Enrollment
166
Elementary
DISTRICT 237 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·IONIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 261925000852
Emerson School
645 HACKETT ST, IONIA, MI 48846 · (616) 527-8018 · Ionia County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL166 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.1:1
12 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.2:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
78%
130 students
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 55%
Community
0
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 | 27 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 27 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 25 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 25 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 31 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 31 | 19% |
This year's kindergarten class (27) is 13% smaller than its 5th grade class (31).
Student demographics
44%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 31% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within Ionia Public Schools. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
M-STEP 2024-25 . % Advanced + ProficientEnglish Language Arts
46.9%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
25.8%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 47 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 26 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
38.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
31.6%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+6.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 38% 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 Emerson School
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson School this school | 166 | 78.3% | 38.2% |
| Coloma Intermediate School COLOMA | 175 | 78.9% | 23.3% |
| Anderson Elementary School BRONSON | 216 | 73.6% | N/A |
| Carrie Knause Early Childhood Learning Center SAINT LOUIS | 206 | 69.4% | N/A |
| Prairie Elementary School ADRIAN | 187 | 78.6% | N/A |
| Muskegon Montessori Academy for Environmental Change NORTON SHORES | 154 | 80.5% | N/A |
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 Emerson School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Ionia County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 38.2% | #758 of 1,085 | #7 of 9 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 25.8% | #978 of 1,072 | #9 of 9 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 46.9% | #585 of 1,139 | #3 of 10 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 166 | #1,486 of 1,630 | #12 of 15 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 78.3% | #394 of 1,563 | #1 of 12 |
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
166
-7 (-4%) vs 2020
-33% since 2000-01, when it was 249
Student : Teacher
14.1:1
was 13.3:1
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 | 166 | 11.8 | 14.1:1 | 78% (130) |
| 2023-24 | 171 | 11.8 | 14.5:1 | 71% (121) |
| 2022-23 | 172 | 14 | 12.3:1 | 72% (124) |
| 2020-21 | 173 | 13 | 13.3:1 | 82% (141) |
| 2017-18 | 162 | 9.7 | 16.7:1 | 83% (135) |
| 2015-16 | 169 | 9 | 18.8:1 | 67% (113) |
| 2010-11 | 160 | 9 | 17.8:1 | 92% (147) |
| 2000-01 | 249 | 14 | 17.8:1 | 57% (143) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Emerson School.
Since 2017-18: students up 2% (162 to 166); teachers up 22% (9.7 to 11.8).
About Emerson School
In IONIA, Michigan, part of Ionia County, Emerson School is an elementary school. The school offers pre-K through 5 and enrolls 166 students. That puts enrollment 55% below the 369-student average for elementary schools in Michigan.
Ionia Public Schools counts 2,659 students in its 8 schools, and Emerson School is one of them.
More than half of the students at Emerson School are White (72%). The rest of enrollment is 21% Hispanic and 6% multiracial. Census estimates put the White share of Ionia County's population at about 87%. The diversity index for Emerson School is 44%. For US public schools as a whole it is 70%.
A staff of 11.8 full-time-equivalent teachers puts the student-to-teacher ratio at 14.1:1. Compared with the 15.8:1 average for elementary schools in Michigan, this school's ratio is lower. By family income, 78% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Among public schools in Ionia County, the average eligibility rate is 52%.
Test results at Emerson School are 6.6 points above what its free or reduced-price lunch share predicts (38.2% actual, 31.6% predicted).
American Community Survey estimates for Ionia County show that median household income comes to about $75,611, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 19% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 7%. The county's public schools total 30, with about 10,506 students.
The closest school to Emerson School is Ionia Middle School, located about 0.6 miles away. The count of other public schools within five miles is at least 8.
Under the NCES locale system, Emerson School is Town: Distant.
Enrollment decreased by 4% across 4 years, from 173 in 2020-21 to 166 in 2024-25.
Anyone can start a thread about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures at Emerson School. Teachers and staff are welcome to share updates too.
Ionia County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
66,574
Census ACS
Median income
$75,611
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
19%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
30
10,506 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Ionia Public Schools
- Ionia High SchoolHigh · 774 students
- Ionia Middle SchoolMiddle · 629 students
- AA Rather SchoolElementary · 308 students
- Jefferson SchoolElementary · 272 students
- RB Boyce Elementary SchoolElementary · 254 students
- Twin Rivers Elementary SchoolElementary · 183 students
Other schools in IONIA
- Ionia High SchoolHigh · 774 students
- Ionia Middle SchoolMiddle · 629 students
- AA Rather SchoolElementary · 308 students
- Jefferson SchoolElementary · 272 students
- RB Boyce Elementary SchoolElementary · 254 students
- Freedom Acres SchoolCombined · 107 students
Other Emerson schools
4 other US public schools in 4 states are named Emerson. Emerson School is the 4th largest of the 5.
- Emerson SchoolOWOSSO, MI · 421 students
- Emerson SchoolSALT LAKE CITY, UT · 395 students
- Emerson SchoolButte, MT · 389 students
- Emerson SchoolPortland, OR · 130 students
Nearby schools
- Ionia Middle School0.6 mi · 629
- Jefferson School1.1 mi · 272
- Ionia Maximum Correctional Facility1.3 mi · 3
- Handlon Correctional Facility1.5 mi · 2
- Bellamy Creek Correctional Facility1.6 mi · 9
- Douglas R Welch High School2.1 mi · 73
Frequently asked questions
About Emerson SchoolHow large is Emerson School?
Emerson School enrolls approximately 166 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Emerson School serve?
Emerson School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Emerson School?
Approximately 14.1:1 students per teacher at Emerson School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Emerson School?
At Emerson School, the student body is approximately 72% White, 21% Hispanic, 1% Black, 6% Two or more.
Who oversees Emerson School?
Emerson School is overseen by Ionia Public Schools in Ionia County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.