McCarter Elem

McCarter Elem, a moderately sized elementary campus in Topeka, Kansas, part of Topeka Public Schools, enrolls 401 students, covering grades pre-K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 313 students per school, that is 28% larger than typical.

Across the 25 schools in Topeka Public Schools (11,695 students total), McCarter Elem accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

Demographically, McCarter Elem shows that the most-represented group is White (36%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest comes out to 29% Hispanic, 21% multiracial, 12% Black. By comparison, Shawnee County as a whole is about 75% White, so the school skews noticeably less White than its surroundings.

On the resource side, McCarter Elem records 32 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 12.4:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.2:1 average. Around 68% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Shawnee County (around 54%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, McCarter Elem performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 29.5%, the actual is 40.3%, a residual of +10.8 points.

Around the school, Shawnee County reports that the typical household earns roughly $67,104 per year, about 32% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 9%. McCarter Elem is one of 54 public schools in Shawnee County (combined enrollment of about 26,294 students).

Nearest neighbor: Topeka West High, around 0.4 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around McCarter Elem. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts McCarter Elem at 3rd of 9; the average score across the group is 31.9%.

McCarter Elem operates from a city-core location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count remained close to its prior level: 401 students in 2018 compared to 401 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share decreased from 47% to 36%.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.