Enrollment
302
Elementary
DISTRICT 443 · STATE 369
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·KENTWOOD PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 262034005718
Southwood Elementary
630 66TH ST SE, GRAND RAPIDS, MI 49548 · (616) 455-7230 · Kent County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL302 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
15.3:1
20 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.2:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
81%
245 students
DISTRICT 75% · 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 | 67 | 22% |
| Grade 1 | 53 | 18% |
| Grade 2 | 50 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 43 | 14% |
| Grade 4 | 40 | 13% |
| Grade 5 | 49 | 16% |
This year's kindergarten class (67) is 37% larger than its 5th grade class (49).
Student demographics
74%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 76% · 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
45.7%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
34.6%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 46 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 35 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
41.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
30.4%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+10.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 41% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 30% 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 Southwood Elementary
Southwood Elementary's state test result (41.0% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwood Elementary this school | 302 | 81.1% | 41.0% |
| Cavanaugh School LANSING | 245 | 80.8% | 44.9% |
| Townline Elementary GRAND RAPIDS | 320 | 83.1% | 31.8% |
| Gier Park School LANSING | 316 | 89.9% | 20.5% |
| Forest View School LANSING | 262 | 83.2% | N/A |
| Donelson Hills Elementary School WATERFORD | 392 | 79.8% | 31.3% |
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 Southwood Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Kent County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 41.0% | #694 of 1,085 | #59 of 79 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 34.6% | #819 of 1,072 | #69 of 79 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 45.7% | #617 of 1,139 | #55 of 82 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 302 | #1,082 of 1,630 | #78 of 115 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.3:1 | #568 of 1,424 | #38 of 105 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 73.8% | #22 of 1,424 | #8 of 105 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 81.1% | #347 of 1,563 | #33 of 114 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -9.3% | #610 of 979 | #56 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
302
-20 (-6%) vs 2020
-29% since 1990-91, when it was 423
Student : Teacher
15.3:1
was 12.4:1
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 | 302 | 19.7 | 15.3:1 | 81% (245) |
| 2023-24 | 301 | 18.4 | 16.4:1 | 84% (253) |
| 2022-23 | 332 | 19.4 | 17.1:1 | 84% (278) |
| 2020-21 | 322 | 26 | 12.4:1 | 88% (282) |
| 2017-18 | 333 | 17.5 | 19.0:1 | 85% (284) |
| 2015-16 | 336 | 13 | 25.9:1 | 84% (282) |
| 2010-11 | 309 | 16 | 19.3:1 | 73% (226) |
| 2000-01 | 384 | 21 | 18.3:1 | 38% (144) |
| 1990-91 | 423 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Southwood Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 9% (333 to 302); teachers up 13% (17.5 to 19.7).
About Southwood Elementary
Families in GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan, are served by Southwood Elementary, a small elementary school. The school teaches kindergarten through 5 and enrolls 302 students.
Kentwood Public Schools runs Southwood Elementary along with 15 other schools, enrolling 9,536 students in total.
Of every 100 students at Southwood Elementary, about 36 are White, the largest group. The remaining students are 26% Hispanic, 23% Black, 11% multiracial, and 5% Asian. Census figures show Kent County is about 73% White. On a 0 to 100 scale, the school's diversity index is 74, compared with 70 nationally.
Southwood Elementary has a student-to-teacher ratio of 15.3:1, with 19.7 full-time-equivalent teachers. The 15.8:1 average for elementary schools in Michigan is close to this figure. The school has 81% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Across public schools in Kent County, the average is 47%.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 30.4% at Southwood Elementary; the school's average proficiency rate across its state test results is 41.0%.
American Community Survey estimates for Kent County show that median household income comes to about $82,631, roughly 41% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Kent County counts 239 public schools with about 97,253 students.
Townline Elementary sits about 1.0 miles from Southwood Elementary. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. On state test proficiency, Southwood Elementary ranks 2nd in a group of 4 nearby schools.
NCES lists the school's locale as Suburb: Large. That means it sits in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
From 322 students in 2020-21, enrollment fell to 302 by 2024-25. From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the ratio increased from 12.4:1 to 15.3:1.
People who know Southwood Elementary can post here about homework, tutoring, and testing dates. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to post.
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 Kentwood Public Schools
- East Kentwood High SchoolHigh · 2,068 students
- Pinewood Middle SchoolMiddle · 842 students
- East Kentwood Freshman CampusHigh · 742 students
- Crestwood Middle SchoolMiddle · 700 students
- Discovery ElementaryElementary · 674 students
- Explorer ElementaryElementary · 556 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
Other Southwood Elementary schools
9 other US public schools in 9 states are named Southwood Elementary. Southwood Elementary is the 8th largest of the 10.
- Southwood ElementaryLexington, NC · 616 students
- SOUTHWOOD ELEMENTARYORLANDO, FL · 481 students
- Southwood Elementary SchoolWabash, IN · 458 students
- Southwood Elementary SchoolEnumclaw, WA · 358 students
- SOUTHWOOD ELEM.RAYTOWN, MO · 346 students
Nearby schools
- Townline Elementary1.0 mi · 320
- Crossroads Alternative High School1.0 mi · 216
- Glenwood Elementary1.1 mi · 543
- East Kentwood High School1.5 mi · 2,068
- Southeast Kelloggsville School1.7 mi · 287
- Cross Creek Charter Academy1.7 mi · 809
Frequently asked questions
About Southwood ElementaryHow large is Southwood Elementary?
Southwood Elementary enrolls approximately 302 students in grades KG-05.
Is Southwood Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Southwood Elementary is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
How many students per teacher at Southwood Elementary?
Approximately 15.3:1 students per teacher at Southwood Elementary.
What is the student diversity at Southwood Elementary?
Student demographics at Southwood Elementary are roughly 36% White, 26% Hispanic, 23% Black, 5% Asian, 11% Two or more.
What district is Southwood Elementary in?
Southwood Elementary is part of Kentwood Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.