Enrollment
253
Elementary
DISTRICT 242 · STATE 344
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·VERNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 274092001712
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY
411 SW BROWN ST, VERNDALE, MN 56481 · (218) 445-5184 · Wadena County
GRADES PK–06ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL253 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 40% of Minnesota public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats 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 Minnesota public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
11.8:1
21 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.9:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
42%
105 students
DISTRICT 44% · STATE 48%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 9 | 4% |
| Kindergarten | 28 | 11% |
| Grade 1 | 28 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 40 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 43 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 32 | 13% |
| Grade 5 | 39 | 15% |
| Grade 6 | 34 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (28) is 18% smaller than its 6th grade class (34).
Student demographics
11%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 15% · STATE 60% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY→VERNDALE SECONDARY
Based on grade levels within VERNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
49.0%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
40.8%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 49 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 41 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Minnesota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 45.
Source: MCA. 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
42.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
42.8%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-0.4pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 42% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 43% typical for Minnesota 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 Minnesota'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 VERNDALE ELEMENTARY
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY's state test result (42.3% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| VERNDALE ELEMENTARY this school | 253 | 41.5% | 42.3% |
| LANESBORO ELEMENTARY LANESBORO | 249 | 39.8% | 41.2% |
| HOUSTON ELEMENTARY HOUSTON | 247 | 40.1% | 60.3% |
| RED ROCK CENTRAL ELEMENTARY LAMBERTON | 244 | 40.6% | 56.3% |
| FERTILE-BELTRAMI ELEMENTARY FERTILE | 249 | 43.4% | 59.3% |
| WILLOW RIVER ELEMENTARY WILLOW RIVER | 231 | 44.2% | 45.3% |
Matched among Minnesota 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 VERNDALE ELEMENTARY ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 42.3% | #479 of 844 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 40.8% | #571 of 844 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #415 of 844 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 253 | #715 of 1,130 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.8:1 | #169 of 769 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 10.7% | #761 of 796 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 41.5% | #462 of 942 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -15.4% | #217 of 499 |
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
253
-6 (-2%) vs 2020
+9% since 1990-91, when it was 232
Student : Teacher
11.8:1
was 12.3:1
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 | 253 | 21.4 | 11.8:1 | 42% (105) |
| 2023-24 | 262 | 22.4 | 11.7:1 | 55% (144) |
| 2022-23 | 263 | 22.2 | 11.8:1 | 61% (160) |
| 2020-21 | 259 | 21 | 12.3:1 | 44% (114) |
| 2017-18 | 299 | 24.7 | 12.1:1 | 57% (170) |
| 2015-16 | 294 | 24 | 12.3:1 | 57% (169) |
| 2010-11 | 254 | 20 | 12.7:1 | 67% (170) |
| 2000-01 | 236 | 18 | 13.1:1 | 61% (143) |
| 1990-91 | 232 | 16 | 14.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for VERNDALE ELEMENTARY.
Since 2017-18: students down 15% (299 to 253); teachers down 13% (24.7 to 21.4).
About VERNDALE ELEMENTARY
Located in VERNDALE, Minnesota, VERNDALE ELEMENTARY is a small elementary school. The school reports 253 students in pre-K through 6. The typical figure for elementary schools in Minnesota is about 344 students.
VERNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT oversees VERNDALE ELEMENTARY and 1 other school, with 484 students in total.
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY enrolls a student body that is 94% White. By the diversity index, VERNDALE ELEMENTARY comes in at 11%.
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY employs 21.4 full-time-equivalent teachers. That gives a ratio of about 11.8:1. That ratio is under the 13.7:1 average for elementary schools in Minnesota. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility was 42% in 2024-25.
allk12 grades VERNDALE ELEMENTARY a C+. The grade compares the school only with Minnesota public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY's actual average proficiency rate on state tests (42.3%) and its predicted rate (42.8%) put it outside the top and bottom 10% of Minnesota schools.
In Wadena County (population about 14,256), median household income is about $61,467, 20% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 9% of residents live below the federal poverty line. A total of 17 public schools operate in Wadena County, serving about 3,201 students.
VERNDALE SECONDARY is the closest public school, less than a tenth of a mile away in a straight line. There are at least 8 more public schools inside ten miles. VERNDALE ELEMENTARY places 2nd of 4 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY falls in the Rural: Distant locale category, used for schools in rural territory some distance from an urban area.
Federal data show 259 students in 2020-21 and 253 in 2024-25, a difference of under 3%.
Discussions about VERNDALE ELEMENTARY may include sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Wadena County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
14,256
Census ACS
Median income
$61,467
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
17
3,201 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in VERNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT
- VERNDALE SECONDARYHigh · 231 students
Nearby schools
- VERNDALE SECONDARY0.0 mi · 231
- White Pine Academy5.7 mi · 11
- LEAF RIVER ACADEMY5.7 mi · 15
- Elm Tree Academy5.7 mi · 9
- Freshwater Education District ALC5.7 mi · 101
- EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION5.7 mi · 64
Frequently asked questions
About VERNDALE ELEMENTARYHow many students attend VERNDALE ELEMENTARY?
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY enrolls approximately 253 students in grades PK-06.
What age range does VERNDALE ELEMENTARY serve?
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY serves students from grade PK through grade 06.
How many students per teacher at VERNDALE ELEMENTARY?
Approximately 11.8:1 students per teacher at VERNDALE ELEMENTARY.
What is the student diversity at VERNDALE ELEMENTARY?
Student demographics at VERNDALE ELEMENTARY are roughly 94% White, 2% Hispanic, 1% Asian, 2% Two or more.
Is VERNDALE ELEMENTARY public or private?
VERNDALE ELEMENTARY is a public K-12 school, overseen by VERNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.