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What's the one class at Ballard Elementary School every student should take?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
516
Elementary
DISTRICT 365 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NILES COMMUNITY SCHOOLS·NCES 262556006203
Ballard Elementary School
1601 W CHICAGO RD, NILES, MI 49120 · (269) 683-5900 · Berrien County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL516 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
18.5:1
28 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.2:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
78%
401 students
DISTRICT 62% · STATE 55%
Community
5
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 88 | 17% |
| Grade 1 | 99 | 19% |
| Grade 2 | 72 | 14% |
| Grade 3 | 83 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 93 | 18% |
| Grade 5 | 81 | 16% |
This year's kindergarten class (88) is 9% larger than its 5th grade class (81).
Student demographics
59%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 53% · STATE 56% · 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
M-STEP 2024-25 . % Advanced + ProficientEnglish Language Arts
43.0%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
36.3%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 43 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 36 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Michigan schools, those numbers are about 48 and 45.
Source: M-STEP. 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
36.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
31.9%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+4.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 36% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 32% typical for Michigan 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 Michigan'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 →
Schools most like Ballard Elementary School
Ballard Elementary School's state test result (36.4% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ballard Elementary School this school | 516 | 77.7% | 36.4% |
| West Utica Elementary School SHELBY TOWNSHIP | 522 | 79.9% | 23.3% |
| Clarence Randall Elem School TAYLOR | 492 | 83.9% | 25.1% |
| Kolb Elementary School BAY CITY | 451 | 72.5% | 32.6% |
| Comstock Elementary School KALAMAZOO | 597 | 74.9% | N/A |
| Oakridge Lower Elementary School MUSKEGON | 549 | 72.5% | 32.1% |
Matched among Michigan elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Ballard Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Berrien County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 36.4% | #799 of 1,085 | #13 of 18 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 36.3% | #764 of 1,072 | #14 of 17 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 43.0% | #696 of 1,139 | #12 of 19 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 516 | #239 of 1,630 | #1 of 30 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 18.5:1 | #1,221 of 1,424 | #19 of 23 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 58.7% | #299 of 1,424 | #4 of 23 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 77.7% | #399 of 1,563 | #7 of 26 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -12.4% | #500 of 979 | #6 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. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
516
-55 (-10%) vs 2020
-32% since 1990-91, when it was 755
Student : Teacher
18.5:1
was 19.0:1
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 | 516 | 27.9 | 18.5:1 | 78% (401) |
| 2023-24 | 576 | 27.9 | 20.6:1 | 80% (461) |
| 2022-23 | 538 | 25.5 | 21.1:1 | 75% (405) |
| 2020-21 | 571 | 30 | 19.0:1 | 71% (405) |
| 2017-18 | 589 | 29.1 | 20.2:1 | 72% (426) |
| 2015-16 | 615 | 33 | 18.6:1 | 77% (471) |
| 2010-11 | 810 | 38 | 21.3:1 | 54% (439) |
| 2000-01 | 774 | 40 | 19.4:1 | 43% (332) |
| 1990-91 | 755 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Ballard Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 12% (589 to 516); teachers down 4% (29.1 to 27.9).
About Ballard Elementary School
Ballard Elementary School is a medium-sized elementary school in NILES, Michigan. The school counts 516 students across pre-K through 5. The school's enrollment is 40% bigger than the 369 average for elementary schools in Michigan.
Ballard Elementary School is run by Niles Community Schools, whose 11 schools enroll 3,107 students.
At 60%, White students outnumber all other groups at Ballard Elementary School combined. The remaining students are 15% Hispanic, 12% Black, and 11% multiracial. Among people living in Berrien County, the White share is about 74%. Ballard Elementary School has a diversity index of 59%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
Dividing enrollment by its 27.9 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 18.5:1. The average ratio among elementary schools in Michigan is 15.8:1, lower than at this school. Ballard Elementary School reports 78% of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals. Public schools in Berrien County average 55%.
On BeatsExpectations, Ballard Elementary School is 4.5 points above its prediction, a result in the middle 80% of Michigan schools.
Across Berrien County, median household income is about $65,425, about 31% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 11%. Ballard Elementary School is among the 75 public schools in Berrien County.
The nearest other public school, Brandywine Innovation Academy, is about 1.7 miles away. In all, at least 8 other public schools sit within five miles of Ballard Elementary School.
Federal data place Ballard Elementary School in the City: Small locale, which means it is inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
The number of students declined from 571 to 516 over 4 years.
Conversations here can range across science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Berrien County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
153,288
Census ACS
Median income
$65,425
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
31%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
75
21,027 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Niles Community Schools
- Niles Senior High SchoolHigh · 828 students
- HowardEllis Elementary SchoolElementary · 529 students
- Ring Lardner Middle SchoolMiddle · 510 students
- Eastside Connections SchoolElementary · 403 students
- Niles Cedar LaneHigh · 134 students
- WAY NilesHigh · 95 students
Other schools in NILES
- Niles Senior High SchoolHigh · 828 students
- HowardEllis Elementary SchoolElementary · 529 students
- Ring Lardner Middle SchoolMiddle · 510 students
- Eastside Connections SchoolElementary · 403 students
- Brandywine Elementary SchoolElementary · 379 students
- Brandywine Senior High SchoolHigh · 366 students
Other Ballard Elementary schools
4 other US public schools in 5 states are named Ballard Elementary. Ballard Elementary School is the largest of the 5.
- BALLARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLBRADENTON, FL · 421 students
- BALLARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLWILTON, NY · 311 students
- Ballard ElementarySolvang, CA · 113 students
- BALLARD ELEM.BUTLER, MO · 57 students
Nearby schools
- Brandywine Innovation Academy1.7 mi · 69
- Niles Comm Schools Adult Education1.7 mi · 24
- Southside Special Educ School2.1 mi · 37
- Eastside Connections School2.3 mi · 403
- Niles Senior High School2.5 mi · 828
- Niles Virtual School2.6 mi · 18
Frequently asked questions
About Ballard Elementary SchoolHow large is Ballard Elementary School?
Ballard Elementary School enrolls approximately 516 students in grades PK-05.
Is Ballard Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Ballard Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Ballard Elementary School have?
Ballard Elementary School employs 28 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 18.5:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Ballard Elementary School?
At Ballard Elementary School, the student body is approximately 60% White, 15% Hispanic, 12% Black, 1% Asian, 11% Two or more.
What district is Ballard Elementary School in?
Ballard Elementary School is part of Niles Community Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.