W D Richards Elementary School

As a mid-tier elementary campus in Columbus, Indiana, W D Richards Elementary School serves 610 students from grades pre-K through 6, operated by Bartholomew Con School Corp. Compared to the state average of about 436 students per school, that is 40% larger than typical.

Within Bartholomew Con School Corp, which oversees 16 schools and 11,657 students, W D Richards Elementary School is one campus in the system.

On demographics, W D Richards Elementary School records that White students make up the majority at 62%. Beyond that, the school reports 23% Hispanic, 6% multiracial, 5% Asian, 4% Black. That is meaningfully less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 79%.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, W D Richards Elementary School has 31 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 19.9:1. The state averages around 15.5:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Roughly 45% of students at W D Richards Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

With demographic context factored in, W D Richards Elementary School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 43.5%; this one delivers 38.0%.

Around the school, community-level numbers for Bartholomew County indicate median household earnings sit near $79,901, about 34% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. W D Richards Elementary School is one of 20 public schools in Bartholomew County (combined enrollment of about 12,688 students).

The closest other public school is L F Smith Elementary, roughly 1.0 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, W D Richards Elementary School comes 2nd of 6 in the immediate cluster, ahead of the nearby-schools average of 35.6%.

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

Trend over the last 7 years. W D Richards Elementary School's enrollment has ticked up 5% since 2018, when it stood at 583 (now 610). Over the same period, the White share ticked down from 71% to 62%. Class-load math has fell: from 21.6:1 in 2018 to 19.9:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, members of the W D Richards Elementary School community share and discuss pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Members of the school community can share what they know.