Swanson Elementary

In Palmer, Alaska, part of Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Swanson Elementary is an elementary school. Enrollment is 348 students in 2024-25, and the school serves pre-K through 2. The average for elementary schools in Alaska is about 277 students, so this school is 26% bigger than average.

Across its 49 schools, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District enrolls 19,495 students. Swanson Elementary is one of those schools.

Swanson Elementary is 62% White by enrollment. Other reported shares: 18% multiracial, 9% Hispanic, and 8% Native American. That compares with about 77% White among all Matanuska-Susitna Borough residents. Pick two students at random and there is a 56% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.

The school reports 26 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 13.4 students per teacher. The school has fewer students per teacher than the 15.3:1 average for elementary schools in Alaska. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 48%. For comparison, public schools in Matanuska-Susitna Borough average 45%.

In the county around the school, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, the median household income is $94,031, about 24% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 7% of residents are in poverty. Matanuska-Susitna Borough is home to 49 public schools and about 19,495 public school students.

Sherrod Elementary is the public school closest to Swanson Elementary, about 0.1 miles away. The count of other public schools within five miles is at least 8.

Federal records code the school's setting as Suburb: Small.

The student count changed little between 2020-21 (344) and 2024-25 (348).

Conversations here can range across school safety, transportation, and start times. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.