Luce Elementary School

As an intimate elementary campus in Richland, Indiana, Luce Elementary School instructs 178 students from grades K through 6, operated by South Spencer County Sch Corp. That puts it 59% leaner than the typical public school in Indiana, which averages around 436 students.

Across the 4 schools in South Spencer County Sch Corp (1,065 students total), Luce Elementary School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On the student-mix side, Luce Elementary School shows that the student body is overwhelmingly White (97%). Beyond that, the school shows 3% multiracial. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

On the income-and-resources front, On paper, Luce Elementary School has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 11.1:1. The state averages around 15.5:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 37% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Luce Elementary School ranks in the top 10% of Indiana public schools. The BeatsExpectations model, a per-state regression of composite proficiency on FRL share, predicts schools with this student profile to land around 49.3%; Luce Elementary School posts 64.8%, +15.5 points above that line.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Spencer County) reports that median household income runs about $74,506, 22% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 5%. Luce Elementary School is one of 10 public schools in Spencer County (combined enrollment of about 3,231 students).

The closest other public school is South Spencer High School, roughly 4.4 miles away. Within five miles, there are 2 other public schools. On composite proficiency, Luce Elementary School comes 1st of 6 in the immediate cluster, ahead of the nearby-schools average of 43.3%.

The campus sits in a small-town setting.

Five-year trend. Luce Elementary School's enrollment has edged down 24% since 2018, when it stood at 235 (now 178). Class-load math has tightened: from 17.1:1 in 2018 to 11.1:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Luce Elementary School community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.