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Joel E. Barber Elementary

Q: Is Joel E. Barber Elementary a good school?

Joel E. Barber Elementary ranks 613 th of 900 Missouri elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-8

613^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 900 Missouri Elementary Schools

Better than 32% of Missouri elementary schools

Summary

Joel E. Barber Elementary is a public school serving grades PK-8 in Lebanon, Missouri, with 521 students. The school is part of the Laclede County C-5 school district, which is ranked 270 out of 367 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Joel E. Barber Elementary faces significant challenges, with a high percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 78.86% to 99.42% over the past few years. The school's academic performance, as measured by proficiency rates on the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) tests, is consistently below the state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2024-2025, the school's 3rd grade math proficiency rate is 26%, compared to the state average of 41.4%. Additionally, the school has struggled with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 9.4% to 18.5% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average.

When comparing Joel E. Barber Elementary to nearby schools, such as Mallory Elementary, it becomes clear that the school is struggling relative to its peers. Mallory Elementary, located 19.62 miles away, has higher academic proficiency rates and a lower chronic absenteeism rate, despite also serving a high-poverty student population. The school's performance has also declined over the past several years, with its statewide ranking dropping from 623 out of 865 Missouri elementary schools in 2015-2016 to 613 out of 900 in 2024-2025.

505

Students ?

14.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,038

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

16050 Hwy Kk
Lebanon, MO 65536-7849

(417) 532-4837

District: Laclede County C-5

Racial breakdown:

White:

93.3%

Two or more races:

2.8%

Hispanic:

2.6%

See top rated Missouri elementary schools

Compare Joel E. Barber Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 16th percentile in 2015 → 32nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 16 percentile points since 2015

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Missouri average (30% vs 41% meeting standards)

!English Language Arts scores 15 pts below the Missouri average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school30%

District avg30%

Missouri avg41%

Elementary school

613^th of 900

Missouri public elementary schools ?

Bottom 32%▲ up 16 pts since 2015

From bottom 16% (2015) to bottom 32% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Missouri Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

313^th of 438

Missouri public middle schools ?

Bottom 29%▼ down 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Missouri Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

270^th of 367Laclede County C-5 among Missouri districts

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

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	35.4	613 of 900	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.6	600 of 906	33.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.2	596 of 898	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	27.2	674 of 908	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	30.2	658 of 901	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.3	672 of 1052	36.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.3	697 of 1045	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	30.6	778 of 1032	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	34.4	623 of 865	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	22.4	890 of 1058	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	47.6	614 of 1089	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2013	43.3	701 of 1108	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2012	32.8	841 of 1085	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	41.0	730 of 1088	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2010	46.1	638 of 1066	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2009	50.9	558 of 1053	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	35.8	816 of 1084	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	38.9	754 of 1080	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2006	35.8	794 of 1074	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	64.8	170 of 638	73.4%	★★★★☆
2024	62.5	165 of 625	73.6%	★★★★☆
2023	28.9	475 of 611	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	59.4	168 of 574	70.7%	★★★★☆
2019	60.1	300 of 907	66.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	55.8	355 of 887	60.0%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	21.7	552 of 666	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.1	551 of 668	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.9	539 of 673	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.0	592 of 675	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.7	608 of 691	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.4	729 of 917	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.6	728 of 898	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	31.4	313 of 438	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	35.3	300 of 451	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.0	327 of 459	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.9	328 of 459	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.8	359 of 454	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.5	446 of 587	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.6	348 of 552	37.0%	★★☆☆☆
2017	29.2	445 of 568	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	52.1	214 of 435	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	37.5	409 of 585	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2014	39.7	436 of 633	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2013	30.6	536 of 649	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	43.9	402 of 623	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2011	47.6	369 of 625	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	42.1	423 of 614	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2009	35.5	468 of 601	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	25.9	555 of 624	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	43.4	409 of 624	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2006	36.7	482 of 619	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	54.0	155 of 369	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.0	132 of 378	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	49.9	185 of 382	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	44.8	204 of 371	45.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	48.8	235 of 482	51.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	63.1	101 of 422	76.1%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	20.1	305 of 358	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.7	308 of 379	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.3	332 of 385	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.7	321 of 381	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.8	353 of 376	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	22.3	458 of 527	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.7	354 of 479	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Elementary school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)73rd percentile+41 vs school

White (2025)17th percentile-15 vs school

Middle school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)58th percentile+29 vs school

White (2025)15th percentile-14 vs school

By subject vs Missouri (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics33%-8 vs state

Science29%-11 vs state

English Language Arts27%-15 vs state

1.0

1 rating

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4★0

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2★0

1★1

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Schools Near Joel E. Barber Elementary

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MAP Mathematics (2025)					MAP Science (2025)		MAP English Language Arts (2025)						Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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	MAP Mathematics 3rd Grade	MAP Mathematics 4th Grade	MAP Mathematics 5th Grade	MAP Mathematics 6th Grade	MAP Mathematics 8th Grade	MAP Science 5th Grade	MAP Science 8th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MAP English Language Arts 4th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 5th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 6th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 7th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Joel E. Barber Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	16050 Hwy Kk	Lebanon	65536	Laclede County	Laclede County C-5	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 532-4837	505	36	14.0	100.0%	471 (93.3%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.6%)	3 (0.6%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.8%)	35.4	613^th of 900 public elementary schools	31.9%		35.6	600^th of 906 public elementary schools	33.8%	13	26.0	35.7	38.0	45.7	14.0	28.4	31.0	35.1	28.5	23.7	33.3	20.2	22.3	$10,038	$732	$9,305
Joe D. Esther Elementary	Public	K-1	1200 Clark St	Lebanon	65536	Laclede County	Lebanon R-III	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 657-6200	609	53	11.5	72.1%	533 (87.5%)	7 (1.1%)	41 (6.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (4.3%)								(n/a)														$12,308	$569	$11,739
Maplecrest Elementary	Public	2-3	901 Maple Ln	Lebanon	65536	Laclede County	Lebanon R-III	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 657-6300	656	48	13.5	66.9%	575 (87.7%)	4 (0.6%)	40 (6.1%)	6 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (4.6%)								(n/a)	35.2							35.9						$11,595	$402	$11,193
Boswell Elementary	Public	4-5	695 Millcreek	Lebanon	65536	Laclede County	Lebanon R-III	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 657-6400	581	41	14.2	65.7%	518 (89.2%)	3 (0.5%)	27 (4.6%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (5.2%)	41.4	550^th of 900 public elementary schools	38.9%		49.2	459^th of 906 public elementary schools	49.3%	91		45.5	26.1			32.6			39.7	35.4				$11,111	$391	$10,720
Ezard Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	209 S Shiloh Ave	Conway	65632	Laclede County	Laclede County R-I	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 589-2171	422	31	13.8	51.4%	407 (96.4%)	4 (0.9%)	10 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	50.6	456^th of 900 public elementary schools	49.3%		44.7	511^th of 906 public elementary schools	43.6%	55	39.5	26.0	37.2	55.1		43.0		35.8		45.0	36.1			$9,308	$793	$8,515
Stoutland Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	7584 State Road T	Stoutland	65567	Camden County	Stoutland R-II	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 286-3711	235	18	12.7	63.0%	222 (94.5%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	5 (2.1%)	49	477^th of 900 public elementary schools	47.0%		16.9	761^st of 906 public elementary schools	16.0%	284	56.1	30.0	22.7			29.2		53.0						$11,358	$307	$11,051
Gasconade Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	32959 Hwy 32	Falcon	65470	Laclede County	Gasconade C-4	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 532-4821	97	10	9.4	72.2%	89 (91.8%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)								(n/a)			20.1											$12,488	$1,027	$11,461
Mallory Elementary	Public	K-4	315 S Hickory	Buffalo	65622	Dallas County	Dallas County R-I	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 345-2350	599	47	12.8	63.4%	545 (91.0%)	3 (0.5%)	22 (3.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (4.5%)	30.6	654^th of 900 public elementary schools	27.3%		23.9	700^th of 906 public elementary schools	22.7%	46	33.0	32.7						21.6	36.6					$11,522	$1,427	$10,095
Niangua Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	301 Rumsey St	Niangua	65713	Webster County	Niangua R-V	No	No	No	Yes	(417) 473-6101	155	12	12.6	63.9%	143 (92.3%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.6%)	2 (1.3%)	2 (1.3%)	28.2	676^th of 900 public elementary schools	24.9%		35.3	604^th of 906 public elementary schools	33.3%	72			13.7			22.8				27.4	40.0			$10,859	$1,129	$9,729

Frequently Asked Questions about Joel E. Barber Elementary

What district is Joel E. Barber Elementary in?

Laclede County C-5

How many students attend Joel E. Barber Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 505 students attended Joel E. Barber Elementary.

Is Joel E. Barber Elementary a good school?

Joel E. Barber Elementary ranks 613^th of 900 Missouri elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Joel E. Barber Elementary?

Students at Joel E. Barber Elementary are 93% White, 3% Two or more races, 3% Hispanic.

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