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Hotel LykensHotel Lykens · Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ, M.D. · CC BY-SA 4.0
C+
Schools in Lykens · Upper Dauphin Area School District

Lykens’s public schools score below 60% of Pennsylvania districts on tests and graduation

The grade covers the public school district serving Lykens, from kindergarten through graduation, on state tests and graduation. Each state writes its own tests, so this is the one TownRatings grade compared within Pennsylvania, not nationally.

K–12Where will my kid go?

From Pennsylvania state tests taken in spring 2022, when 96% of students in the tested grades sat them, and the class of 2023’s four-year graduation rate, as reported to the U.S. Department of Education.

Reading proficiency
52%
▼ 3 pts vs PA 55%
2021–22
Math proficiency
36%
▼ 0 pts vs PA 36%
2021–22
Graduate on time
85–89%
▼ 2–2 pts vs PA 88%
class of 2023
Spent per student
$20.4K
▼ 6% vs PA $21.8K
FY2024
Students per teacher
12.9
PA 13.4 · smaller classes
Schools in town
0
1,006 students on the public path
In brief

Lykens’s schools, in brief

Against towns with similar incomes

Among the 2025 Pennsylvania towns with household incomes within a quarter of Lykens’s, its schools beat 25%, lower than their 40% against all the state’s districts. The grade ↓

Results trail the state

In spring 2022, 52% of tested students were proficient in reading and 36% in math, against 55% and 36% statewide; 96% of students in the tested grades sat the tests. The grade ↓

Graduation

85–89% of the class of 2023 graduated in four years, against 88% across Pennsylvania (the state reports Lykens’s rate as a range). Districts ↓

Spending and class size

The district spends $20,442 per student, against $21,758 across Pennsylvania (FY2024). Spending doesn’t count toward the grade. Districts ↓

One elementary school, then one middle and one high school

From grade 5 the district’s path is Upper Dauphin Area MS, then Upper Dauphin Area HS. See the path ↓

Written from the figures on this page. Tests are from 2021–22, graduation from the class of 2023; each school’s own letter uses 2020–21 results.

The School Grade

What’s behind Lykens’s grade

B− Test scoresC− Graduation

C+: better than 40% of Pennsylvania school districts. Both inputs trail the Pennsylvania average; test scores are the closer of the two to typical.

Pennsylvania school districts we grade (688)Better than 40%
Lower resultsHigher results
Pennsylvania towns with similar household incomes (2025)Better than 25%
CBA fairly firm grade. Ordinary sampling error in 511 test results and a graduating class of 92 could put Lykens anywhere from C to B. The tests are from spring 2022, when 96% of Lykens’s students in the tested grades sat them (492 in math, 530 in reading).

How TownRatings grades schools →

Where will my kid go?

Pick a grade. These are the public schools that serve Lykens, with each school’s own grade.

The path, start to finish
PK–4Upper Dauphin Area El SchUpper Dauphin Area School DistrictB
5–8Upper Dauphin Area MSUpper Dauphin Area School DistrictC+
9–12Upper Dauphin Area HSin ElizabethvilleA+

Lykens’s public schools are run by Upper Dauphin Area School District, which also serves Berrysburg, Elizabethville, Gratz and Jefferson and others. To confirm the school for a specific address, ask the district.

The district

Spending and class size are shown but don’t count toward the grade. Each district’s own page has every school.

Upper Dauphin Area School DistrictGrades PK–12 · 3 schools · 1,006 students, down 4% since 2020–21 · 12.9 per teacher (PA 13.4)
$20,442PA $21,758 · FY2024
C+
Test scores · 2021–22

Below the state in reading

Reading52%
State average 55.1% · 530 students tested
Math36%
State average 36.1% · 492 students tested

Lykens vs. its neighbors

Schools grades for the Pennsylvania towns that share Lykens’s borders.

Schools next door
TownSchoolsMain districts
LykensC+Upper Dauphin Area
WiconiscoCWilliams Valley
JacksonC+Halifax Area

Every school in Lykens

3 schools. Each public school’s letter compares its own 2020–21 reading and math results with Pennsylvania’s other public schools (the newest school-level results we have).

Also serving Lykensin other towns
Upper Dauphin Area El Sch
Elementary · Grades PK–4
B
373 students13:1Rate it →
Upper Dauphin Area MS
Middle · Grades 5–8
C+
302 students13:1Rate it →
Upper Dauphin Area HS
High · Grades 9–12 · Elizabethville
A+
331 students13:1Rate it →

Questions about Lykens’s schools

Are Lykens’s schools good?

On Pennsylvania’s tests they score below most of the state: the public schools Lykens children attend score below 60% of Pennsylvania’s school districts on tests and graduation, a C+ Schools grade. Among towns with similar incomes they beat 25%. Tests are from 2021–22, graduation from the class of 2023.

What school district is Lykens in?

Upper Dauphin Area School District, which runs grades PK–12 and enrolls 1,006 students in 3 schools (2024–25).

Where do Lykens kids go to high school?

Upper Dauphin Area HS in Elizabethville, with 331 students; its own test results earn an A+.

What is Lykens’s graduation rate?

85–89% of the class of 2023 in Upper Dauphin Area School District graduated in four years, against 88% across Pennsylvania.

How much does Lykens spend per student?

$20,442 in Upper Dauphin Area School District (FY2024), against $21,758 across Pennsylvania. Spending doesn’t count toward the grade.

Parents talk

What Lykens families are saying about school.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Looking for colleges? Colleges near Lykens → They have their own page.

School data: state test results (2021–22, with participation) and four-year graduation rates (class of 2023) reported to the U.S. Department of Education (EDFacts via ED Data Express); each school’s own letter uses its 2020–21 results (EDFacts via the Urban Institute); schools and enrollment from NCES (2024–25; private schools 2023–24); spending from the Census Bureau’s school finance survey (FY2024). The School Grade is our own summary, graded within Pennsylvania. Stars are from neighbors.