The top reported proficiency rate is 38% in Math. The lowest is 30% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Mannford Lower Es
Mannford Lower Elementary serves students in first through third grade and is one of several buildings in the Mannford Public Schools district. With an enrollment around the mid-sized range for a primary school of this grade band, the student body is predominantly white, with a notable share of students identifying as two or more races and a smaller portion as American Indian or Alaska Native. The school sits in the planned town center of Mannford, part of a district that also includes an early childhood center, another elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. Because it covers only the early elementary years, many outcomes typical of a full K-12 school do not apply here — there is no graduation rate, no chronic absenteeism data, and no high school course offerings to report.
Mannford is a small residential community built around Keystone Lake, about twenty miles west of Tulsa along State Highway 51. Originally relocated in the early 1960s to make room for the Keystone Reservoir, the town was laid out as one of Oklahoma’s first comprehensively planned relocated communities, with paved streets and municipal buildings erected on the new site. Today the town blends lakeside recreation — fishing, boating, camping — with a bedroom-commuter role: a substantial share of employed residents historically commuted to Sand Springs and Tulsa for work. The school system is the largest local employer, followed by a handful of industrial and medical firms. The town has grown noticeably over recent decades, and recent development plans have included a marina, improved campgrounds, and new housing. Parents considering a move here will find a community that values its small-town feel and its proximity to the Tulsa metro area, with home values that track closely with the statewide market.
The academic picture at Mannford Lower Elementary is drawn from state testing in third grade, the only tested grade in the building. In both math and English language arts, the share of students scoring proficient or above is below half — a figure that may give a parent pause if read in isolation. But the context of the local county matters here. Among the districts in Creek County, Mannford’s overall proficiency index lands in the top quartile, meaning that while absolute performance is moderate, this school is among the stronger performers in its immediate region. The state changed its cut scores for these assessments in recent years, so year-over-year trends are not directly comparable, and only a single year of data is available to review. A parent may want to ask the school how these results align with classroom assessments and what supports are in place for students who are not yet reaching the proficiency bar.
Because the school covers only grades one through three, several common data points are simply absent rather than concerning. There is no reported information on free or reduced-price meal eligibility, special education identification, or English learner status. The school’s Title I status is not listed in the data. Discipline and attendance records were also not available. These gaps are a reminder that the public record for a primary school serving only early elementary grades is thinner than what one might find for a school that spans older grades and participates in a wider range of state reporting.
For a family weighing Mannford Lower Elementary, the essential takeaway is that this is a locally competitive primary school in a small lakeside town that functions as a commuter base for the Tulsa area. The school’s relative standing in the county suggests it holds up well against its neighbors, even while its absolute proficiency rates leave room for growth. Families who want a tightly defined early elementary environment in a community that prioritizes outdoor recreation and quiet residential life may find this a comfortable fit, though they should plan to engage directly with the school to fill in the details that the public data does not supply.
See more original research from School Decision →