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Which teacher or staff member at Sunflower Elementary deserves more recognition?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
444
Elementary
DISTRICT 404 · STATE 313
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LAWRENCE·NCES 200840000778
Sunflower Elementary
2521 Inverness Drive, Lawrence, KS 66047 · (785) 832-5870 · Douglas County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL444 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 63% of Kansas public elementary schools
- B+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Kansas public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
13.4:1
33 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.6:1 · STATE 13.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
43%
191 students
DISTRICT 45% · STATE 51%
Community
5
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 71 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 69 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 85 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 83 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 67 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (71) is 6% larger than its 5th grade class (67).
Student demographics
59%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · STATE 58% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
KAP 2024-25 . % Meeting + ExceedingEnglish Language Arts
57.5%
KS avg 44.5%
Math
43.7%
KS avg 38.8%
What this means: On the KAP, Kansas's statewide test, about 58 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 44 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Kansas schools, those numbers are about 45 and 39.
KAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 57.5% | 43.7% |
| 2023-24 | 45.7% | 44.7% |
% Meeting + Exceeding, all students and all tested grades. Kansas set new KAP cut scores in spring 2025, so results from 2023-24 and earlier are not comparable with later years.
Source: KAP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
49.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
41.6%
based on KS schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 50% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 42% typical for Kansas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Kansas's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Sunflower Elementary
Sunflower Elementary's state test result (49.9% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunflower Elementary this school | 444 | 43.0% | 49.9% |
| Mahaffie Elem Olathe | 449 | 43.7% | 44.0% |
| Clark Davidson Elem Goddard | 462 | 40.5% | 50.5% |
| Bluejacket-Flint Shawnee | 395 | 45.1% | 51.8% |
| Derby Hills Elem Derby | 410 | 43.4% | 44.4% |
| Northern Hills Elementary Topeka | 408 | 44.6% | 40.8% |
Matched among Kansas elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Sunflower Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kansas | In Douglas County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 49.9% | #224 of 625 | #5 of 14 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 43.7% | #295 of 625 | #6 of 14 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 57.5% | #198 of 625 | #4 of 14 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 444 | #125 of 714 | #3 of 16 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.4:1 | #267 of 539 | #5 of 15 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 59.2% | #161 of 540 | #6 of 15 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 43.0% | #447 of 658 | #8 of 16 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -1.8% | #353 of 377 | #6 of 6 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
444
+13 (+3%) vs 2020
+5% since 2000-01, when it was 424
Student : Teacher
13.4:1
was 14.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 444 | 33.2 | 13.4:1 | 43% (191) |
| 2023-24 | 452 | 33.1 | 13.7:1 | 48% (215) |
| 2022-23 | 468 | 29 | 16.1:1 | 47% (218) |
| 2020-21 | 431 | 30 | 14.4:1 | 38% (163) |
| 2017-18 | 452 | 27.5 | 16.4:1 | 45% (203) |
| 2015-16 | 490 | 31 | 15.8:1 | 48% (234) |
| 2010-11 | 480 | 30 | 16.0:1 | 35% (167) |
| 2000-01 | 424 | 26 | 16.3:1 | 10% (41) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Sunflower Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 2% (452 to 444); teachers up 21% (27.5 to 33.2).
About Sunflower Elementary
Sunflower Elementary is classified as an elementary school. It is located in Lawrence, Kansas. Enrollment in 2024-25 was 444 students in kindergarten through 5. The average for elementary schools in Kansas is about 313 students, so this school is 42% bigger than average.
The district, Lawrence, has 10,380 students enrolled across 18 schools.
White students are the majority at Sunflower Elementary, with 60% of enrollment. The school is also 14% Hispanic, 14% multiracial, 7% Black, and 3% Native American. The White share of the county population is higher, at 78%. The school's diversity index is 59%, meaning two students picked at random have a 59% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Sunflower Elementary's 33.2 full-time-equivalent teachers put its ratio at 13.4:1. That is close to the 13.2:1 average for elementary schools in Kansas. Eligibility for subsidized school meals is 43%.
Measured against Kansas public elementary schools, Sunflower Elementary receives a B. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Given its share of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Sunflower Elementary would be expected to post about 41.6%. Its actual average proficiency rate on state tests is 49.9%.
Among Douglas County residents, the median household income is $69,746, roughly 53% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 5%. Sunflower Elementary is one of 30 public schools in the county.
The closest public school, Lawrence Southwest Middle School, is less than a tenth of a mile from Sunflower Elementary. A five-mile radius around the school includes at least 8 other public schools. Among the 9 closest schools with test data, this one included, Sunflower Elementary ranks 3rd on average proficiency.
Locale data from NCES put Sunflower Elementary inside a principal city with a population under 100,000 (City: Small).
Enrollment climbed 3% from its 2020-21 level of 431. The student-to-teacher ratio went down from 14.4:1 to 13.4:1.
Discussions about Sunflower Elementary may include school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Douglas County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
120,302
Census ACS
Median income
$69,746
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
53%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
30
13,766 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Lawrence
- Lawrence Free State HighHigh · 1,774 students
- Lawrence HighHigh · 1,454 students
- Lawrence West Middle SchoolMiddle · 648 students
- Lawrence Southwest Middle SchoolMiddle · 641 students
- Langston Hughes ElemElementary · 560 students
- Lawrence Virtual SchoolCombined · 543 students
Other schools in Lawrence
- Lawrence Free State HighHigh · 1,774 students
- Lawrence HighHigh · 1,454 students
- Lawrence West Middle SchoolMiddle · 648 students
- Lawrence Southwest Middle SchoolMiddle · 641 students
- Langston Hughes ElemElementary · 560 students
- Lawrence Virtual SchoolCombined · 543 students
Other Sunflower Elementary schools
8 other US public schools in 3 states are named Sunflower Elementary. Sunflower Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 9.
- Sunflower Elementary SchoolLiberal, KS · 570 students
- Sunflower ElemLenexa, KS · 390 students
- Sunflower ElemPaola, KS · 373 students
- Sunflower Elementary SchoolAndover, KS · 367 students
- Sunflower Elementary SchoolOttawa, KS · 333 students
Nearby schools
- Lawrence Southwest Middle School0.1 mi · 641
- Quail Run Elementary1.8 mi · 421
- Schwegler Elem2.3 mi · 434
- Langston Hughes Elem2.4 mi · 560
- Lawrence West Middle School2.6 mi · 648
- Sunset Hill Elem2.6 mi · 398
Frequently asked questions
About Sunflower ElementaryHow many students attend Sunflower Elementary?
Sunflower Elementary enrolls approximately 444 students in grades KG-05.
Is Sunflower Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Sunflower Elementary is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sunflower Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Sunflower Elementary is approximately 13.4:1 (33 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Sunflower Elementary?
At Sunflower Elementary, the student body is approximately 60% White, 14% Hispanic, 7% Black, 2% Asian, 14% Two or more.
Is Sunflower Elementary public or private?
Sunflower Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Lawrence.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.