Enrollment
144
Elementary
DISTRICT 141 · STATE 344
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WEST CENTRAL AREA·NCES 270010400513
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.
411 1ST ST SE, ELBOW LAKE, MN 56531 · (218) 685-7500 · Grant County
GRADES PK–04ELEMENTARY43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL144 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 87% of Minnesota public elementary schools
- A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ABeats 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
9.6:1
15 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 10.4:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
41%
59 students
DISTRICT 38% · 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 | 7 | 5% |
| Kindergarten | 27 | 19% |
| Grade 1 | 22 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 29 | 20% |
| Grade 3 | 29 | 20% |
| Grade 4 | 30 | 21% |
This year's kindergarten class (27) is 10% smaller than its 4th grade class (30).
Student demographics
25%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 19% · 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
Test scores
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
52.5%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
74.6%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 53 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 75 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
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of MN schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
59.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
43.0%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+16.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 60% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 43% typical for Minnesota schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 17 points, placing it in Minnesota's top 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 WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.'s state test result (59.7% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. this school | 144 | 41.0% | 59.7% |
| WILLIAM KELLEY ELEMENTARY SILVER BAY | 143 | 42.0% | 27.7% |
| WEST CENTRAL AREA S. EL. KENSINGTON | 138 | 39.9% | 53.6% |
| Murray County Central Elementary SLAYTON | 137 | 43.8% | N/A |
| LEROY ELEMENTARY LEROY | 120 | 40.8% | 34.6% |
| Solway Elementary SOLWAY | 148 | 43.2% | 49.5% |
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 WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 59.7% | #146 of 844 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 74.6% | #65 of 844 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 52.5% | #348 of 844 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 144 | #864 of 1,130 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 41.0% | #471 of 942 |
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
144
-40 (-22%) vs 2020
-49% since 2000-01, when it was 284
Student : Teacher
9.6:1
was 10.8:1
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 | 144 | 15 | 9.6:1 | 41% (59) |
| 2023-24 | 156 | 17 | 9.2:1 | 46% (72) |
| 2022-23 | 179 | 17 | 10.5:1 | 48% (86) |
| 2020-21 | 184 | 17 | 10.8:1 | 33% (60) |
| 2017-18 | 160 | 13.5 | 11.8:1 | 40% (64) |
| 2015-16 | 155 | 14 | 11.1:1 | 36% (56) |
| 2010-11 | 160 | 11 | 14.6:1 | 43% (69) |
| 2000-01 | 284 | 18 | 15.8:1 | 36% (102) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL..
Since 2017-18: students down 10% (160 to 144); teachers up 11% (13.5 to 15).
About WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is an elementary school in ELBOW LAKE, Minnesota, according to federal school records. Enrollment totals 144 students across pre-K through 4. The school is 58% below the average for elementary schools in Minnesota.
WEST CENTRAL AREA counts 4 schools and 743 students, including WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL..
The share of students at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. who are White is 86%. Other groups include 6% multiracial, 5% Hispanic, and 3% Black. A diversity index of 25% means there is a 25% chance two randomly chosen students at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. are from different groups.
The student-to-teacher ratio at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is 9.6:1, based on 15 full-time-equivalent teachers. Compared with the 13.7:1 average for elementary schools in Minnesota, this school's ratio is lower. Lunch program data show 41% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals.
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. earns an A on the allk12 Grade, which blends test scores, results against poverty-based expectations, and the three-year trend. It scored higher than 87% of Minnesota public elementary schools.
After accounting for student poverty, WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is in the top 10% of Minnesota schools. Its average proficiency rate across its state test results of 59.7% is 16.6 points above the 43.0% predicted for its lunch-eligibility share.
The school is in Grant County, where median household income comes to about $73,917, roughly 21% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 8% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Grant County's 8 public schools enroll about 1,012 students and include WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL..
A public school about 6.7 miles away, WCA Middle School, is the closest to WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.. The count of other public schools within ten miles is 2. In a group of 8 nearby schools with scores, WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. ranks 1st on average proficiency.
The school is in rural territory far from an urban area, according to its NCES locale (Rural: Remote).
Over the 4 years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, enrollment fell 22%. The ratio was 10.8:1 in 2020-21 and 9.6:1 in 2024-25.
People can post here about homework, tutoring, and testing dates and other school topics. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Grant County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
6,127
Census ACS
Median income
$73,917
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
21%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
8
1,012 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in WEST CENTRAL AREA
- WCA Middle SchoolMiddle · 232 students
- WEST CENTRAL AREA SECONDARYHigh · 229 students
- WEST CENTRAL AREA S. EL.Elementary · 138 students
- West Central Area ALPHigh
Nearby schools
- WCA Middle School6.7 mi · 232
- WEST CENTRAL AREA SECONDARY6.7 mi · 229
- ASHBY SECONDARY10.0 mi · 137
- ASHBY ELEMENTARY10.0 mi · 178
- Evansville Elementary13.5 mi · 163
- Herman-Norcross Elementary14.8 mi · 56
Frequently asked questions
About WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.How many students attend WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.?
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. enrolls approximately 144 students in grades PK-04.
Is WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. an elementary, middle, or high school?
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is an elementary school covering grades PK-04.
What is the student-teacher ratio at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.?
The student-to-teacher ratio at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is approximately 9.6:1 (15 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL.?
At WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL., the student body is approximately 86% White, 5% Hispanic, 3% Black, 6% Two or more.
Is WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. public or private?
WEST CENTRAL AREA N. EL. is a public K-12 school, overseen by WEST CENTRAL AREA.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.