Kooser Elementary School, Lincoln NE

Original Research by School Decision on Kooser Elementary School

Kooser Elementary School, located in the north part of Lincoln, serves students from preschool through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Lincoln Public Schools district. The school is one of many elementary options in a large district that has recently undergone significant changes.

The student body is sizeable for an elementary school. Its composition is predominantly white, with notable Asian, Hispanic, Black, and multiracial populations. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that reflects a substantial low-income enrollment. Data on the share of students with disabilities or English learners was not available in the sources used.

On state assessments administered in the 2024-25 school year, Kooser students showed mixed results across subjects and grades. In English language arts, proficiency rates across grades three through five clustered in a middle range. In math, rates were lower, particularly in fourth grade, while fifth grade math was broadly comparable to the upper elementary reading results. Science results for fifth graders were higher than either math or reading. Compared to other schools across Lancaster County, Kooser’s overall proficiency index placed it in the bottom quartile. This is a soft spot a family may want to explore further with the school to understand specific areas of focus and support.

Because Kooser is an elementary school, there is no graduation rate to report. Chronic absenteeism data was also not available, so patterns around regular attendance are not possible to describe from the information at hand. No information was provided on course access, staffing ratios, or discipline.

The district context matters for families considering Kooser. Lincoln Public Schools passed a large bond issue in 2020, the largest in district history, which funded two new high schools and a new elementary school, along with major renovations across existing facilities. Those high schools opened in 2022 and 2023, reshaping attendance boundaries and relieving overcrowding. That means some families in the Kooser attendance area may have experienced or will experience boundary changes, and the district is still adjusting to new school openings. The district also began implementing a science-of-reading approach to early literacy instruction across all elementary schools starting in 2023, a district-wide shift that directly affects how reading is taught in the early grades at Kooser.

Lincoln itself is a growing city, the state capital and home to the University of Nebraska, with a mix of government, education, healthcare, and manufacturing employers. Housing in the area has seen steady appreciation, and the city has initiatives aimed at increasing affordable housing. For families moving to Lincoln, the north side where Kooser is located offers a range of residential options.

Kooser Elementary is a large, diverse public school serving a north Lincoln neighborhood. Its academic results on state tests are below the middle of the pack for Lancaster County, and families may want to ask how the school supports students who are not yet proficient, as well as how it challenges those who are. The district’s recent investment in new schools and a new reading curriculum are active shifts that could influence the school’s direction in coming years.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 353%

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

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

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 55% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▲ 41 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 52% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 54 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 356%

School 56% · District 55% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 56 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 454%

School 54% · District 57% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 556%

School 56% · District 52% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 56 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Science

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 77% · ▼ 13 pts below district

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

This schoolLINCOLN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 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 5Lower-income34%Higher-income68%34 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income35%Higher-income81%45 pp gap