The top reported proficiency rate is 27% in English language arts. The lowest is 0% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Elementary School at Wilber
Elementary School at Wilber is the single elementary school serving the Wilber-Clatonia Public Schools district, housed in a regular public school building on South Franklin Street in the small Saline County town of Wilber. The school serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, with an enrollment that is modest for its grade band. The student body is predominantly white, with a Hispanic population representing a notable share of the enrollment, and smaller numbers of students who identify as two or more races, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Asian. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a degree of economic diversity in the school community.
The school’s academic landscape is defined by very low proficiency rates on the Nebraska Student-Centered Assessment System, and a multi-year trend line that has declined. In the most recent testing year, the all-grades combined proficiency rate for English language arts was below the midpoint compared to peers in the district’s own past performance, and the mathematics rate was lower. When looked at by individual grade and subject, the picture was mixed: no tested grade posted a proficient result in third-grade math, fourth-grade math, or fifth-grade math, and the fifth-grade science outcome was similarly at zero. In English language arts, fourth and fifth grades showed proficiency at rates that would give a parent something to discuss with the school, but were still well below the levels most families would expect to see. These figures reflect a proficiency index that, when compared to other schools in Saline County, sits at the bottom quarter of the county’s districts. A parent should note that for a school of this size, small cohort effects can make year-to-year swings large, and a single low year does not necessarily represent the whole story, but the multi-year series shows a clear downward trajectory. This is a soft spot a family would want to investigate directly with the principal about curriculum, intervention strategies, and what recent changes might explain the pattern.
The school environment is that of a regular public elementary, not a charter or magnet, with no Title I status reported in the data. There were no discipline, staffing, or attendance figures available, and no information on course access or special education or English learner populations, so a parent seeking a full picture of student support and school climate would need to request that information from the district.
The housing context for families considering a move to Wilber reflects a relatively affordable, slow-growth rural market. Home values in the area have been rising in recent years, and the typical home price is below both the state and national medians, consistent with a small agricultural town. The typical monthly mortgage payment, at prevailing interest rates, is modest relative to incomes, and median household income in the area has been climbing. The town itself is the county seat, compact, with a downtown anchored by the Czech heritage that defines its identity, including the Wilber Czech Museum and the annual Czech Days festival. Civic life centers on the library, the historic hotel, and local businesses such as the bakery and meat market. The economy is tied to grain elevators and ag processing. Growth has been very slow, with no major new housing developments identified in publicly reported sources.
For a parent weighing this school, the honest read is that the academic numbers are a primary concern. The school serves a community with modest economic resources and a rural setting, and the state test results are low enough that a family with high academic expectations would want a detailed conversation about how the school is working to improve. For a family already living in Wilber or Clatonia, or one priced into this market by its affordability and small-town character, the school is the local option through fifth grade before students move up to the district’s combined middle and high school building, and the strong Czech community identity and quiet pace of life are factors the proficiency numbers do not measure.
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