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What's one thing Palmyra Area SHS gets right about preparing students for what comes next?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,126
High
DISTRICT 568 · STATE 738
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PALMYRA AREA SD·NCES 421839002766
Palmyra Area SHS
1125 Park Dr, Palmyra, PA 17078 · (717) 838-1331 · Lebanon County
GRADES 09–12HIGH21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL1,126 STUDENTS
A+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 96% of Pennsylvania public high 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 Pennsylvania public high schools
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
74 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.2:1 · STATE 12.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
30%
338 students
DISTRICT 34% · STATE 75%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 284 | 25% |
| Grade 10 | 289 | 26% |
| Grade 11 | 273 | 24% |
| Grade 12 | 280 | 25% |
Student demographics
34%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 40% · STATE 59% · 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
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Palmyra Area SD. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
PSSA + Keystone 2024-25 . % Proficient or AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
89.6%
PA avg 51.1% . +1.3pp since 2023
Math
79.5%
PA avg 43.0% . +4.9pp since 2023
What this means: On the PSSA + Keystone, Pennsylvania's statewide test, about 90 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 80 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Pennsylvania schools, those numbers are about 51 and 43. Reading and writing scores are up about 1 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 5 points.
PSSA + Keystone results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 89.6% | 79.5% |
| 2023-24 | 88.3% | 74.6% |
% Proficient or Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: PSSA + Keystone. 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
80.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
64.7%
based on PA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+15.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 80% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 65% typical for Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania'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 Palmyra Area SHS
Palmyra Area SHS's state test result (80.3% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palmyra Area SHS this school | 1,126 | 30.0% | 80.3% |
| Moon Area SHS Moon Township | 1,211 | 29.2% | 67.5% |
| Chartiers Valley High School Bridgeville | 1,029 | 36.0% | 49.7% |
| Thomas Jefferson High School Jefferson Hills | 1,041 | 23.9% | 77.1% |
| Franklin Regional SHS Murrysville | 1,101 | 22.6% | 69.8% |
| Nazareth Area High School Nazareth | 1,607 | 26.2% | 63.4% |
Matched among Pennsylvania high 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 Palmyra Area SHS ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Pennsylvania | In Lebanon County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 80.3% | #25 of 576 | #1 of 6 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 79.5% | #16 of 626 ▲ 7 | #1 of 6 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 89.6% | #20 of 626 ▲ 10 | #1 of 6 no change |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,126 | #146 of 713 | #3 of 7 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.2:1 | #420 of 601 | #4 of 6 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 34.0% | #266 of 604 | #4 of 6 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 30.0% | #533 of 619 | #6 of 6 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +0.3% | #219 of 221 | N/A |
Ranked against other public high 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
1,126
-57 (-5%) vs 2020
+93% since 1990-91, when it was 584
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
was 17.4:1
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 | 1,126 | 74.3 | 15.2:1 | 30% (338) |
| 2023-24 | 1,195 | 70.9 | 16.9:1 | 28% (338) |
| 2022-23 | 1,181 | 70.1 | 16.8:1 | 23% (271) |
| 2020-21 | 1,183 | 68 | 17.4:1 | 21% (246) |
| 2017-18 | 1,123 | 69.7 | 16.1:1 | 19% (216) |
| 2015-16 | 1,071 | 62 | 17.3:1 | 21% (220) |
| 2010-11 | 932 | 62 | 15.0:1 | 12% (108) |
| 2000-01 | 821 | 55 | 14.9:1 | 5% (38) |
| 1990-91 | 584 | 50 | 11.7:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Palmyra Area SHS.
Since 2017-18: students unchanged (1,123 to 1,126); teachers up 7% (69.7 to 74.3).
About Palmyra Area SHS
As a high-enrollment high school, Palmyra Area SHS serves students in Palmyra, Pennsylvania. It enrolled 1,126 students in grades 9 through 12 for the 2024-25 school year. Statewide, high schools in Pennsylvania average about 738 students each.
Palmyra Area SD includes 6 schools. Together they enroll 3,405 students.
Palmyra Area SHS's enrollment is 81% White. Next come 7% Asian, 7% Hispanic, and 4% multiracial. County-wide, about 81% of residents are White. Palmyra Area SHS's diversity index is 34%, against a US figure of 70%.
Palmyra Area SHS employs 74.3 full-time-equivalent teachers. That gives a ratio of about 15.2:1. The school has more students per teacher than the 12.8:1 average for high schools in Pennsylvania. Palmyra Area SHS's free or reduced-price lunch eligibility rate is 30%. For comparison, public schools in Lebanon County average 61%.
allk12 grades Palmyra Area SHS an A+. The grade compares the school only with Pennsylvania public high schools, because each state gives its own test.
BeatsExpectations compares each school's average proficiency rate on state tests with a prediction based on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility. For Palmyra Area SHS, the prediction is 64.7% and the result is 80.3%.
Census estimates describe Lebanon County this way: the median household income is $78,425, about 24% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 7%. In all, Lebanon County has 37 public schools and roughly 18,804 students.
The school nearest to Palmyra Area SHS is Pine Street Elementary School, at a distance of about 0.5 miles. A five-mile radius around the school includes at least 8 other public schools. By average proficiency, Palmyra Area SHS is 2nd among 9 schools close by.
The NCES locale for Palmyra Area SHS is Suburb: Large, which covers schools in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
Over 4 years, Palmyra Area SHS's enrollment declined 5%, to 1,126. The school's ratio fell from 17.4:1 to 15.2:1 between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
Discussions about Palmyra Area SHS may include school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Lebanon County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
144,186
Census ACS
Median income
$78,425
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
37
18,804 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Palmyra Area SD
- Palmyra Area Middle SchoolMiddle · 820 students
- Lingle Avenue Elementary SchoolElementary · 547 students
- Pine Street Elementary SchoolElementary · 342 students
- Forge Road Elementary SchoolElementary · 341 students
- Northside Elementary SchoolElementary · 229 students
Other schools in Palmyra
- Palmyra Area Middle SchoolMiddle · 820 students
- Lingle Avenue Elementary SchoolElementary · 547 students
- Pine Street Elementary SchoolElementary · 342 students
- Forge Road Elementary SchoolElementary · 341 students
- Northside Elementary SchoolElementary · 229 students
Nearby schools
- Pine Street Elementary School0.5 mi · 342
- Forge Road Elementary School0.7 mi · 341
- Lingle Avenue Elementary School0.8 mi · 547
- Palmyra Area Middle School0.8 mi · 820
- Northside Elementary School1.4 mi · 229
- Hershey Middle School3.3 mi · 742
Frequently asked questions
About Palmyra Area SHSHow large is Palmyra Area SHS?
Palmyra Area SHS enrolls approximately 1,126 students in grades 09-12.
Is Palmyra Area SHS an elementary, middle, or high school?
Palmyra Area SHS is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many teachers does Palmyra Area SHS have?
Palmyra Area SHS employs 74 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 15.2:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Palmyra Area SHS?
At Palmyra Area SHS, the student body is approximately 81% White, 7% Hispanic, 2% Black, 7% Asian, 4% Two or more.
Who oversees Palmyra Area SHS?
Palmyra Area SHS is overseen by Palmyra Area SD in Lebanon County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.