Little Turtle Elementary School

As a medium-sized elementary campus in Columbia City, Indiana, Little Turtle Elementary School caters to 583 students from grades K through 5, operated by Whitley County Con Schools. That puts it 34% above the typical public school in Indiana, which averages around 436 students.

Across the 7 schools in Whitley County Con Schools (3,686 students total), Little Turtle Elementary School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Little Turtle Elementary School reports that nearly all students (89%) are White. Other groups include 6% multiracial, 3% Hispanic. Compared to Whitley County overall, the school's racial mix sits in roughly the same range.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 36 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 16.1:1 students per teacher. The state averages about 15.5:1, putting this campus right in line with peers. Roughly 41% of students at Little Turtle Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Whitley County runs at roughly 33%, so the school's eligibility rate is higher than the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Little Turtle Elementary School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 46.8%, the actual is 40.0%, a residual of -6.8 points.

Around the school, census data for Whitley County shows median household income runs about $78,083, roughly 24% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. Across Whitley County's 12 public schools (combined enrollment of about 5,594 students), Little Turtle Elementary School is one campus in the mix.

Indian Springs Middle School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.3 miles from this campus. 5 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 7 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Little Turtle Elementary School ranks 3rd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 36.7%.

Geographically, the school is in a low-density area.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count increased 8%: 542 students in 2018 compared to 583 in 2025.

On this page, members of the Little Turtle Elementary School community share and discuss pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. The community welcomes input from current and former families.