Cherryland Middle School

Cherryland Middle School is a close-knit middle-grades school in ELK RAPIDS, Michigan, part of Elk Rapids Schools. The school instructs 277 students in grades 6 through 8. Enrollment runs roughly 45% below the state mean of about 502.

Elk Rapids Schools runs 4 schools in total, collectively educating 947 students. Cherryland Middle School is one of those campuses.

In terms of who attends, Cherryland Middle School lists that the student body is overwhelmingly White (90%); the rest consists of 5% Hispanic, 4% Native American. That composition is broadly in line with Antrim County as a whole.

On the resource side, Cherryland Middle School lists 16 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 17.3:1. That tracks the state average closely. An estimated 22% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Antrim County (around 53%), the school's rate is south of typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Cherryland Middle School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 56.5%; this one delivers 52.6%.

Zooming out to the county, the surrounding county (Antrim County) records that median household income runs about $72,054, 34% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Cherryland Middle School is one of 13 public schools in Antrim County (combined enrollment of about 2,700 students).

Elk Rapids High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 3 other public schools.

Cherryland Middle School operates from an outlying location.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Cherryland Middle School has shrank 15%, going from 327 students in 2018 to 277 in 2025. Class-load math has pulled in: from 21.4:1 in 2018 to 17.3:1 in 2025.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.