Southside Elementary School

Southside Elementary School is one of the large K-5 schools in Columbus, Indiana, part of Bartholomew Con School Corp, with 891 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 6. By comparison, Indiana's public schools average about 436 students each, so Southside Elementary School sits 104% above that benchmark.

Southside Elementary School is one of 16 schools operated by Bartholomew Con School Corp, a district that enrolls 11,657 students overall.

On the student-mix side, Southside Elementary School reports that the largest single group is White at 49%, but no single group is in the majority. Beyond that, the school records 32% Asian, 12% Hispanic, 4% multiracial, 3% Black. That is visibly less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 79%.

On the resource side, The school currently runs with 50 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 18.0:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 15.5:1 average. Around 21% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Bartholomew County (around 44%), the school's rate is somewhat below typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Southside Elementary School tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 60.7% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 60.3%.

In the surrounding community, ACS estimates for Bartholomew County put the typical household earns roughly $79,901 per year, roughly 34% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 7%. In all, Bartholomew County runs 20 public schools (combined enrollment of about 12,688 students), of which Southside Elementary School is one.

CSA Lincoln Campus is the nearest neighboring public school, about 2.5 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Southside Elementary School. Among the 5 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Southside Elementary School ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 43.1%.

The school occupies a rural site.

Over the past 7-year window. Over the past 7-year window, the student count showed little movement: 910 students in 2018 compared to 891 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share fell from 59% to 49%. Class-load math has pulled in: from 19.9:1 in 2018 to 18.0:1 in 2025.

Inside the community feed, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.