The top reported proficiency rate is 33% in English language arts. The lowest is 28% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Roosevelt Elem
Roosevelt Elementary is one of four elementary schools in the McPherson public school district, serving children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The school is located in a residential area of McPherson, a small, industrialized city in central Kansas that blends working-class manufacturing, agriculture, and two local colleges. The district’s elementary schools are distributed throughout the community rather than isolated on a single campus, and Roosevelt sits within that neighborhood-school pattern.
The student body at Roosevelt is predominantly white, with a Hispanic population that represents roughly one-fifth of the enrollment, and smaller shares of students who are multiracial, Black, or Asian. A substantial majority of students come from lower-income households, as reflected in the share qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The school’s enrollment is moderate for an elementary building serving these grades, with class sizes in the typical range for a district this size.
On the Kansas state assessments, administered through the Kansas Assessment Program, Roosevelt’s results present a mixed picture. In third grade, reading proficiency was a strength, with a sizable portion of students meeting the state’s proficiency benchmark; math in that grade was similar. By fourth grade, proficiency rates in both reading and math were notably lower. By fifth grade, the pattern steepened further: a small fraction of students scored proficient in math, and reading results were also depressed. Science, tested only in fifth grade, saw about a quarter of students reach proficiency. Overall, the school’s combined proficiency index across all tested subjects and grades placed it in the lowest quartile relative to other school districts in McPherson County. The Kansas assessment experienced a cut-score change in both math and English language arts in recent years, which makes direct comparisons to prior years uncertain. A parent may wish to discuss current classroom strategies and recent trends directly with the school.
Roosevelt’s academic environment is shaped by the broader district structure. As an elementary school serving only primary grades, there is no graduation rate to report. The district runs an early childhood center, three other elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school, so students will transition to a larger secondary setting after fifth grade. A look at what programs and supports are available at the middle and high school levels could give a fuller sense of the academic trajectory.
McPherson itself offers a stable, modest-growth setting. The city’s population has shown slight recent decline, and its housing stock is predominantly older, single-family homes in a traditional grid layout. Home values are below the state average, and rents are moderate relative to incomes, which keeps the area relatively affordable. The economy is anchored by an oil refinery, a flour mill, an insurance company headquarters, and the two colleges. Community amenities include a restored opera house, a courthouse on the National Register, parks with lakes, and a museum.
No information was available on school discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, staffing ratios, or special education and English learner populations. The district brief turned up no recent changes such as bond issues, curriculum overhauls, or shifts in school boundaries that would be relevant to a parent. A family considering Roosevelt should inquire directly about class sizes, reading and math intervention programs, and how the school supports students who are behind grade level, given the proficiency pattern across the tested grades.
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