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Lancaster Central School

Q: Is Lancaster Central School a good school?

Lancaster Central School ranks 395 th of 1005 Indiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

395^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,005 Indiana Elementary Schools

Better than 61% of Indiana elementary schools

Summary

Lancaster Central School is an elementary school located in Bluffton, Indiana, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 542 students. It is part of the Norwell Community Schools district, which is ranked 60 out of 380 districts in Indiana and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

While Lancaster Central School has maintained a relatively low student-teacher ratio, it has faced some unique challenges in recent years. The school has seen a significant increase in chronic absenteeism rates, rising from 7.5% in 2020-2021 to 19.2% in 2022-2023, notably higher than the district average of 10.4%. Academically, Lancaster Central School's proficiency rates in ILEARN/English Language Arts have been consistently lower than the Norwell Community Schools district average, while its ILEARN/Math proficiency rates have been slightly higher. The school has also seen an increase in the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, rising from 31.79% in 2021-2022 to 37.13% in 2022-2023.

Interestingly, when compared to nearby schools, Maplewood Elementary and Waynedale Elementary, both part of the Fort Wayne Community Schools district, have significantly lower test scores and higher free and reduced lunch rates compared to Lancaster Central School. On the other hand, Lafayette Meadow School, part of the MSD Southwest Allen County Schls district, consistently outperforms Lancaster Central School in test scores and has a lower free and reduced lunch rate.

533

Students ?

14.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,727

Per pupil spending ?

40.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3240 E 300 N
Bluffton, IN 46714

(260) 565-3135

District: Norwell Community Schools

Students who attend Lancaster Central School usually attend:

Middle:	Norwell Middle School
High:	Norwell High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

86.1%

Hispanic:

7.9%

Two or more races:

3.4%

See top rated Indiana elementary schools

Compare Lancaster Central School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 59th percentile in 2015 → 61st in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Indiana average (46% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Above the Indiana median (61st percentile)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school46%

District avg50%

Indiana avg38%

395^th of 1,005

Indiana public elementary schools ?

Top 39%▲ up 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Elementary Schools in the Norwell Community Schools

60^th of 380Norwell Community Schools among Indiana districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2025	60.5	395 of 1005	60.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	72.0	271 of 1011	73.2%	★★★★☆
2023	65.6	353 of 1016	65.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	69.8	306 of 1020	70.0%	★★★★☆
2021	71.8	279 of 1016	72.5%	★★★★☆
2019	66.5	344 of 1031	66.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	77.9	190 of 1027	81.5%	★★★★☆
2017	77.1	194 of 1033	81.2%	★★★★☆
2016	78.8	174 of 1046	83.4%	★★★★☆
2015	61.9	430 of 1040	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2014	75.1	200 of 1036	80.7%	★★★★☆
2013	78.1	166 of 1035	84.0%	★★★★☆
2012	78.8	162 of 1015	84.0%	★★★★☆
2011	79.4	139 of 1025	86.4%	★★★★☆
2010	82.1	109 of 1009	89.2%	★★★★☆
2009	68.8	313 of 1003	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2008	72.2	232 of 996	76.7%	★★★★☆
2007	59.2	445 of 985	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2006	61.1	399 of 961	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2005	50.2	544 of 959	43.3%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Indiana (2024-2025) ?

Math53%

Science52%

English Language Arts39%

Social Studies38%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Lancaster Central School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ILEARN English Language Arts (2025)					ILEARN Math (2025)					ILEARN Science (2025)			ILEARN Social Studies (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ILEARN English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 4th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 5th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 6th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts All Grades	ILEARN Math 3rd Grade	ILEARN Math 4th Grade	ILEARN Math 5th Grade	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 4th Grade	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Social Studies 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Lancaster Central School	Public	PK, KG-5	3240 E 300 N	Bluffton	46714	Wells County	Norwell Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 565-3135	533	36	14.7	40.7%	459 (86.1%)	7 (1.3%)	42 (7.9%)	7 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (3.4%)	60.5	395^th of 1005 public elementary schools	60.7%		72	271^st of 1011 public elementary schools	73.2%	124	29.8	45.0	40.9		39.0	53.6	56.0	47.7		52.6	52.0		52.0	37.5	$10,727	$930	$9,797
Bluffton-Harrison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	1100 E Spring St	Bluffton	46714	Wells County	MSD Bluffton-Harrison	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 824-0333	750	51	14.8	58.0%	605 (80.7%)	22 (2.9%)	83 (11.1%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	38 (5.1%)	40	623^rd of 1005 public elementary schools	38.0%		46.9	560^th of 1011 public elementary schools	44.6%	63	32.8	33.3			33.1	48.5	34.5			41.2	37.7		37.7		$9,429	$697	$8,732
Ossian Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	213 S Jefferson	Ossian	46777	Wells County	Norwell Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 622-4179	566	38	14.9	33.9%	510 (90.1%)	7 (1.2%)	31 (5.5%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.5%)	63.6	356^th of 1005 public elementary schools	64.6%		64.1	367^th of 1011 public elementary schools	63.7%	11	47.9	45.8	43.3		45.7	57.3	53.0	42.3		50.7	48.2		48.2	37.1	$11,126	$800	$10,326
Adams Central Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	222 W Washington St	Monroe	46772	Adams County	Adams Central Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 692-6629	621	46	13.6	27.4%	571 (91.9%)	3 (0.5%)	32 (5.2%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (1.9%)	65.9	328^th of 1005 public elementary schools	67.4%		59.8	417^th of 1011 public elementary schools	58.8%	89	40.4	41.8	46.3		42.9	53.2	62.6	41.1		52.1	50.6		50.6	51.6	$10,493	$1,363	$9,130
Bellmont Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1200 North Adams Drive	Decatur	46733	Adams County	North Adams Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 724-3633	684	52	13.1	54.8%	526 (76.9%)	19 (2.8%)	78 (11.4%)	2 (0.3%)	6 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (7.7%)	47.4	544^th of 1005 public elementary schools	45.9%		43.4	592^nd of 1011 public elementary schools	41.4%	48	37.0	37.8	39.8		38.2	45.0	46.9	23.5		38.5	36.7		36.7	42.9	$11,404	$2,441	$8,963
Southern Wells Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	9120 S 300 W	Poneto	46781	Wells County	Southern Wells Com Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(765) 728-2121	496	28	17.7	44.6%	471 (95.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.8%)	37.8	641^st of 1005 public elementary schools	36.2%		51.6	507^th of 1011 public elementary schools	49.9%	134	33.9	26.3	32.9	29.6	30.5	47.5	30.3	36.8	35.2	36.9	29.0	32.4	30.6	31.6	$8,914	$262	$8,652
South Adams Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1012 Starfire Way	Berne	46711	Adams County	South Adams Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 589-1101	671	48	14.1	49.3%	583 (86.9%)	3 (0.4%)	63 (9.4%)	8 (1.2%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (1.9%)	64.8	340^th of 1005 public elementary schools	66.2%		66.3	342^nd of 1011 public elementary schools	66.2%	2	49.0	41.5	36.5		42.2	62.2	58.1	57.7		59.3	41.5		41.5	38.5	$11,729	$2,227	$9,502
Salamonie Elementary School	Public	K-5	1063 E 900 S	Warren	46792	Huntington County	Huntington County Com School Corp	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 468-3093	273	22	12.6	46.9%	254 (93.0%)	2 (0.7%)	13 (4.8%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	61	385^th of 1005 public elementary schools	61.7%		70.5	291^st of 1011 public elementary schools	71.2%	94	45.8	27.7	45.6		40.5	67.8	40.4	61.4		57.7	32.6		32.6	42.1	$10,970	$538	$10,432
Maplewood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2200 Maplewood Rd	Fort Wayne	46819	Allen County	Fort Wayne Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 467-7150	477	33	14.5	71.5%	145 (30.4%)	134 (28.1%)	73 (15.3%)	67 (14.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	57 (11.9%)	23.9	783^rd of 1005 public elementary schools	22.1%		28.9	740^th of 1011 public elementary schools	26.8%	43	25.8	37.8	20.0		28.4	30.3	34.2	22.9		29.4	22.9		22.9	11.4	$12,145	$2,021	$10,124
Waynedale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	7201 Elzey	Fort Wayne	46809	Allen County	Fort Wayne Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(260) 467-8820	383	28	13.6	68.4%	161 (42.0%)	96 (25.1%)	64 (16.7%)	20 (5.2%)	3 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (10.2%)	28.4	743^rd of 1005 public elementary schools	26.1%		31.4	716^th of 1011 public elementary schools	29.2%	27	30.1	40.0	19.4		28.6	39.7	42.5	11.3		30.3	37.5		37.5	12.9	$12,634	$2,173	$10,460

Frequently Asked Questions about Lancaster Central School

What district is Lancaster Central School in?

Norwell Community Schools

Is Lancaster Central School a good school?

Lancaster Central School ranks 395^th of 1005 Indiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Lancaster Central School attend?

Students who attend Lancaster Central School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Norwell Middle School
High : Norwell High School

How many students attend Lancaster Central School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 533 students attended Lancaster Central School.

What is the racial makeup of Lancaster Central School?

Students at Lancaster Central School are 86% White, 8% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races, 1% African American, 1% Asian.

Rate Lancaster Central School!

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Schools in Bluffton, IN

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Indiana Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.