Plum Creek Elementary

Plum Creek Elementary is an elementary campus of mid-sized scale in Hutchinson, Kansas, part of Buhler, caters to 448 students in grades pre-K through 5. Enrollment runs roughly 43% larger than the state mean of about 313.

Across the 7 schools in Buhler (2,512 students total), Plum Creek Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

In terms of who attends, Plum Creek Elementary records that 85% of students identify as White, making the school strongly White-majority. Other groups include 11% Hispanic, 2% Black. Compared to Reno County overall, the school's racial mix sits in roughly the same range.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 29 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 15.7:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 13.2:1 average. An estimated 35% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. By comparison, Reno County runs at roughly 55%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully below the surrounding baseline.

After controlling for student poverty, Plum Creek Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 45.2% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 47.0%.

Around the school, census data for Reno County shows median household earnings sit near $60,645, about 20% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. Plum Creek Elementary is one of 33 public schools in Reno County (combined enrollment of about 8,909 students).

The closest other public school is Morgan Elementary, roughly 1.7 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. On composite proficiency, Plum Creek Elementary comes 1st of 6 in the immediate cluster, higher than the nearby-schools average of 28.2%.

Geographically, the school is in an outlying area.

Looking at the recent track record. Plum Creek Elementary's enrollment has shrank 4% since 2018, when it stood at 467 (now 448). Over the same period, the Hispanic share climbed from 7% to 11%. Class-load math has tightened: from 21.1:1 in 2018 to 15.7:1 in 2025.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.