Enrollment
362
Elementary
DISTRICT 344 · STATE 277
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MATANUSKA-SUSITNA BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 020051000727
Big Lake Elementary
Mile 4.5 South Big Lake Rd, Big Lake, AK 99652 · (907) 892-9700 · Matanuska-Susitna Borough
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL362 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
16.2:1
22 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.8:1 · STATE 15.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
62%
224 students
DISTRICT 53% · STATE 65%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 30 | 8% |
| Kindergarten | 47 | 13% |
| Grade 1 | 54 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 53 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 69 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 48 | 13% |
| Grade 5 | 61 | 17% |
Student demographics
58%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 51% · STATE 71% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
AK STAR + Alaska Science 2024-25 . % Advanced + ProficientEnglish Language Arts
30.4%
AK avg 36.1% . -0.9pp since 2023
Math
38.7%
AK avg 34.6% . -1.5pp since 2023
What this means: On the AK STAR + Alaska Science, Alaska's statewide test, about 30 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 39 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Alaska schools, those numbers are about 36 and 35. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2023, while math scores are down about 2 points.
AK STAR + Alaska Science results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 30.4% | 38.7% |
| 2023-24 | 31.3% | 40.2% |
% Advanced + Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: AK STAR + Alaska Science. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
40.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
32.0%
based on AK schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.9pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 41% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 32% typical for Alaska schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Alaska's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Where Big Lake Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Alaska | In Matanuska-Susitna Borough |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 40.9% | #72 of 134 | #15 of 19 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 38.7% | #81 of 150 | #19 of 23 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 30.4% | #102 of 150 | #21 of 23 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 362 | #37 of 169 | #12 of 27 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 16.2:1 | #65 of 125 | #11 of 22 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 58.0% | #73 of 125 | #9 of 22 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 61.9% | #43 of 142 | #6 of 21 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -9.0% | #92 of 115 | #8 of 14 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
362
+47 (+15%) vs 2020
+1% since 2000-01, when it was 360
Student : Teacher
16.2:1
was 12.6:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 362 | 22.3 | 16.2:1 | 62% (224) |
| 2023-24 | 320 | 24.5 | 13.1:1 | 67% (215) |
| 2022-23 | 382 | 22 | 17.4:1 | 74% (283) |
| 2020-21 | 315 | 25 | 12.6:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 398 | 24.5 | 16.2:1 | 84% (334) |
| 2015-16 | 455 | 31 | 14.7:1 | 93% (425) |
| 2010-11 | 403 | 25 | 16.1:1 | 64% (258) |
| 2000-01 | 360 | 22 | 16.4:1 | 47% (170) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Big Lake Elementary.
About Big Lake Elementary
Big Lake, Alaska, is home to Big Lake Elementary, a mid-sized elementary school. It offers pre-K through 5 and has 362 students enrolled. By comparison, elementary schools in Alaska enroll about 277 students on average.
Big Lake Elementary belongs to Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, a district of 49 schools and 19,495 students.
More than half of enrollment at Big Lake Elementary is White: 61%. Other groups include 18% multiracial, 11% Native American, and 8% Hispanic. The county population is about 77% White. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Big Lake Elementary scores 58%.
The student-to-teacher ratio is 16.2:1. The school has 22.3 full-time-equivalent teachers. Across elementary schools in Alaska, the average ratio is 15.3:1. Federal data show 62% of students (224) are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The 45% average for public schools in Matanuska-Susitna Borough is 17 points lower.
A school with Big Lake Elementary's lunch-eligibility share in Alaska is predicted to score 32.0%. Big Lake Elementary scores 40.9%, 8.9 points above that line.
In Matanuska-Susitna Borough, where the school is located, the median household earns about $94,031 a year, roughly 24% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 7%. Public schools in Matanuska-Susitna Borough number 49, with about 19,495 students.
Houston Middle School, about 3.6 miles away, is the closest public school. Within five miles of Big Lake Elementary, there are 3 other public schools. Big Lake Elementary is 3rd of 6 nearby schools by average proficiency rate.
Under the NCES locale system, Big Lake Elementary is Rural: Distant.
Enrollment was 362 in 2024-25. In 2020-21, it was 315. The ratio was 12.6:1 in 2020-21 and 16.2:1 in 2024-25.
Use the discussion section to ask about homework, tutoring, and testing dates at Big Lake Elementary. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
Matanuska-Susitna Borough at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
112,988
Census ACS
Median income
$94,031
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
49
19,495 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District
- Mat-Su Central SchoolCombined · 2,780 students
- Colony High SchoolHigh · 1,046 students
- Wasilla High SchoolHigh · 816 students
- Colony Middle SchoolElementary · 771 students
- Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High SchoolHigh · 705 students
- Teeland Middle SchoolElementary · 643 students
Nearby schools
- Houston Middle School3.6 mi · 318
- Houston High School3.9 mi · 337
- Joe Redington Senior Jr/Sr High School4.6 mi · 497
- DENA'INA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL5.0 mi · 396
- American Charter Academy6.8 mi · 193
- Goose Bay Elementary6.8 mi · 305
Frequently asked questions
About Big Lake ElementaryHow large is Big Lake Elementary?
Big Lake Elementary enrolls approximately 362 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does Big Lake Elementary serve?
Big Lake Elementary serves grades PK-05.
How many students per teacher at Big Lake Elementary?
Approximately 16.2:1 students per teacher at Big Lake Elementary.
How diverse is Big Lake Elementary?
Big Lake Elementary reports a student body of 61% White, 8% Hispanic, 1% Black, 1% Asian, 18% Two or more.
What district is Big Lake Elementary in?
Big Lake Elementary is part of Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.