Enrollment
241
Elementary
DISTRICT 343 · STATE 421
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MARSHALL COUNTY·NCES 210381000979
South Marshall Elementary School
155 Sid Darnell Road, Benton, KY 42025 · (270) 527-1581 · Marshall County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY41-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL241 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 40% of Kentucky public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-Beats 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
12.0:1
20 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.5:1 · STATE 15.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
73%
175 students
DISTRICT 56% · 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 | 21 | 9% |
| Kindergarten | 37 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 38 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 31 | 13% |
| Grade 3 | 34 | 14% |
| Grade 4 | 45 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 35 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (37) is 6% larger than its 5th grade class (35).
Student demographics
10%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 15% · 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
QUIET COMMUNITY
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START A DISCUSSIONTest scores
KSA (K-PREP) 2024-25 . % Proficient/DistinguishedEnglish Language Arts
41.7%
KY avg 47.9%
Math
44.7%
KY avg 42.8%
What this means: On the KSA (K-PREP), Kentucky's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 45 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
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
39.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.1%
based on KY schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+1.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 40% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 38% typical for Kentucky 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 Kentucky'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 South Marshall Elementary School
South Marshall Elementary School's state test result (39.7% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 3 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Marshall Elementary School this school | 241 | 72.6% | 39.7% |
| Boyd Co Early Childhood Academy Ashland | 230 | 72.2% | N/A |
| Tollesboro Elementary School Tollesboro | 256 | 73.4% | 53.8% |
| Western Elementary School Centertown | 221 | 72.4% | 51.2% |
| Hacker Elementary School Manchester | 244 | 71.3% | 51.5% |
| Elliott County Primary School Sandy Hook | 224 | 72.8% | N/A |
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 South Marshall Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kentucky | In Marshall County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 39.7% | #425 of 669 | #6 of 6 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 44.7% | #328 of 668 | #5 of 6 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 41.7% | #477 of 674 | #5 of 6 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 241 | #641 of 744 | #6 of 6 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.0:1 | #45 of 674 | #1 of 6 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 9.6% | #588 of 674 | #6 of 6 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 72.6% | #227 of 721 | #2 of 6 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -25.6% | #55 of 437 | N/A |
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
241
-71 (-23%) vs 2020
-32% since 1990-91, when it was 356
Student : Teacher
12.0:1
was 14.2:1
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 | 241 | 20.1 | 12.0:1 | 73% (175) |
| 2023-24 | 264 | 20.7 | 12.7:1 | 78% (206) |
| 2022-23 | 289 | 22.7 | 12.7:1 | 64% (184) |
| 2020-21 | 312 | 22 | 14.2:1 | 67% (208) |
| 2017-18 | 324 | 22.4 | 14.5:1 | 68% (220) |
| 2015-16 | 312 | 21 | 14.9:1 | 74% (230) |
| 2010-11 | 358 | 24 | 14.9:1 | 73% (263) |
| 2000-01 | 338 | 16 | 21.1:1 | 56% (188) |
| 1990-91 | 356 | 21 | 16.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South Marshall Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 26% (324 to 241); teachers down 10% (22.4 to 20.1).
About South Marshall Elementary School
Federal records list South Marshall Elementary School as an elementary school in Benton, Kentucky. Enrollment is 241 students in 2024-25, and the school serves pre-K through 5. Against the 421-student average for elementary schools in Kentucky, enrollment here is 43% lower.
Marshall County has 4,302 students spread across 11 schools.
The student body at South Marshall Elementary School is 95% White. Beyond that, enrollment is 3% multiracial and 2% Hispanic. That is close to the 96% White share among all Marshall County residents. South Marshall Elementary School's diversity index is 10%, against a US figure of 70%.
Dividing enrollment by its 20.1 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 12.0:1. That is 3.4 students per teacher below the 15.4:1 average for elementary schools in Kentucky. South Marshall Elementary School reports 73% of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals. That rate is above the 57% average among public schools in Marshall County.
allk12 grades South Marshall Elementary School a C+. The grade compares the school only with Kentucky public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
South Marshall Elementary School's average proficiency rate on state tests of 39.7% is 1.6 points above the 38.1% the model predicts from its lunch-eligibility share.
According to the American Community Survey, in Marshall County, the median household income is $65,831, roughly 21% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 8%. There are 12 public schools in Marshall County, enrolling about 4,302 students in all.
Nearby, South Marshall Middle is about 2.5 miles away. Within five miles of South Marshall Elementary School, there are 2 other public schools. Compared with its nearest neighbors, South Marshall Elementary School ranks 5th of 7 on average proficiency.
NCES describes the area around South Marshall Elementary School as Rural: Fringe, meaning in rural territory close to an urban area.
Enrollment is down 23% from 2020-21, when South Marshall Elementary School had 312 students, to 2024-25, when it had 241. The ratio of students to teachers went from 14.2:1 to 12.0:1 over the same years.
Parents and students can post about sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater at South Marshall Elementary School. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Marshall County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
31,743
Census ACS
Median income
$65,831
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
21%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
4,302 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Marshall County
- Marshall County High SchoolHigh · 1,201 students
- Benton Elementary SchoolElementary · 528 students
- North Marshall Middle SchoolMiddle · 487 students
- Central Elementary SchoolElementary · 480 students
- South Marshall MiddleMiddle · 432 students
- Calvert City Elementary SchoolElementary · 294 students
Other schools in Benton
- Marshall County High SchoolHigh · 1,201 students
- Benton Elementary SchoolElementary · 528 students
- Central Elementary SchoolElementary · 480 students
- South Marshall MiddleMiddle · 432 students
- Sharpe Elementary SchoolElementary · 276 students
- Jonathan Elementary SchoolElementary · 241 students
Nearby schools
- South Marshall Middle2.5 mi · 432
- Benton Elementary School4.5 mi · 528
- Purchase Youth Village5.1 mi · 22
- Jonathan Elementary School7.1 mi · 241
- MC Academy8.1 mi · 100
- Marshall County High School8.1 mi · 1,201
Frequently asked questions
About South Marshall Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at South Marshall Elementary School?
South Marshall Elementary School enrolls approximately 241 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does South Marshall Elementary School serve?
South Marshall Elementary School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Marshall Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at South Marshall Elementary School is approximately 12.0:1 (20 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at South Marshall Elementary School?
At South Marshall Elementary School, the student body is approximately 95% White, 2% Hispanic, 3% Two or more.
Is South Marshall Elementary School public or private?
South Marshall Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Marshall County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.