Enrollment
187
Elementary
DISTRICT 297 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 261644005336
Palmer School
309 PALMER ST NE, GRAND RAPIDS, MI 49505 · (616) 819-2929 · Kent County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL187 STUDENTS
D
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 5% of Michigan public elementary schools
- FTest 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
17.6:1
11 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.0:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
79%
147 students
DISTRICT 71% · 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 | 31 | 17% |
| Grade 1 | 27 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 25 | 13% |
| Grade 3 | 38 | 20% |
| Grade 4 | 33 | 18% |
| Grade 5 | 33 | 18% |
This year's kindergarten class (31) is 6% smaller than its 5th grade class (33).
Student demographics
75%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 70% · 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
22.8%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
22.2%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 23 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 22 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
22.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
31.5%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-9.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 23% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 31% 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 Palmer School
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palmer School this school | 187 | 78.6% | 22.5% |
| Cavanaugh School LANSING | 245 | 80.8% | 44.9% |
| Arbor Academy BATTLE CREEK | 154 | 83.1% | N/A |
| Meryl S Colt Early Childhood Education Center LANSING | 184 | 73.9% | N/A |
| Brookside Elementary GRAND RAPIDS | 254 | 74.8% | N/A |
| Ford Early Learning Center YPSILANTI | 233 | 73.4% | 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 Palmer School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Kent County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 22.5% | #1,048 of 1,085 | #77 of 79 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 22.2% | #1,024 of 1,072 | #77 of 79 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 22.8% | #1,086 of 1,139 | #79 of 82 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 187 | #1,451 of 1,630 | #107 of 115 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 78.6% | #391 of 1,563 | #35 of 114 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -19.0% | #258 of 979 | #26 of 80 |
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
187
+22 (+13%) vs 2020
-53% since 1990-91, when it was 401
Student : Teacher
17.6:1
was 13.8:1
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 | 187 | 10.6 | 17.6:1 | 79% (147) |
| 2023-24 | 184 | 11.7 | 15.7:1 | 86% (158) |
| 2022-23 | 178 | 11.9 | 15.0:1 | 85% (151) |
| 2020-21 | 165 | 12 | 13.8:1 | 90% (148) |
| 2017-18 | 231 | 15.5 | 14.9:1 | 87% (201) |
| 2015-16 | 271 | 13 | 20.9:1 | 89% (241) |
| 2010-11 | 287 | 17 | 16.9:1 | 90% (259) |
| 2000-01 | 404 | 16 | 25.3:1 | 69% (278) |
| 1990-91 | 401 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Palmer School.
Since 2017-18: students down 19% (231 to 187); teachers down 32% (15.5 to 10.6).
About Palmer School
Palmer School operates as a small elementary school in GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan. Enrollment in 2024-25 was 187 students in pre-K through 5. Against the 369-student average for elementary schools in Michigan, enrollment here is 49% lower.
Palmer School is one of the 50 schools that make up Grand Rapids Public Schools (13,903 students in total).
Federal enrollment data show Black students as the largest group at Palmer School, at 32%. Other reported shares: 27% Hispanic, 22% White, 16% multiracial, and 2% Asian. Kent County's residents are about 10% Black, 22 points below the school's share. Pick two students at random and there is a 75% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
The school has about 17.6 students per teacher and 10.6 full-time-equivalent teachers. This ratio sits 1.8 above the 15.8:1 average for elementary schools in Michigan. Federal records put free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at 79%. The gap from the 47% average for public schools in Kent County is 32 points.
The allk12 Grade for Palmer School is D. Compared with Michigan public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 5% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 31.5% at Palmer School; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 22.5%.
In Kent County (population about 663,150), the median household income is $82,631, roughly 41% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 6%. There are 239 public schools in Kent County, enrolling about 97,253 students in all.
The nearest other public school, Center for Economicology, is about 0.2 miles away. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools.
NCES lists the school's locale as City: Mid-size. That means it sits inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Enrollment is up 13% from 2020-21, when Palmer School had 165 students, to 2024-25, when it had 187. Its ratio of students to teachers was 13.8:1 in 2020-21, and 17.6:1 in 2024-25.
To ask about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs, start a discussion on this page. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Kent County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
663,150
Census ACS
Median income
$82,631
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
41%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
239
97,253 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Grand Rapids Public Schools
- City High Middle SchoolHigh · 955 students
- Union High SchoolHigh · 881 students
- Harrison Park AcademyElementary · 708 students
- Southwest Elementary Academia BilingueElementary · 661 students
- Grand Rapids University Preparatory AcademyHigh · 494 students
- Burton Middle SchoolMiddle · 488 students
Other schools in GRAND RAPIDS
- East Kentwood High SchoolHigh · 2,068 students
- Northern High SchoolHigh · 1,088 students
- PrepNet Virtual AcademyCombined · 1,080 students
- Northview High SchoolHigh · 1,078 students
- Central High SchoolHigh · 999 students
- City High Middle SchoolHigh · 955 students
Nearby schools
- Center for Economicology0.2 mi · 60
- City High Middle School0.2 mi · 955
- Riverside Middle School0.6 mi · 227
- Kent Hills Elementary0.7 mi · 370
- East Leonard Elementary0.8 mi · 174
- Wellspring Preparatory High School1.1 mi · 267
Frequently asked questions
About Palmer SchoolHow many students attend Palmer School?
Palmer School enrolls approximately 187 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does Palmer School serve?
Palmer School serves grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Palmer School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Palmer School is approximately 17.6:1 (11 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at Palmer School?
Student demographics at Palmer School are roughly 22% White, 27% Hispanic, 32% Black, 2% Asian, 16% Two or more.
What district is Palmer School in?
Palmer School is part of Grand Rapids Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.