Stephanie Garber, Culver school superintendent, has a couple of things to be proud of this morning. Voters in her school district have, after several failed attempts, agreed to pay $8.8 million for upgrades to district schools. At the same time, students in her small district — roughly 650 in K-12 — beat state averages on a variety of measurements.

The bond issue accomplishment is huge in itself, coming after three failures since 2006. The money raised will go to do such things as replace an aging electrical system, a heating system noted for its failures, remove asbestos from ceilings and floors, add elementary classrooms and upgrade restrooms and other facilities to Americans with Disabilities Act standards.

But it’s the academic achievement that should have both Garber and the residents of Culver proud. In a district in which residents are poorer than average, more likely to be of minority descent and where 90 kids meet the federal definition of homeless, achievement numbers exceed the average of comparably sized districts.

Consider this: In a district where 64 percent of students are economically disadvantaged, 75 percent of Culver students graduated within four years and 83.3 percent completed their education within five years. The numbers for comparable districts were 68.7 percent and 74.1 percent, respectively.

Too, Culver’s dropout rate of 0.5 percent was well below the comparable schools average of 3 percent.

So what gives?

Culver’s superintendent and teachers take time to get to know their students. That makes a difference when a kid runs into problems — when parents split up or a family loses a home, for example. Armed with that knowledge, the district is ready and willing to step in and help smooth a student’s path when things get tough.

Getting to know students is easier in a small district than in a large one, no doubt. Acting on that knowledge may be easier, as well. In Culver, both the knowledge and the subsequent actions are paying big dividends for the young men and women going to school there.