 of 986 | #4 of 6 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 335 | #755 of 1,079 | #5 of 8 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.2:1 | #95 of 991 | #2 of 6 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 12.5% | #896 of 996 | #3 of 6 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 43.3% | #733 of 1,058 | #6 of 8 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -4.6% | #480 of 597 | N/A |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
335
+5 (+2%) vs 2020
+94% since 1990-91, when it was 173
Student : Teacher
12.2:1
was 13.8:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 335 | 27.5 | 12.2:1 | 43% (145) |
| 2023-24 | 349 | 26.3 | 13.3:1 | 52% (180) |
| 2022-23 | 339 | 24.5 | 13.8:1 | 48% (164) |
| 2020-21 | 330 | 24 | 13.8:1 | 47% (156) |
| 2017-18 | 351 | 25.4 | 13.8:1 | 43% (152) |
| 2015-16 | 366 | 24 | 15.3:1 | 49% (178) |
| 2010-11 | 250 | 18 | 13.9:1 | 43% (108) |
| 2000-01 | 271 | 16 | 16.9:1 | 17% (46) |
| 1990-91 | 173 | 8 | 21.6:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Central Elementary School.
About Central Elementary School
Central Elementary School is an elementary school in Greencastle, Indiana, reachable at (765) 653-6175. Grades offered run from kindergarten through 5, with 335 students enrolled. For comparison, elementary schools in Indiana average about 436 students.
South Putnam Community Schools is made up of 4 schools with 1,105 students in all.
Central Elementary School enrolls a student body that is 93% White. After that, the student body is 4% Hispanic. For comparison, Putnam County is about 91% White. Central Elementary School has a diversity index of 13%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
The school reports 27.5 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 12.2 students per teacher. The 15.5:1 average for elementary schools in Indiana is higher than this school's figure. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 43%.
Measured against Indiana public elementary schools, Central Elementary School receives a C. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Central Elementary School is 5.6 points below the average proficiency rate on state tests predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 39.3% actual, 44.9% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in Indiana.
Census Bureau estimates for Putnam County show that median household income is about $78,378, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 20% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 5%. Central Elementary School is one of 19 public schools in Putnam County, which together enroll about 7,322 students.
The closest public school to Central Elementary School is South Putnam Middle School, about 0.2 miles away. Other public schools within five miles number at least 8. Among 4 nearby schools that report test results, Central Elementary School ranks 3rd on proficiency.
For locale, NCES codes Central Elementary School as Rural: Distant.
Enrollment in 2024-25 was 335, close to the 330 recorded in 2020-21. By 2024-25, the school had 12.2 students per teacher, compared with 13.8 in 2020-21.
The discussion area below is open to posts about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Putnam County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
37,280
Census ACS
Median income
$78,378
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
19
7,322 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in South Putnam Community Schools
- South Putnam High SchoolHigh · 354 students
- South Putnam Middle SchoolMiddle · 268 students
- Fillmore Elementary SchoolElementary · 148 students
Other schools in Greencastle
- Greencastle High SchoolHigh · 497 students
- Tzouanakis Intermediate SchoolElementary · 419 students
- Greencastle Middle SchoolMiddle · 383 students
- Deer Meadow Primary SchoolElementary · 359 students
- South Putnam High SchoolHigh · 354 students
- South Putnam Middle SchoolMiddle · 268 students
Other Central Elementary schools
151 other US public schools in 35 states are named Central Elementary. Central Elementary School is the 96th largest of the 152.
- Central Elementary SchoolIndianapolis, IN · 634 students
- Central Elementary SchoolPlainfield, IN · 549 students
- Central Elementary SchoolLawrenceburg, IN · 438 students
- Central Elementary SchoolPortage, IN · 409 students
- Central Elementary SchoolBeech Grove, IN · 389 students
Nearby schools
- South Putnam Middle School0.2 mi · 268
- South Putnam High School0.2 mi · 354
- Greencastle Middle School4.3 mi · 383
- Greencastle High School4.5 mi · 497
- Martha J Ridpath Elementary School4.5 mi · 160
- Deer Meadow Primary School4.9 mi · 359
Frequently asked questions
About Central Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Central Elementary School?
Central Elementary School enrolls approximately 335 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does Central Elementary School serve?
Central Elementary School serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Central Elementary School?
Approximately 12.2:1 students per teacher at Central Elementary School.
What is the student diversity at Central Elementary School?
Student demographics at Central Elementary School are roughly 93% White, 4% Hispanic, 0% Black, 2% Two or more.
What district is Central Elementary School in?
Central Elementary School is part of South Putnam Community Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.