The top reported proficiency rate is 59% in English language arts. The lowest is 49% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on St Marys Elem
St. Marys Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through sixth grade as part of the Kaw Valley school district. The school is located in the small city of St. Marys, roughly twenty miles west of Topeka, and it operates as a neighborhood school within walking distance of the compact downtown commercial strip and the town’s residential streets. The community itself has seen notable growth driven by an influx of Traditionalist Catholic families affiliated with the Society of Saint Pius X, who by 2020 formed the majority of the population. This is a young, family-oriented town with a high proportion of residents under eighteen and a low housing vacancy rate. The school sits on Grand Avenue, a central street in the city, and is one of two public schools housed in St. Marys alongside the junior-senior high school.
The student body is predominantly white, with a sizable Hispanic population and small numbers of students who identify as Black, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, or two or more races. Just under half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate that places it in a moderate range for economic need. The school does not report data on students with disabilities or English learners in the available records, so a family interested in those specific support services would want to follow up directly with the school to understand how they are staffed and delivered.
On state assessments administered through the Kansas Assessment Program, St. Marys Elementary posted proficiency rates in math that ranged from roughly two-fifths of tested students in fifth grade to a little over half in fourth and sixth grades. In English language arts, performance was stronger, with the majority of third, fourth, and sixth graders meeting the state’s proficiency standard; fifth-grade ELA results fell below that mark, with just under half of students scoring proficient. Science results for fifth graders showed a similar profile, with just over half of students reaching the proficient threshold. The state changed its cut scores for these assessments, which makes it difficult to compare this year’s results directly with prior years, but the pattern across subjects and grade levels gives a clear picture: this is a school where a solid portion of students are meeting state benchmarks, particularly in the earlier elementary years and in reading, while math and some upper-grade results suggest room for growth. Compared with other districts in Pottawatomie County, the school’s overall proficiency index sits above the midpoint, placing it in the middle-to-upper tier among its county peers.
Because St. Marys Elementary serves only through sixth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and no data for chronic absenteeism was available in the records reviewed. The school is a traditional public school, not a charter or magnet, and its Title I status is not listed in the provided data. Program offerings such as music, art, physical education, or any specialized academic tracks were not detailed in the records, so families seeking information on enrichment or intervention programs should ask the school directly.
For a parent or resident evaluating this school, the key facts are straightforward. The school serves a tight-knit, growing community with a distinctive religious and cultural character. Academically, it performs in the middle to upper range relative to other schools in the county, with stronger reading results than math in most grades. The economic profile of the student body reflects moderate poverty levels. The absence of data on special education and English learner services, as well as on specific programs, leaves some gaps that would need to be filled through a school visit or conversation with staff. The school’s setting within a small city with a young, family-focused population and a public school system that also includes a junior-senior high school in the same town gives it a stable, community-anchored feel.
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