The top reported proficiency rate is 90% in Science. The lowest is 84% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Hubbard-radcliffe Elementary School
Hubbard-Radcliffe Elementary School is a regular public school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in Radcliffe, a small rural community in Hardin County, Iowa. It is part of the Hubbard-Radcliffe Community School District, which, according to publicly reported information, operates a grade-sharing arrangement with the Eldora-New Providence Community School District under the name South Hardin Schools. This means that while students attend elementary school in Radcliffe, they may be bused to facilities in other towns for higher grades.
The school’s academic performance on the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) is a clear strength. In the only year of data available, students posted high proficiency rates in mathematics, English language arts, and science. When combined into an overall proficiency index, the school’s results placed it in the top quartile among districts in Hardin County, a group of about seven districts. These figures reflect strong foundational learning in the early grades. Because only one year of testing data was reported, no trend line can be drawn, but the current snapshot is encouraging. There is no graduation rate to consider, as the school does not serve high school grades.
The student body is small and predominantly white, with small shares of students who are Hispanic, identify as two or more races, or are of other racial backgrounds. Roughly three in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a common measure of economic need. Data on students receiving special education services or English language support were not available, so a reader interested in those programs would need to follow up with the school directly. The school’s Title I status was not reported.
Radcliffe itself is a quiet, mainly residential town of about one square mile. Publicly available sources describe it as having been founded as a railroad stop, with a modest and slowly declining population over recent decades—though small-sample estimates can be volatile. The built environment consists of single-family homes, a municipal building, and a post office; no significant commercial or industrial activity was identified, and no walkable commercial main street or public parks were confirmed in search results. Housing values in the area are below the state benchmark, and the local housing market has seen some year-over-year appreciation. For families, this context describes a stable, low-key rural setting with limited local amenities and a small-town pace of life.
Information on discipline incidents, course access, staffing ratios, and attendance was not available. The school is not a charter or magnet school, and its governance is standard for an Iowa public elementary school. Parents seeking specifics on class sizes, support services, or extracurricular offerings will need to contact the school or district directly.
For a family, Hubbard-Radcliffe Elementary School offers strong academic results in a small, tight-knit community environment. The elementary years appear well-served academically, and the school’s performance relative to other area districts is notably high. The grade-sharing district structure means that families should plan for their child’s transition to a different school after fifth grade, likely in a neighboring town. This school fits a family that values early academic solidity, prefers a very small school setting, and is comfortable with the quiet, rural character of Radcliffe and the broader district arrangement.
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