BIGFORK ELEMENTARY

BIGFORK ELEMENTARY operates as a tight-knit elementary school in BIGFORK, Minnesota, overseen by GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT. Current enrollment sits at 139 students spanning grades pre-K through 6. Enrollment runs roughly 60% leaner than the state mean of about 344.

Within GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT, which oversees 11 schools and 3,972 students, BIGFORK ELEMENTARY is one campus in the system.

On the student-mix side, BIGFORK ELEMENTARY reports that 76% of the student body identifies as White. Other groups include 12% multiracial, 8% Native American, 4% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 89% White, putting the school's mix considerably less White than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, BIGFORK ELEMENTARY reports 10 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 14.0:1. That tracks the state average closely. An estimated 61% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Itasca County (around 48%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

After controlling for student poverty, BIGFORK ELEMENTARY ranks in the top 10% of Minnesota public schools. The BeatsExpectations model, a per-state regression of composite proficiency on FRL share, predicts schools with this student profile to land around 32.2%; BIGFORK ELEMENTARY posts 47.1%, +14.9 points above that line.

Around the school, the surrounding county (Itasca County) shows that median household income runs about $68,603, roughly 26% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. Across Itasca County's 26 public schools (combined enrollment of about 6,407 students), BIGFORK ELEMENTARY is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is BIGFORK SECONDARY, roughly 0.0 miles away. On composite proficiency, BIGFORK ELEMENTARY comes 3rd of 7 in the immediate cluster, higher than the nearby-schools average of 39.1%.

BIGFORK ELEMENTARY operates from a countryside location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count fell 23%: 181 students in 2018 compared to 139 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 81% to 76% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 18.7:1 in 2018 to 14.0:1 today.

On the community side, the feed for BIGFORK ELEMENTARY typically covers fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.