The top reported proficiency rate is 77% in Science. The lowest is 60% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Pyrtle Elementary School
Pyrtle Elementary School is a regular public school in Lincoln, Nebraska, serving preschool through fifth grade. It is part of Lincoln Public Schools. The school’s enrollment is on the small side for a full elementary grade band, and its student body is predominantly White, with the next largest group being students who identify as two or more races, followed by Hispanic students and smaller shares of Black and Asian students. A moderate share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
The school’s location in Lincoln’s 68510 zip code places it in a housing market that is broadly on par with the state as a whole, with home values rising modestly in the recent period and rents following a similar trend. The neighborhood is part of a city that serves as the economic and cultural anchor of the Lincoln metropolitan area, with a mixed residential and commercial fabric and major employers including the state government, the university, and the school district itself.
Academically, Pyrtle Elementary turns in a mixed picture that warrants a close look. On state assessments, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the bottom quartile among elementary schools in Lancaster County. That is a straightforward fact from the data. Within the school, performance varies by grade and subject. Math proficiency is strongest in fourth grade, where a solid majority of students meet the bar, and softer in third and fifth grades, where roughly half of students do. English language arts follows a similar shape: fourth graders perform notably well, while third and fifth grade results are more moderate. Fifth grade science results are comparatively strong, with a large majority of students reaching proficiency.
It is important to note that a multi-year trend line is not available for this school, because all the data points provided come from a single testing year. Without at least two years of comparable results, there is no way to say whether performance is heading up, down, or holding steady. A parent or resident interested in academic direction would want to ask the school directly for trend information.
The district, Lincoln Public Schools, has undergone significant change in recent years. A major bond issue in 2020 funded two new high schools and one new elementary school, along with extensive renovations, which reshaped attendance boundaries and relieved crowding. That means the attendance zone feeding Pyrtle Elementary could have shifted relatively recently, and any parent considering this school should confirm the current boundary and whether it remains stable. Separately, the district has shifted to a science-of-reading approach for early literacy instruction, a whole-district pedagogy change that affects how students in Pyrtle’s grade band are taught to read.
Data on several other dimensions is absent. The school’s chronic absenteeism rate, its share of students with disabilities, and its English learner population were not reported, so a reader cannot assess those aspects of the school environment from this profile. Pyrtle is not a charter or magnet school, and Title I status was not available. Discipline data and staffing ratios were also missing.
The overall read for Pyrtle Elementary is that it offers a standard elementary experience within a large, growing district that has recently invested heavily in facilities and instructional methods. Academically, its state test results place it toward the lower end of the county’s elementary schools, with a notable bright spot in fourth grade and a genuine strength in fifth grade science. The absence of multi-year trend data and several student-support metrics means a parent would benefit from a direct conversation with the school to get a fuller picture of student progress and school climate.
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