South Maple Elementary School

South Maple Elementary School is an elementary-level community of moderately sized scale in GAYLORD, Michigan, run under Gaylord Community Schools, caters to 385 students in grades pre-K through 3.

South Maple Elementary School is one of 5 schools operated by Gaylord Community Schools, a district that works with 2,747 students overall.

For racial and ethnic makeup, South Maple Elementary School reports that nearly all students (89%) are White; the rest looks like 6% multiracial, 4% Hispanic.

Looking at school resources, On paper, South Maple Elementary School has 28 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 13.8:1. The state averages around 15.8:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Around 64% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is north of Otsego County's rate of about 55%.

After controlling for student poverty, South Maple Elementary School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 38.1%; this one delivers 34.9%.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for Otsego County indicate the typical household earns roughly $68,183 per year, about 26% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 5%. In all, Otsego County runs 8 public schools (combined enrollment of about 3,337 students), of which South Maple Elementary School is one.

The closest other public school is Gaylord Middle School, roughly 0.1 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 4 other public schools cluster around South Maple Elementary School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts South Maple Elementary School at 4th of 5; the average score across the group is 42.9%.

Geographically, the school is in a town-center area.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at South Maple Elementary School has fell 11%, going from 435 students in 2018 to 385 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share fell from 93% to 89%. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 20.8:1 in 2018 to 13.8:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, recent activity here tends to focus on science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.