The top reported proficiency rate is 35% in Math. The lowest is 27% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Delphi Community Elementary School
Delphi Community Elementary School serves prekindergarten through fifth grade in the county seat of Carroll County. The school is a regular public elementary school within the Delphi Community School Corporation, which includes one other elementary school in the county.
Delphi itself is a small city anchored by a historic courthouse square. Its downtown has three- and four-story buildings from the 1800s, antique stores, and a compact, walkable core. The Wabash and Erie Canal Park and a 10-mile trail system along the river run through town. Indiana Packers Corporation, located just south of the city, is the county’s largest employer. The city has seen recent downtown revitalization through a state Stellar Communities grant, which funded facade work on over 40 buildings, pedestrian-friendly streetscape improvements, and a gateway trail to the canal park. No major new housing developments were identified in publicly available material, though the city describes itself in an active period of growth.
The school’s enrollment is large for an elementary school serving its grade band. The student body is predominantly white, with a notable share of Hispanic students and small numbers of two or more races, Black, and American Indian or Alaska Native students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on the share of students with individualized education programs and English learners was not available, a gap that often reflects the way a school reports these counts.
The school participates in Indiana’s ILEARN assessments for grades three through five. On the most recent state tests, the overall proficiency rate across all tested subjects and grades placed the school in the bottom quartile relative to the other elementary district in Carroll County. The comparison is limited — only two districts operate elementary schools in the county — so the position is set among a small field. In math, roughly over a third of students reached proficiency. In English language arts, just over a quarter of students reached that bar. In science, which is tested in fourth grade, the proficiency result was similar to math. In social studies, tested in fifth grade, the share of students achieving proficiency was comparable to the school’s result in math. A parent may want to ask the school about the specific strategies it uses to move these numbers, particularly in reading.
No data was reported for chronic absenteeism or discipline, and there is no publicly available information on course access or staffing ratios for this school. The school has a near-perfect participation rate on the state tests, which indicates families largely did not opt out of testing.
Housing in the area, as measured by estimated home values, is below the Indiana state median. Rents are modestly below what would be considered affordable at the national median income. For a family looking at the community, housing costs are lower than much of the state, which may offset the slower academic performance when weighing options.
The school did not provide program information in the data available. The district brief showed no recently reported changes, so there is no known restructuring or leadership shift a parent would need to investigate. A family considering this school should visit the campus, talk to the principal about how the school supports early literacy and math, and learn what enrichment or intervention programs are offered. The town’s size and the modest scope of the district mean that for most students, this is the only public elementary option before middle school in Delphi.
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