Muessel Elementary School

Set in South Bend, Indiana, Muessel Elementary School is a close-knit K-5 school, part of South Bend Community School Corp. It serves 295 students across grades pre-K through 5. By comparison, Indiana's public schools average about 436 students each, so Muessel Elementary School sits 32% leaner than that benchmark.

Muessel Elementary School is one of 29 schools operated by South Bend Community School Corp, a district that educates 13,585 students overall.

Looking at the student body, Muessel Elementary School records that 61% of the student body identifies as Black. Beyond that, the school records 15% White, 12% multiracial, 12% Hispanic. By comparison, St. Joseph County as a whole is about 13% Black, so the school skews noticeably more Black than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, Muessel Elementary School lists 25 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 11.6:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 15.5:1 average. An estimated 69% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against St. Joseph County (around 46%), the school's rate is north of typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), On a poverty-adjusted basis, Muessel Elementary School sits in the bottom 10% statewide. Predicted proficiency from the FRL regression is roughly 26.9%; actual is 5.3%, a gap of -21.5 points.

Around the school, census data for St. Joseph County shows median household earnings sit near $66,868, roughly 34% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. In all, St. Joseph County runs 73 public schools (combined enrollment of about 35,614 students), of which Muessel Elementary School is one.

The closest other public school is Madison S.T.E.A.M. Academy, roughly 0.8 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Muessel Elementary School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Muessel Elementary School at 6th of 6; the average score across the group is 35.8%.

The campus sits in a metropolitan setting.

Over the past 7-year window. Over the past 7-year window, the student count decreased 22%: 378 students in 2018 compared to 295 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 21% to 12% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 22.2:1 in 2018 to 11.6:1 today.

On allk12, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.