The top reported proficiency rate is 80% in Science. The lowest is 44% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Elco Intermd Sch
ELCO Intermediate School sits in Myerstown, a compact historic borough in Lebanon Valley where dense housing and small commercial streets give way quickly to farmland. The school serves grades three through five and draws from both the borough and the surrounding Jackson Township area. Its enrollment is stable at around the low hundreds, with a student body that is predominantly white, alongside a small Hispanic population and even smaller numbers of Black and Asian students. Nearly half of the school's students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
In math, the school's proficiency sits below the midpoint for the county's districts. In English language arts, proficiency is also below the county median. Science performance stands much higher, with proficiency well above the county midpoint. Overall, the school's proficiency index places it in the top quartile among Lebanon County's district schools, a position driven by strong science results that offset softer performance in literacy and numeracy. State testing data for current-year science results was not available; the latest measure comes from the prior year.
The gap between science and the two core academic subjects is substantial enough that a parent may want to explore directly with the school what curricular approaches support the stronger science outcomes, and what literacy and math support looks like for students working below proficiency. The district's 2025-2028 Comprehensive Plan signals a multi-year effort to realign kindergarten through fifth-grade literacy instruction around the Science of Reading framework, which will reshape how early reading is taught across the district over the next few years.
The school's peer group is largely stable. Myerstown itself is built out with most housing dating to the early and mid-twentieth century; new construction is occurring at the edges and in surrounding areas, but the borough's population has remained modest for decades. Major employers tied to Myerstown include manufacturing plants, agribusiness, and a large retail and senior-living complex. The regional hospital systems sit a short distance east in Lebanon. The borough has an extensive sidewalk network connecting neighborhoods to a small downtown core with libraries, recreation facilities, and local restaurants, though most residents drive to work and chain retail lines the northern edge of town along the highway.
Housing values in the Myerstown area are below the Pennsylvania state benchmark and substantially below the national median, making the district a more affordable option in the housing market. Rents are similarly modest relative to median household income in the region. The district itself has committed to property tax increases in recent years, including for the 2025-26 school year, tied in part to a major renovation and expansion of the high school campus completed in 2024-2025. The board has signaled an intent to limit future increases, though rising costs in cyber charter enrollment and insurance continue to create fiscal pressure.
The school serves a traditional neighborhood population. It has no specialized programs listed in the available data; it functions as a regular elementary intermediate school within a public district. A parent's fit here hinges largely on comfort with below-county-average literacy and math results balanced against strong science instruction, an affordable housing market, a walkable small-town setting, and the stability of a traditional district school in a rural-suburban landscape.
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