Shafer El Sch

Shafer El Sch, a moderately sized K-5 school in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, run under Nazareth Area SD, caters to 559 students, covering grades K through 4. That puts it 26% larger than the typical public school in Pennsylvania, which averages around 443 students.

Shafer El Sch is one of 6 schools operated by Nazareth Area SD, a district that serves 4,884 students overall.

Demographically, Shafer El Sch logs that 74% of the student body identifies as White. Other groups include 16% Hispanic, 6% multiracial, 3% Asian. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

On the resource side, The school currently runs with 42 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 13.3:1. That tracks the state average closely. About 43% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Northampton County (around 61%), the school's rate is somewhat below typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Shafer El Sch tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 59.4% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 66.3%.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Northampton County) logs that median household earnings sit near $89,184, roughly 35% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Shafer El Sch is one of 60 public schools in Northampton County (combined enrollment of about 38,316 students).

The closest other public school is Nazareth Area HS, roughly 0.2 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Shafer El Sch at 3rd of 8; the average score across the group is 64.9%.

The school occupies a residential site.

Over the past 7-year window. Over the past 7-year window, the student count edged down 9%: 614 students in 2018 compared to 559 in 2025. The White share of enrollment declined from 83% to 74% over that span. Class-load math has pulled in: from 15.2:1 in 2018 to 13.3:1 in 2025.

On the community side, recent activity here tends to focus on science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.