Mill Creek Elem, Shawnee KS - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Mill Creek Elem

Mill Creek Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade in Shawnee, part of the Shawnee Mission Public Schools district in Johnson County. The school is a neighborhood elementary in a predominantly residential suburb west of Kansas City, set within a community that has seen steady growth and maintains a largely owner-occupied housing stock. For families weighing where to live and enroll, Mill Creek offers a picture of solid academic performance within a district that emphasizes personalized learning pathways, though the school itself carries few of the specialized programs that appear at the high school level.

The state assessments for the most recent school year show that Mill Creek students, in grades three through six, are performing at levels that place the school among the strongest in Johnson County when compared against other districts in the county. In both math and English language arts, proficiency rates vary by grade but generally land above the midpoint of what county districts report. The strongest showing is in sixth-grade math and ELA, where roughly three-quarters of students meet the state’s proficiency standard. Fourth grade also posts solid results, while fifth grade dips somewhat, particularly in science, where just over half of tested students reach the proficiency bar. A parent looking at these results would see a school where most students are meeting expectations in the core subjects, with a softer spot in fifth-grade science that may warrant a conversation with the school about how that subject is supported.

The student body is predominantly white, with a Hispanic population of about one in ten and smaller shares of Black, Asian, and multiracial students. Roughly one in five students qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a rate that is lower than many Kansas schools and indicates a comparatively affluent catchment area. The school enrolls a moderate number of students, with each elementary grade having a similar class size. Pre-kindergarten is a thin presence, suggesting a limited early childhood program.

Shawnee itself is a car-dependent city spread over a large area, with a historic downtown corridor but no dense walkable core. Housing values and rents are above both state and national averages, and the market has seen recent appreciation. Major employers include logistics, healthcare, and retail operations. The district has adopted a district-wide focus on personalized learning plans for every student, a pedagogical direction that applies to Mill Creek as well. At the high school level, Shawnee Mission offers signature programs in fields such as biotechnology, engineering, and medical health sciences, though those are not available to elementary students.

No data on discipline, chronic absenteeism, or staffing ratios was available, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those areas. The absence of a Title I label suggests the school does not receive federal funding for high poverty concentrations, which aligns with the relatively low free-lunch rate.

For a family looking at Mill Creek Elementary, the read is of a school with above-average academic results for its county, set in a stable, car-oriented suburb with housing costs that reflect the region’s desirability. The student body is not highly diverse economically or racially, and the school does not appear to offer standout specialty programs at the elementary level. The district’s personal learning plan framework may appeal to parents who value individualized attention, while those seeking more intensive career or STEM exposure would find that at the district’s secondary campuses. The main academic question a parent might follow up on is the fifth-grade science results, which are noticeably lower than the school’s other grade-level outcomes. Overall, Mill Creek fits a family that prioritizes consistent, above-average core academics in a suburban setting with modest economic diversity and a district that has invested in broad college and career preparation at the upper grades.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 363%

School 63% · District 53% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 468%

School 68% · District 57% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 28 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 58% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 679%

School 79% · District 58% · ▲ 21 pts above district

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 377%

School 77% · District 60% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 468%

School 68% · District 62% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 563%

School 63% · District 63% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 675%

School 75% · District 59% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 33 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Science

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 54%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

This schoolShawnee Mission Pub Sch, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income53%Higher-income83%30 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income62%Higher-income70%9 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income54%Higher-income65%12 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income50%Higher-income81%31 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income33%Higher-income71%38 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income46%Higher-income74%28 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income60%14 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income50%Higher-income86%36 pp gap