Aspen Ridge Elementary School

As a sprawling K-5 school in ISHPEMING, Michigan, Aspen Ridge Elementary School educates 721 students from grades pre-K through 8, part of NICE Community School District. Compared to the state average of about 369 students per school, that is 95% larger than typical.

NICE Community School District runs 2 schools in total, collectively educating 1,104 students. Aspen Ridge Elementary School is one of those campuses.

Looking at the student body, Aspen Ridge Elementary School reports that the student body is overwhelmingly White (96%).

On the income-and-resources front, On paper, Aspen Ridge Elementary School has 57 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 12.7:1. The state averages around 15.8:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Roughly 37% of students at Aspen Ridge Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

After controlling for student poverty, Aspen Ridge Elementary School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 50.1%, the actual is 47.6%, a residual of -2.4 points.

In the broader community, census data for Marquette County shows the typical household earns roughly $65,429 per year, 37% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 7%. In all, Marquette County runs 25 public schools (combined enrollment of about 7,657 students), of which Aspen Ridge Elementary School is one.

Nearest neighbor: Westwood High School, around 0.2 miles off. Within five miles, there are 5 other public schools. On composite proficiency, Aspen Ridge Elementary School comes 3rd of 4 in the immediate cluster, ahead of the nearby-schools average of 47.5%.

The campus sits in a low-density setting.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Aspen Ridge Elementary School has ticked down 15%, going from 847 students in 2018 to 721 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 15.6:1 in 2018 to 12.7:1 today.

Inside the community feed, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.