The top reported proficiency rate is 69% in English language arts. The lowest is 48% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Lebo Elem
Lebo Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through fifth grade in the small, rural community of Lebo, Kansas. The school is part of the Lebo-Waverly district, which covers this town as well as the surrounding area. Lebo itself is a quiet residential community with a population that has been declining slightly in recent years. It sits near Interstate 35, putting Emporia, Osage City, and Ottawa within commuting distance for work and shopping, but the town has no major employers of its own. Housing values in the area are well below the national benchmark, and the area is predominantly composed of owner-occupied single-family homes.
The student body at Lebo Elementary is small and overwhelmingly white, with a very modest share of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school serves prekindergarten through fifth grade, and the enrollment is spread fairly evenly across those grades, with a slightly larger kindergarten group.
State testing data is available for the 2024-25 school year for math, English language arts, and science, though the school’s grade band means there is no graduation rate or high school-level data to consider. In English language arts, performance was a clear strength. Third graders showed a strong majority scoring at or above proficiency, and fourth and fifth graders also posted solid numbers, with more than two-thirds of students meeting the bar in each grade. In math, results were more mixed. Third graders did well, with more than half scoring proficient or above, but fourth graders saw a lower share reach that level, and fifth graders fell in between. Science results for fifth graders were solid, with a strong majority scoring proficient or above. When compared against other schools within Coffey County, Lebo Elementary’s combined proficiency across tested subjects and grades placed it at the top among its peers, a notable position given that the county’s other districts also serve small rural populations.
The district itself did not appear to have undergone any major recent changes that would affect a family’s decision, based on publicly available information. No information was available about course access, staffing ratios, special education identification rates, or chronic absenteeism, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about class sizes and support for students who need extra help.
For a family considering this school, the picture is one of a small, rural elementary school where English language arts and science outcomes are solid, math results are more uneven, and the overall academic standing is favorable within a small county. The community is quiet and residential, with limited local amenities but easy highway access to larger towns. The slight population decline and absence of major new development suggest a stable but not growing area. This setting would likely suit families who value a small school in a rural environment where children can walk or be driven a short distance to school, and who do not need a wide array of commercial or cultural options within the town itself.
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