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What's something Countryside Academy Elementary does better than most schools?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
384
Elementary
DISTRICT 385 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·COUNTRYSIDE ACADEMY·NCES 260014201700
Countryside Academy Elementary
4722 MEADOWBROOK RD, BENTON HARBOR, MI 49022 · (269) 944-3319 · Berrien County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY41-RURALCHARTERTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL384 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
16.3:1
24 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.1:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
83%
319 students
DISTRICT 79% · STATE 55%
Community
1
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 | 82 | 21% |
| Grade 1 | 75 | 20% |
| Grade 2 | 52 | 14% |
| Grade 3 | 59 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 57 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 59 | 15% |
Student demographics
58%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · 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
35.7%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
30.3%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 36 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 30 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
33.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
29.5%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+3.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 33% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 29% 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 →
Where Countryside Academy Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Berrien County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.0% | #880 of 1,085 | #15 of 18 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 30.3% | #898 of 1,072 | #15 of 17 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 35.7% | #855 of 1,139 | #14 of 19 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 384 | #726 of 1,630 | #9 of 30 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 16.3:1 | #805 of 1,424 | #13 of 23 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 57.9% | #322 of 1,424 | #5 of 23 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 83.1% | #309 of 1,563 | #5 of 26 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +6.4% | #251 of 440 | #3 of 10 |
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.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
384
-11 (-3%) vs 2020
+42% since 2010-11, when it was 271
Student : Teacher
16.3:1
was 18.8:1
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 | 384 | 23.5 | 16.3:1 | 83% (319) |
| 2023-24 | 380 | 19.6 | 19.4:1 | 90% (343) |
| 2022-23 | 406 | 19 | 21.4:1 | 93% (377) |
| 2020-21 | 395 | 21 | 18.8:1 | 93% (367) |
| 2017-18 | 361 | 15.9 | 22.7:1 | 86% (312) |
| 2015-16 | 352 | 17 | 20.7:1 | 87% (305) |
| 2010-11 | 271 | 15 | 18.1:1 | 81% (219) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Countryside Academy Elementary.
About Countryside Academy Elementary
Countryside Academy Elementary operates as a medium-sized elementary school in BENTON HARBOR, Michigan. The school's 384 students are in kindergarten through 5.
Besides Countryside Academy Elementary, Countryside Academy runs 1 other school. The district enrolls 770 students.
Black students make up a majority at Countryside Academy Elementary, at 55%. Next come 33% Hispanic, 7% White, and 5% multiracial. That compares with about 13% Black among all Berrien County residents. The school's diversity index is 58%, meaning two students picked at random have a 58% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
The school reports 23.5 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 16.3 students per teacher. For comparison, elementary schools in Michigan average 15.8:1. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility covers 83% of students. The gap from the 55% average for public schools in Berrien County is 28 points.
A school with Countryside Academy Elementary's lunch-eligibility share in Michigan is predicted to score 29.5%. Countryside Academy Elementary scores 33.0%, 3.5 points above that line.
Census estimates describe Berrien County this way: the median household income is $65,425, about 31% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 11%. In all, Berrien County has 75 public schools and roughly 21,027 students.
Nearby, Countryside Academy MiddleHigh School is less than a tenth of a mile away. Within five miles of Countryside Academy Elementary, there are 3 other public schools.
Its location is classified as Rural: Fringe by the National Center for Education Statistics. Countryside Academy Elementary is run as a public charter school.
Enrollment is down 3% from 2020-21, when Countryside Academy Elementary had 395 students, to 2024-25, when it had 384. Over the same period, the student-to-teacher ratio fell to 16.3:1, from 18.8:1.
Families, students, and staff can use this page to discuss enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Countryside Academy Elementary. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
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 Countryside Academy
- Countryside Academy MiddleHigh SchoolCombined · 386 students
Other schools in BENTON HARBOR
- Benton Harbor High SchoolHigh · 469 students
- Benton Harbor Charter School AcademyCombined · 418 students
- Countryside Academy MiddleHigh SchoolCombined · 386 students
- Fair Plain Middle SchoolMiddle · 240 students
- Martin Luther King Jr ElementaryElementary · 229 students
- Mildred C Wells Preparatory AcademyElementary · 227 students
Nearby schools
- Countryside Academy MiddleHigh School0.1 mi · 386
- River School3.8 mi · 70
- Fair Plain East Elementary4.9 mi · 150
- Discovery Enrichment Center5.3 mi · 80
- Martin Luther King Jr Elementary5.3 mi · 229
- Career and Alternative Pathways to Education Center5.5 mi · 59
Frequently asked questions
About Countryside Academy ElementaryWhat is the total enrollment at Countryside Academy Elementary?
Countryside Academy Elementary enrolls approximately 384 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does Countryside Academy Elementary serve?
Countryside Academy Elementary serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Countryside Academy Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Countryside Academy Elementary is approximately 16.3:1 (24 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Countryside Academy Elementary?
At Countryside Academy Elementary, the student body is approximately 7% White, 33% Hispanic, 55% Black, 5% Two or more.
Who oversees Countryside Academy Elementary?
Countryside Academy Elementary is overseen by Countryside Academy in Berrien County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.