Austin Tracy Elementary School, Lucas KY

Original Research by School Decision on Austin Tracy Elementary School

Austin Tracy Elementary School serves students from preschool through sixth grade in the rural unincorporated community of Lucas, Kentucky, part of the Barren County school district. The school is a regular public school and the only school in its immediate area, drawing from a sparse, car-dependent landscape where the nearest town of any size is Glasgow, roughly a short drive to the northeast. Lucas itself has no downtown, no sidewalks, and no public transportation; its post office closed some time ago, and fewer than a handful of business establishments operate across the entire ZIP code. Daily life for families revolves around travel to Glasgow for most services, employment, and civic needs.

The student body is small. The overwhelming majority of students are white, with a small share of Hispanic students and an even smaller share of Black students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that many families face economic strains. The school’s enrollment spans a single grade per classroom in most years, with the largest groups in kindergarten through second grade and a gradual thinning toward sixth grade.

State assessment results are available for grades three through six in reading and math, for fourth-grade science, and for fifth-grade social studies. Across these tested subjects and grade levels, the share of students scoring proficient or above tends to fall on the lower side. In math, performance is weakest in fourth grade and climbs noticeably by fifth and sixth grade, where roughly half of students meet the bar. In reading, the pattern is somewhat similar: third grade shows the lowest proficiency, while sixth grade reaches about half. Science and social studies each show a minority of students reaching proficiency. Overall, when compared with other elementary schools in Barren County’s district-level proficiency index, this school sits below the midpoint. A parent may want to look into what supports the school offers in early literacy and math, especially in the lower grades.

Because Austin Tracy is an elementary school, there is no graduation rate to report. Data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, and course access were not available for this profile, so it is not possible to speak to those dimensions of school life. Similarly, no information on special education or English learner populations was provided. The school’s website and district communications may fill those gaps for families considering the school.

Housing in the Lucas area is affordable relative to the state and national averages, with home values trending modestly upward in recent years. The broader housing market in Barren County offers a mix of rural properties and small-town homes, but the Lucas ZIP code itself has very few housing units spread across a large land area, reflecting its low-density character. No recent district-level policy changes, curriculum shifts, or tax measures were publicly identified for the Barren County district in the search conducted, so the school’s academic and operational context appears stable in the near term.

For a family weighing Austin Tracy Elementary, the picture is straightforward. This is a small, rural school in a quiet, economically modest community where most families must drive for work, shopping, and services. Academic proficiency is below the county norm for some grades and subjects, though the school shows a rising trend in the upper elementary years that may signal improvement in later grades. The close-knit scale and a single-school feel could appeal to families who want a neighborhood school in an un-zoned rural setting. Those seeking a wide array of programs or a more urban environment would need to look to Glasgow or larger districts.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 420%

School 20% · District 39% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 546%

School 46% · District 48% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 653%

School 53% · District 56% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 11 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 328%

School 28% · District 39% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 46% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 537%

School 37% · District 47% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 649%

School 49% · District 58% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median

Science

Grade 430%

School 30% · District 36% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median

Social studies

Grade 528%

School 28% · District 38% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

This schoolBarren County, 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-income24%Higher-income33%9 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income37%Higher-income43%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income35%Higher-income40%5 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income42%Higher-income57%15 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income81%50 pp gap