The top reported proficiency rate is 46% in Science. The lowest is 0% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Overton Elementary School
Overton Elementary School is a small, rural public school serving students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade in the village of Overton, Nebraska. It is the elementary campus of the Overton Public Schools district, which also operates a secondary school within the village.
Overton itself is a small farming community in Dawson County, part of the Lexington Micropolitan Statistical Area. The village, settled more than a century ago along a railroad line, remains primarily residential with agriculture dominating the surrounding landscape. The built environment is a compact grid of streets; daily life is car-dependent. Housing values in the area sit well below state and national averages, making the community a relatively affordable place for families, though larger commercial and civic amenities require a drive east to Lexington. The population has grown modestly in recent years, with increasing racial and ethnic diversity driven largely by a growing Hispanic share of residents.
The school enrolls a modest number of students. The student body is overwhelmingly White, with a Hispanic population of about one in ten students and a very small Black population. More than half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of moderate economic need among families. Data on special education and English learner populations was not available.
State testing results for the most recent school year present an unusual pattern that warrants a close look. In third-grade math, the share of students scoring proficient was reported at a level that would be considered solid. However, for fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade math, the reported proficiency rate was zero. Similarly, in English language arts, every tested grade showed a zero percent proficiency rate. Fifth-grade science was reported at a rate above zero but modest. A multi-year trend across all tested subjects and grades within the same school year shows a wide spread in the combined results, which may reflect the volatility that comes with very small class sizes and small counts of students in each tested grade. Compared with other school districts in Dawson County, Overton Elementary’s overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among the county’s five districts, and its index value is well below the county median. Given the stark contrast between the third-grade math result and the zeros in other grades, a parent considering this school should ask the building principal or classroom teachers about the context behind these scores, including the number of students tested and any changes in curriculum or assessment that might explain the pattern.
The school operates as a regular public school with no charter or magnet designation. Its Title I status was not reported in the available data. No information was available on course offerings, enrichment programs, access to arts or technology, staffing levels, discipline rates, or chronic absenteeism. As an elementary school serving only up to sixth grade, there is no graduation rate to consider.
This is a very small elementary school in a quiet rural village with modest housing costs. The academic picture from state tests is uneven and raises questions that only the school itself can answer about how it supports student learning across the elementary grades. Families who value a close-knit, small-town environment and are able to investigate the school’s instructional approach and support structures in person may find that Overton Elementary fits their needs. Others may want to weigh the available evidence carefully and explore additional options in the surrounding area.
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