Enrollment
209
Elementary
DISTRICT 296 · STATE 421
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·HARLAN COUNTY·NCES 210254000534
Cawood Elementary School
51 Nola St, Cawood, KY 40815 · (606) 573-2502 · Harlan County
GRADES PK–08ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL209 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 86% of Kentucky public elementary schools
- A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ABeats 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 Kentucky public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
13.1:1
16 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.9:1 · STATE 15.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
87%
181 students
DISTRICT 84% · STATE 63%
Community
0
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 13 | 6% |
| Kindergarten | 26 | 12% |
| Grade 1 | 20 | 10% |
| Grade 2 | 29 | 14% |
| Grade 3 | 18 | 9% |
| Grade 4 | 24 | 11% |
| Grade 5 | 18 | 9% |
| Grade 6 | 24 | 11% |
| Grade 7 | 18 | 9% |
| Grade 8 | 19 | 9% |
This year's kindergarten class (26) is 37% larger than its 8th grade class (19).
Student demographics
8%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 10% · STATE 47% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Cawood Elementary School→Harlan County High School
Based on grade levels within Harlan County. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
KSA (K-PREP) 2024-25 . % Proficient/DistinguishedEnglish Language Arts
51.5%
KY avg 47.9%
Math
67.0%
KY avg 42.8%
What this means: On the KSA (K-PREP), Kentucky's statewide test, about 52 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 67 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Kentucky schools, those numbers are about 48 and 43.
Source: KSA (K-PREP). All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of KY schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
56.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
32.9%
based on KY schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+23.8pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 57% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 33% typical for Kentucky schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 24 points, placing it in Kentucky's top 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 Cawood Elementary School
Cawood Elementary School's state test result (56.7% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cawood Elementary School this school | 209 | 86.6% | 56.7% |
| Boston Elementary School Williamsburg | 206 | 87.4% | 64.0% |
| Pleasant View Elementary School Williamsburg | 229 | 87.3% | 67.8% |
| Waynesburg Elementary School Waynesburg | 194 | 87.1% | 51.2% |
| Highland-Turner Elementary School Booneville | 184 | 84.8% | 67.3% |
| Goose Rock Elementary Manchester | 231 | 83.5% | 57.4% |
Matched among Kentucky 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 Cawood Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kentucky | In Harlan County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 56.7% | #137 of 669 | #2 of 9 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 67.0% | #56 of 668 | #1 of 9 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 51.5% | #308 of 674 | #7 of 9 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 209 | #666 of 744 | #8 of 9 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.1:1 | #110 of 674 | #4 of 8 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 8.4% | #603 of 674 | #5 of 8 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 86.6% | #48 of 721 | #3 of 9 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -24.0% | #67 of 437 | #2 of 7 |
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
209
-21 (-9%) vs 2020
-19% since 1990-91, when it was 259
Student : Teacher
13.1:1
was 15.3:1
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 | 209 | 16 | 13.1:1 | 87% (181) |
| 2023-24 | 209 | 16 | 13.1:1 | 89% (186) |
| 2022-23 | 205 | 16.5 | 12.4:1 | 90% (185) |
| 2020-21 | 230 | 15 | 15.3:1 | 89% (204) |
| 2017-18 | 275 | 17.4 | 15.8:1 | 96% (265) |
| 2015-16 | 302 | 21 | 14.4:1 | 90% (272) |
| 2010-11 | 331 | 23 | 14.4:1 | 80% (265) |
| 2000-01 | 352 | 17 | 20.7:1 | 92% (325) |
| 1990-91 | 259 | 16 | 16.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Cawood Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 24% (275 to 209); teachers down 8% (17.4 to 16).
About Cawood Elementary School
Cawood Elementary School is a small elementary school in Kentucky, located in Cawood. The school serves pre-K through 8. Enrollment is 209 students. Elementary schools in Kentucky have about 421 students on average; enrollment here is 50% lower.
Cawood Elementary School is run by Harlan County, whose 9 schools enroll 3,310 students.
A large majority of enrollment at Cawood Elementary School is White, at 96%. Among Harlan County residents, the White share is about 94%. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Cawood Elementary School scores 8%.
The student-to-teacher ratio is 13.1:1. The school has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers. The gap from the 15.4:1 average for elementary schools in Kentucky is 2.3 students per teacher. In all, 87% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. That is 11 points above the 76% average for public schools in Harlan County.
Cawood Elementary School holds an A allk12 Grade, placing it above 86% of Kentucky public elementary schools.
On BeatsExpectations, which compares test results with what a school's student poverty level would predict, Cawood Elementary School ranks in the top 10% in Kentucky. Its average proficiency rate across its state test results is 56.7%, against a prediction of 32.9%.
In Harlan County, home to about 25,772 people, the median household earns about $41,693 a year, roughly 13% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 21% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Public schools in Harlan County number 15, with about 4,310 students.
Straight-line distance to the nearest public school, Appalachian Challenge Academy, is about 4.4 miles. There are at least 8 other public schools within ten miles. By average proficiency, Cawood Elementary School is 1st among 7 schools close by.
Cawood Elementary School is coded as Rural: Distant in federal locale data.
By 2024-25, enrollment had dropped to 209, from 230 in 2020-21. The ratio of students to teachers went from 15.3:1 to 13.1:1 over the same years.
This page is a place to ask questions and share updates about open houses, carpools, and field trips at Cawood Elementary School. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Harlan County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
25,772
Census ACS
Median income
$41,693
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
13%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
21%
Below federal line
Schools in county
15
4,310 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Harlan County
- Harlan County High SchoolHigh · 945 students
- Cumberland Elementary SchoolElementary · 428 students
- Rosspoint Elementary SchoolElementary · 369 students
- Wallins Elementary SchoolElementary · 352 students
- Evarts Elementary SchoolElementary · 335 students
- James A. Cawood ElementaryElementary · 277 students
Nearby schools
- Appalachian Challenge Academy4.4 mi · 100
- James A. Cawood Elementary5.2 mi · 277
- Black Mountain Elementary School6.1 mi · 248
- Evarts Elementary School6.2 mi · 335
- Sunshine School6.4 mi · 110
- Harlan Elementary School6.5 mi · 335
Frequently asked questions
About Cawood Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Cawood Elementary School?
Cawood Elementary School enrolls approximately 209 students in grades PK-08.
What grades does Cawood Elementary School serve?
Cawood Elementary School serves grades PK-08.
How many teachers does Cawood Elementary School have?
Cawood Elementary School employs 16 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.1:1.
What is the student diversity at Cawood Elementary School?
Student demographics at Cawood Elementary School are roughly 96% White, 1% Hispanic, 1% Black, 0% Asian, 1% Two or more.
What district is Cawood Elementary School in?
Cawood Elementary School is part of Harlan County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.