Enrollment
261
Elementary
DISTRICT 211 · STATE 272
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SIDNEY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 317671001603
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
2000 12TH AVE, SIDNEY, NE 69162 · (308) 254-5855 · Cheyenne County
GRADES 01–03ELEMENTARY33-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL261 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.0:1
19 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.8:1 · STATE 21.0:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
51%
132 students
DISTRICT 47% · STATE 37%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 | 82 | 31% |
| Grade 2 | 95 | 36% |
| Grade 3 | 84 | 32% |
Student demographics
18%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 24% · STATE 57% · 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
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within SIDNEY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
QUIET COMMUNITY
Be the first to start a discussion at SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
START A DISCUSSIONTest scores
NSCAS 2024-25 . % On Track + AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
58.8%
NE avg 57.6%
Math
62.5%
NE avg 60.6%
What this means: On the NSCAS, Nebraska's statewide test, about 59 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 63 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Nebraska schools, those numbers are about 58 and 61.
Source: NSCAS. 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
60.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
58.6%
based on NE schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+2.0pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 61% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 59% typical for Nebraska 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 Nebraska'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 WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL's state test result (60.6% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL this school | 261 | 50.6% | 60.6% |
| SO VALLEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OXFORD | 252 | 53.6% | 72.8% |
| SUMMERLAND ELEM SCHOOL EWING | 236 | 47.9% | 67.8% |
| PLAINVIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PLAINVIEW | 207 | 46.9% | 63.7% |
| CEDAR BLUFFS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CEDAR BLUFFS | 250 | 45.2% | 63.5% |
| FALLS CITY SOUTH ELEMENTARY FALLS CITY | 174 | 50.0% | 55.9% |
Matched among Nebraska 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 WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Nebraska |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 60.6% | #211 of 311 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 62.5% | #243 of 398 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 58.8% | #235 of 438 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 261 | #312 of 587 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.0:1 | #167 of 379 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 17.7% | #337 of 379 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 50.6% | #86 of 359 |
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
261
+85 (+48%) vs 2020
-27% since 1990-91, when it was 357
Student : Teacher
14.0:1
was 13.5:1
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 | 261 | 18.7 | 14.0:1 | 51% (132) |
| 2023-24 | 181 | 13.5 | 13.4:1 | 52% (94) |
| 2022-23 | 162 | 13.5 | 12.0:1 | 54% (87) |
| 2020-21 | 176 | 13 | 13.5:1 | 43% (76) |
| 2017-18 | 196 | 14.5 | 13.5:1 | 37% (72) |
| 2015-16 | 227 | 15 | 15.1:1 | 37% (83) |
| 2010-11 | 254 | 18 | 14.1:1 | 31% (80) |
| 2000-01 | 223 | 15 | 14.9:1 | 32% (72) |
| 1990-91 | 357 | 17 | 21.0:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
Since 2017-18: students up 33% (196 to 261); teachers up 29% (14.5 to 18.7).
About SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is a medium-sized elementary school located in SIDNEY, Nebraska. Its 261 students are spread across grades 1 through 3.
The district for SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is SIDNEY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, with 5 schools and 1,141 students.
At SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, White students make up 90% of the student body. After that, the student body is 7% Hispanic. That is close to the 91% White share among all Cheyenne County residents. SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL has a diversity index of 18%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
The school's student-to-teacher ratio is about 14.0:1, with 18.7 full-time-equivalent teachers. The average ratio among elementary schools in Nebraska is 21.0:1, higher than at this school. Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch make up 51% of enrollment.
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL sits between the top and bottom 10% of Nebraska schools on BeatsExpectations, with an actual average proficiency rate on state tests of 60.6% and a predicted 58.6%.
Cheyenne County has these Census figures: median household income is about $60,348, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 23%, and roughly 9% of residents are in poverty. SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is among the 9 public schools in Cheyenne County.
The closest public school to SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is SIDNEY MIDDLE SCHOOL, about 0.8 miles away. Within five miles of SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, there are 4 other public schools. On proficiency, SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is ahead of the 56.0% nearby average, ranking 4th of 7.
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL has an NCES locale of Town: Remote.
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL enrolled 176 in 2020-21 and 261 in 2024-25. Changes in grade configuration can produce shifts of this size.
Discussion on this page can cover sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Cheyenne County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
9,533
Census ACS
Median income
$60,348
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
23%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
9
1,407 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in SIDNEY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
- SIDNEY HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 329 students
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLMiddle · 238 students
- NORTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 161 students
- SIDNEY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 152 students
- CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary
Other schools in SIDNEY
- SIDNEY HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 329 students
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLMiddle · 238 students
- NORTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 161 students
- SIDNEY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 152 students
- CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary
Nearby schools
- SIDNEY MIDDLE SCHOOL0.8 mi · 152
- SIDNEY HIGH SCHOOL0.8 mi · 329
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.9 mi · 238
- NORTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL1.1 mi · 161
- LEYTON ELEMENTARY/JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL13.0 mi · 125
- Peetz Junior-Senior High School13.9 mi · 90
Frequently asked questions
About SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLHow large is SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL?
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL enrolls approximately 261 students in grades 01-03.
Is SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL an elementary, middle, or high school?
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is an elementary school covering grades 01-03.
How many teachers does SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL have?
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL employs 19 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.0:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL?
At SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, the student body is approximately 90% White, 7% Hispanic, 1% Black, 2% Two or more.
Is SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL public or private?
SOUTH WARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is a public K-12 school, overseen by SIDNEY PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.