SCHOOL INFORMATION
W. D. Richards Elementary School
3311 Fairlawn Drive
Columbus, IN
Hours of Operations
Student Arrival- 7:50-8:10 a.m.
Morning Tardy Bell- 8:10 a.m.
Morning Breakfast- 7:45 a.m.
Dismissal- 2:40 p.m.
About Our School
Our motto: Big Dreams + Hard Work = Success!
Number of students at our school: 555
School Colors: Blue & White
Mascot: Raiders
About Our Building
Like most of our elementary schools, this was named for a beloved local educator. William Dalbert Richards (1884-1957) was a native of Bartholomew County and a teacher and principal in Columbus Elementary schools for 45 years. Design fees for the building were provided by the Cummins Foundation Architectural Program. Richards features a distinctive roofline of bold slopes forming a saw-toothed silhouette meant to be reminiscent of the factories of our industrial heritage.
The playground area behind the school featured a sculpture entitled “Horses” by Constantino Nivola. The sculpture, which was donated by Mr and Mrs J. Irwin Miller, consisted of 12 stylized black, brown, and white miniature fiberglass horses surrounding an ash tree, like a merry-go-round. Unfortunately they did not hold up well and eventually had to be removed.
DOE Compliance Information
IREAD Passing Rate: 82.8%
ILEARN ELA Passing Rate: 36%
ILEARN MATH Passing Rate: 39.7%
Chronic Absenteeism Rate; 13.7%
Per Student Funding: $6,203.40