South Hanover Elementary School

Summary:

South Hanover Elementary School is a high-performing public elementary school in Hershey, Pennsylvania, serving 385 students in grades K-5 and part of the Lower Dauphin School District.

South Hanover Elementary consistently ranks among the top elementary schools in Pennsylvania, earning a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's proficiency rates on PSSA exams significantly exceed state and district averages, with 77.7% in math, 93.4% in science, and 79.4% in English Language Arts. South Hanover's performance is strong across different student subgroups, though its ranking for low-income students is relatively lower. The school maintains a high per-student spending of $15,926 and a low student-teacher ratio of 13.5 to 1.

Compared to nearby schools, South Hanover outperforms its peers in the Lower Dauphin School District, but its performance is on par or slightly lower than schools in the higher-ranked Palmyra Area School District and Derry Township School District. South Hanover has a relatively low percentage of students from low-income families, ranging from 9.92% to 15.84%, compared to some nearby schools with significantly higher percentages. Despite these challenges, South Hanover Elementary has maintained a consistently high performance, earning a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger multiple times and ranking in the top 20% of Pennsylvania elementary schools.


Detail:

Public K-5

 15 W 3rd St
       Hershey, PA  17033-2452


(717) 566-2564

District: Lower Dauphin School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
118th of 1,526 Pennsylvania Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $15,926 Help


Students who attend South Hanover Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Lower Dauphin Middle School
High:    Lower Dauphin High School
    Price

Student/teacher ratio:  14.0 Help
Number of students:  372

Racial breakdown:

White:
79.6%
Asian:
6.7%
Hispanic:
5.6%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  19.4% Help


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Performance Trends
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Compare Details South Hanover Elementary School ranks better than 92.3% of elementary schools in Pennsylvania. It also ranks first among 5 ranked elementary schools in the Lower Dauphin School District! (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 88.62. (See more...)
Student Body
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Compare Details South Hanover Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Lower Dauphin School District. Racial makeup is: White (79.6%), Asian (6.7%), Hispanic (5.6%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 19.4% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. This is the lowest percentage in the Lower Dauphin School District. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at South Hanover Elementary School is 14, which is the highest among 5 elementary schools in the Lower Dauphin School District! (See more...)
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Compare South Hanover Elementary School employs 26.4 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at South Hanover Elementary School is $15,926, which is the lowest among 5 elementary schools in the Lower Dauphin School District!
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

South Hanover Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks South Hanover Elementary School 118th of 1526 Pennsylvania public elementary schools. (See South Hanover Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
White students:


Lower Dauphin School District:

SchoolDigger ranks Lower Dauphin School District 162nd of 610 Pennsylvania school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for South Hanover Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at South Hanover Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools PA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2003 72.50 382nd 1302 70.7%
2004 57.91 656th 1308 49.8%
2005 70.38 400th 1299 69.2%
2006 72.12 425th 1545 72.5%
2007 72.07 439th 1555 71.8%
2008 76.27 307th 1551 80.2%
2009 78.01 253rd 1549 83.7%
2010 73.09 403rd 1579 74.5%
2011 80.07 212th 1597 86.7%
2012 78.99 244th 1599 84.7%
2013 86.70 40th 1519 97.4%
2014 86.16 63rd 1467 95.7%
2015 85.86 136th 1474 90.8%
2016 84.81 171st 1554 89.0%
2017 88.53 81st 1547 94.8%
2018 89.09 75th 1530 95.1%
2019 80.25 279th 1544 81.9%
2021 81.67 234th 1433 83.7%
2022 84.83 202nd 1534 86.8%
2023 77.70 324th 1534 78.9%
2024 88.62 118th 1526 92.3%
See the entire list of Pennsylvania Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at South Hanover Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools PA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 40.73 914th 1414 35.4%
2024 77.54 227th 1432 84.1%
See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at South Hanover Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools PA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 86.71 127th 1488 91.5%
See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at South Hanover Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools PA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 88.31 105th 1495 93.0%
See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for White students at South Hanover Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools PA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 68.55 371st 1236 70.0%
2024 86.74 97th 1229 92.1%
See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Pennsylvania Dept of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

South Hanover Elementary School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 






Data source: Pennsylvania Dept of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)
100%

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Reviews:
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Enrollment information for South Hanover Elementary School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 360 0 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 360
1989 374 0 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 375
1990 397 0 1 1 0 n/a n/a 0 399
1991 406 0 1 2 0 n/a n/a 0 409
1992 451 1 1 1 0 n/a n/a 0 454
1993 471 2 1 2 0 n/a n/a 0 476
1994 474 5 1 2 0 n/a n/a 0 482
1995 381 9 6 0 0 n/a n/a 0 396
1996 381 9 6 0 0 n/a n/a 0 396
1997 373 8 4 0 0 n/a n/a 0 385
1998 372 13 4 2 0 n/a n/a 0 391
1999 391 14 3 1 0 n/a n/a 0 409
2000 401 10 4 2 0 n/a n/a 0 417
2001 388 8 5 2 0 n/a n/a 0 403
2002 362 8 3 4 3 n/a n/a 0 380
2003 362 8 3 4 3 n/a n/a 0 380
2004 358 3 4 3 4 n/a n/a 0 372
2005 342 5 8 4 4 n/a n/a 0 363
2006 322 8 8 2 4 n/a n/a 0 344
2007 329 8 10 8 1 n/a n/a 0 356
2008 334 5 12 6 0 n/a n/a 2 359
2009 336 4 13 8 0 n/a n/a 6 367
2010 338 5 15 15 0 n/a n/a 7 380
2011 331 11 11 22 0 0 13 0 388
2012 310 9 15 27 0 0 10 0 371
2013 322 7 15 29 0 0 9 0 382
2014 312 8 10 26 0 0 9 0 365
2015 325 9 18 24 0 0 13 0 389
2016 314 11 20 17 0 0 12 0 374
2017 329 11 26 19 0 0 17 0 402
2018 335 12 28 23 0 0 13 0 411
2019 338 13 27 21 0 0 14 0 413
2020 325 22 23 25 0 0 14 0 409
2021 289 8 6 15 0 0 10 0 328
2022 321 12 20 20 1 0 19 0 393
2023 314 13 22 20 0 0 16 0 385
2024 296 13 25 21 0 0 17 0 372

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at South Hanover Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 360 16.1 22.3 n/a
1989 375 18.4 20.3 n/a
1990 399 19.6 20.3 0
1991 409 22.3 18.3 n/a
1992 454 24.6 18.4 n/a
1993 476 23.5 20.3 n/a
1994 482 26.0 18.5 n/a
1995 396 19.5 20.3 n/a
1996 396 19.5 20.3 n/a
1997 385 22.7 17.0 n/a
1998 391 21.7 18.0 n/a
1999 409 22.0 18.6 n/a
2000 417 25.0 16.7 7.7
2001 403 24.7 16.3 8.2
2002 380 27.4 13.9 10
2003 380 27.4 13.9 10
2004 372 26.2 14.2 10.2
2005 363 26.1 13.9 10.5
2006 344 24.2 14.2 11
2007 356 23.7 15.0 10.7
2008 359 26.2 13.7 8.7
2009 367 24.6 14.9 8.6
2010 380 25.9 14.6 12.1
2011 388 24.9 15.5 11.1
2012 371 25.5 14.5 8.1
2013 382 24.5 15.5 8.1
2014 365 24.9 14.6 7.4
2015 389 26.0 14.9 8.7
2016 374 26.0 14.3 11.5
2017 402 26.2 15.3 10.4
2018 411 29.4 13.9 12.9
2019 413 29.4 14.0 19.6
2020 409 29.6 13.8 16.9
2021 328 27.6 11.8 12.5
2022 393 27.6 14.2 9.9
2023 385 28.4 13.5 15.8
2024 372 26.4 14.0 19.4

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio South Hanover Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 360 16.1 22.3 n/a
1989 375 18.4 20.3 n/a
1990 399 19.6 20.3 0
1991 409 22.3 18.3 n/a
1992 454 24.6 18.4 n/a
1993 476 23.5 20.3 n/a
1994 482 26.0 18.5 n/a
1995 396 19.5 20.3 n/a
1996 396 19.5 20.3 n/a
1997 385 22.7 17.0 n/a
1998 391 21.7 18.0 n/a
1999 409 22.0 18.6 n/a
2000 417 25.0 16.7 7.7
2001 403 24.7 16.3 8.2
2002 380 27.4 13.9 10
2003 380 27.4 13.9 10
2004 372 26.2 14.2 10.2
2005 363 26.1 13.9 10.5
2006 344 24.2 14.2 11
2007 356 23.7 15.0 10.7
2008 359 26.2 13.7 8.7
2009 367 24.6 14.9 8.6
2010 380 25.9 14.6 12.1
2011 388 24.9 15.5 11.1
2012 371 25.5 14.5 8.1
2013 382 24.5 15.5 8.1
2014 365 24.9 14.6 7.4
2015 389 26.0 14.9 8.7
2016 374 26.0 14.3 11.5
2017 402 26.2 15.3 10.4
2018 411 29.4 13.9 12.9
2019 413 29.4 14.0 19.6
2020 409 29.6 13.8 16.9
2021 328 27.6 11.8 12.5
2022 393 27.6 14.2 9.9
2023 385 28.4 13.5 15.8
2024 372 26.4 14.0 19.4

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for South Hanover Elementary School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $95 (0.7%) $14,319 (99.3%) $14,414
2020 $62 (0.4%) $14,194 (99.6%) $14,256
2021 $231 (1.5%) $15,104 (98.5%) $15,335
2022 $518 (3.3%) $15,408 (96.7%) $15,926

Data source: Pennsylvania Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on South Hanover Elementary School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 279th of 1544 Elementary schoolsRanks 324th of 1534 Elementary schools
 3.1%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Math (South Hanover Elementary School)9574.2
 20.8%
   3rd Grade Math (Pennsylvania)5651.7
 4.3%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (South Hanover Elementary School)91.767.2
 24.5%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)61.954
 7.9%
4th Grade Math (South Hanover Elementary School)57.351
 6.3%
   4th Grade Math (Pennsylvania)46.246.5
 0.3%
4th Grade Science (South Hanover Elementary School)87.890.2
 2.4%
   4th Grade Science (Pennsylvania)77.874.1
 3.7%
4th Grade English Language Arts (South Hanover Elementary School)74.654.9
 19.7%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)63.651.8
 11.8%
5th Grade Math (South Hanover Elementary School)63.868.1
 4.3%
   5th Grade Math (Pennsylvania)4342.7
 0.3%
5th Grade English Language Arts (South Hanover Elementary School)78.377.9
 0.4%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)58.553.6
 4.9%
All Grades Math (South Hanover Elementary School)7165.1
 5.9%
   All Grades Math (Pennsylvania)42.439.3
 3.1%
All Grades Science (South Hanover Elementary School)87.890.2
 2.4%
   All Grades Science (Pennsylvania)6865.6
 2.4%
All Grades English Language Arts (South Hanover Elementary School)8167.8
 13.2%
   All Grades English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)60.953.8
 7.1%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students413385
 6.8%
African American1313
American Indian00
Asian2722
 18.5%
Hispanic2120
 4.8%
Pacific Islander00
White338314
 7.1%
Two or More Races1416
 14.3%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients19.6%15.8%
 3.8%


Schools Near South Hanover Elementary School









Frequently Asked Questions about South Hanover Elementary School

Students who attend South Hanover Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Lower Dauphin Middle School
High : Lower Dauphin High School
High : Price

Students at South Hanover Elementary School are 80% White, 7% Asian, 6% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 3% African American.

Yes. South Hanover Elementary School ranks in the top 7.7% of Pennsylvania elementary schools.

In the 2023-24 school year, 372 students attended South Hanover Elementary School.


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





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