Lakeside School

Lakeside School is a moderately sized primary school in GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan, run under East Grand Rapids Public Schools. The school teaches 453 students in grades K through 5. That puts it 23% bigger than the typical public school in Michigan, which averages around 369 students.

Across the 5 schools in East Grand Rapids Public Schools (2,984 students total), Lakeside School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On the student-mix side, Lakeside School logs that nearly all students (83%) are White. Beyond that, the school lists 8% multiracial, 8% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 73% White, putting the school's mix visibly more White than the area baseline.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 26 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 17.2:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 15.8:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. An estimated 8% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is noticeably below Kent County's rate of about 47%.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Lakeside School sits in the top 10% of Michigan schools after the BeatsExpectations adjustment. Predicted proficiency for the school's FRL share is roughly 63.0%; actual is 78.5%, +15.6 points clear of the demographic baseline.

In the broader community, Kent County reports that median household earnings sit near $82,631, roughly 41% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Kent County's 239 public schools (combined enrollment of about 97,253 students), Lakeside School is one campus in the mix.

East Grand Rapids Middle School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.4 miles from this campus. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, Lakeside School comes 1st of 4 in the immediate cluster, higher than the nearby-schools average of 75.6%.

The campus sits in a commuter-belt setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count ticked up 5%: 432 students in 2018 compared to 453 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 95% to 83% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 18.6:1 in 2018 to 17.2:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.