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Teachers: what resource would make the biggest difference at Kalkaska Elementary School this year?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
517
Elementary
DISTRICT 294 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·KALKASKA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 262005005688
Kalkaska Elementary School
309 N BIRCH ST, KALKASKA, MI 49646 · (231) 258-8629 · Kalkaska County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL517 STUDENTS
C-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 16% of Michigan public elementary schools
- C-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Michigan public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
34 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.4:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
62%
322 students
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 55%
Community
4
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 | 106 | 21% |
| Grade 1 | 69 | 13% |
| Grade 2 | 87 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 94 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 84 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 77 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (106) is 38% larger than its 5th grade class (77).
Student demographics
9%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 12% · 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 Kalkaska Public Schools. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
M-STEP 2024-25 . % Advanced + ProficientEnglish Language Arts
31.7%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
31.9%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 32 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 32 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
32.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.7%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-6.5pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 32% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 39% 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 Kalkaska Elementary School
Kalkaska Elementary School's state test result (32.2% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kalkaska Elementary School this school | 517 | 62.3% | 32.2% |
| Haigh Elementary School DEARBORN | 552 | 60.9% | 55.9% |
| Lincoln Elementary School CADILLAC | 480 | 64.0% | 36.1% |
| GT Norman Elementary School REED CITY | 540 | 59.1% | 35.4% |
| Besser Elementary School ALPENA | 470 | 59.4% | 43.2% |
| Surline Elementary School WEST BRANCH | 569 | 66.8% | 35.5% |
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 Kalkaska Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 32.2% | #898 of 1,085 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 31.9% | #871 of 1,072 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 31.7% | #954 of 1,139 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 517 | #236 of 1,630 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.2:1 | #528 of 1,424 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 9.0% | #1,312 of 1,424 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 62.3% | #648 of 1,563 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +38.6% | #34 of 440 |
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
517
+146 (+39%) vs 2020
-9% since 1990-91, when it was 568
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
was 13.7:1
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 | 517 | 34 | 15.2:1 | 62% (322) |
| 2023-24 | 501 | 43.6 | 11.5:1 | 68% (339) |
| 2022-23 | 354 | 29.8 | 11.9:1 | 72% (254) |
| 2020-21 | 371 | 27 | 13.7:1 | 80% (297) |
| 2017-18 | 373 | 26.1 | 14.3:1 | 67% (250) |
| 2015-16 | 410 | 26 | 15.8:1 | 51% (211) |
| 2010-11 | 370 | 27 | 13.7:1 | 54% (200) |
| 2000-01 | 450 | 26 | 17.3:1 | 47% (213) |
| 1990-91 | 568 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Kalkaska Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students up 39% (373 to 517); teachers up 30% (26.1 to 34).
About Kalkaska Elementary School
Kalkaska Elementary School is an elementary school in KALKASKA, Michigan, and it is part of Kalkaska Public Schools. Students in pre-K through 5 attend the school, which enrolls 517 students. The average among elementary schools in Michigan is roughly 369 students; this school is 40% above that.
The district for Kalkaska Elementary School is Kalkaska Public Schools, with 4 schools and 1,333 students.
White students are the large majority at Kalkaska Elementary School, with 95% of enrollment. The remaining shares are 2% Hispanic. The White share in Kalkaska County as a whole is similar, at about 93%. By the diversity index, Kalkaska Elementary School comes in at 9%.
Federal data list 34 full-time-equivalent teachers at Kalkaska Elementary School in 2024-25, for a ratio of 15.2:1. Elementary schools in Michigan have a similar average ratio of 15.8:1. The lunch program counts 62% of students at Kalkaska Elementary School as eligible for free or reduced-price meals.
Kalkaska Elementary School is graded C- by allk12, scoring above 16% of Michigan public elementary schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 38.7% at Kalkaska Elementary School; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 32.2%.
Among Kalkaska County residents, median household income is about $68,578, about 19% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 8% of residents are in poverty. Kalkaska Elementary School is one of 8 public schools in Kalkaska County, which together enroll about 1,728 students.
The closest other public school is Kalkaska High School, about 0.2 miles away. Around the school, 2 other public schools are within five miles.
The federal government classifies Kalkaska Elementary School's location as Rural: Distant.
Federal counts put enrollment at 371 in 2020-21 and 517 in 2024-25, a 39% increase. Staffing shifted too: the ratio moved from 13.7:1 to 15.2:1.
Discussion on this page can cover science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Kalkaska County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
18,239
Census ACS
Median income
$68,578
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
19%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
8
1,728 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Kalkaska Public Schools
- Kalkaska High SchoolHigh · 439 students
- Kalkaska Middle SchoolMiddle · 307 students
- Rapid City Elementary SchoolElementary · 70 students
- Cherry Street Intermediate SchoolCombined
Other schools in KALKASKA
- Kalkaska High SchoolHigh · 439 students
- Kalkaska Middle SchoolMiddle · 307 students
- Crawford SchoolElementary · 46 students
- Cherry Street Intermediate SchoolCombined
Nearby schools
- Kalkaska High School0.2 mi · 439
- Kalkaska Middle School0.3 mi · 307
- Crawford School6.3 mi · 46
- Rapid City Elementary School8.1 mi · 70
- Mill Creek Academy10.4 mi · 233
- Forest Area Middle School11.1 mi · 193
Frequently asked questions
About Kalkaska Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Kalkaska Elementary School?
Kalkaska Elementary School enrolls approximately 517 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Kalkaska Elementary School serve?
Kalkaska Elementary School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Kalkaska Elementary School?
Approximately 15.2:1 students per teacher at Kalkaska Elementary School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Kalkaska Elementary School?
At Kalkaska Elementary School, the student body is approximately 95% White, 2% Hispanic, 1% Black, 0% Asian, 2% Two or more.
Is Kalkaska Elementary School public or private?
Kalkaska Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Kalkaska Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.