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Does Northern Lights Elementary have enough mental health and stress support?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
453
Elementary
DISTRICT 271 · STATE 323
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SUPERIOR SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 551467002539
Northern Lights Elementary
1201 N 28th St, Superior, WI 54880 · (715) 395-6066 · Douglas County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY22-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL453 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.3:1
34 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.1:1 · STATE 14.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
15%
69 students
DISTRICT 22% · STATE 42%
Community
1
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 | 28 | 6% |
| Kindergarten | 68 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 69 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 82 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 70 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 67 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (68) is about the same size as its 5th grade class (67).
Student demographics
37%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 31% · STATE 54% · 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
Based on grade levels within Superior School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
Forward Exam 2024-25 . % Meeting or AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
55.3%
WI avg 53.1% . +12.8pp since 2023
Math
49.0%
WI avg 54.8% . +15.3pp since 2023
What this means: On the Forward Exam, Wisconsin's statewide test, about 55 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 49 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Wisconsin schools, those numbers are about 53 and 55. Reading and writing scores are up about 13 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 15 points.
Forward Exam results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 55.3% | 49.0% |
| 2023-24 | 42.5% | 33.7% |
% Meeting or Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: Forward Exam. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of WI schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
43.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
68.3%
based on WI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-24.9pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 43% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 68% typical for Wisconsin schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
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 Northern Lights Elementary
Northern Lights Elementary's state test result (43.5% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 3 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Lights Elementary this school | 453 | 15.2% | 43.5% |
| Hillcrest Elementary Oneida | 434 | 18.4% | 64.9% |
| Conrad Elvehjem Primary School McFarland | 449 | 12.7% | N/A |
| Sunrise Elementary Appleton | 456 | 14.9% | 74.3% |
| North Elementary Hartland | 405 | 15.6% | N/A |
| Windsor Elementary Windsor | 526 | 14.1% | 67.2% |
Matched among Wisconsin 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 Northern Lights Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Wisconsin | In Douglas County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 43.5% | #729 of 982 | #7 of 7 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #610 of 992 ▲ 190 | #6 of 7 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 55.3% | #433 of 992 ▲ 271 | #5 of 7 ▲ 1 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 453 | #231 of 1,157 | #2 of 8 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.3:1 | #468 of 901 | #1 of 6 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 36.8% | #475 of 901 | #2 of 6 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 15.2% | #949 of 1,064 | #3 of 7 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -24.8% | #138 of 664 | #1 of 6 |
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
453
-33 (-7%) vs 2020
-27% since 2010-11, when it was 620
Student : Teacher
13.3:1
was 12.2:1
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 | 453 | 34.1 | 13.3:1 | 15% (69) |
| 2023-24 | 452 | 33 | 13.7:1 | 67% (301) |
| 2022-23 | 491 | 33 | 14.9:1 | 68% (335) |
| 2020-21 | 486 | 40 | 12.2:1 | 75% (366) |
| 2017-18 | 602 | 45.8 | 13.2:1 | 64% (383) |
| 2015-16 | 599 | 43 | 13.9:1 | 71% (424) |
| 2010-11 | 620 | 47 | 13.2:1 | 72% (447) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Northern Lights Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 25% (602 to 453); teachers down 26% (45.8 to 34.1).
About Northern Lights Elementary
At 1201 N 28th St in Superior, Wisconsin, Northern Lights Elementary operates as a medium-sized elementary school. The school counts 453 students across pre-K through 5. The school's enrollment is 40% larger than the 323 average for elementary schools in Wisconsin.
Northern Lights Elementary reports to Superior School District, which has 9 schools and 4,041 students.
By race and ethnicity, Northern Lights Elementary is 79% White. Other reported shares: 11% multiracial, 3% Black, 3% Hispanic, and 3% Native American. That compares with about 90% White among all Douglas County residents. By the diversity index, Northern Lights Elementary comes in at 37%.
With 34.1 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25, the ratio at Northern Lights Elementary was 13.3:1. The 14.7:1 average for elementary schools in Wisconsin is higher than this school's figure. A measure often used for student poverty, free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, stands at 15%. It compares with 24% for public schools in Douglas County.
Northern Lights Elementary ranks in the bottom 10% of Wisconsin schools after adjusting test results for student poverty. Actual: 43.5%. Predicted: 68.3%. Difference: 24.9 points.
Douglas County has these Census figures: median household income is about $75,099, about 28% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 6%. Northern Lights Elementary is among the 17 public schools in Douglas County.
Of nearby public schools, Superior High is the closest, at about 0.5 miles. The count of other public schools within five miles is at least 8. Its average proficiency rate of 43.5% is below the 52.8% average for nearby schools.
Federal data place Northern Lights Elementary in the Suburb: Mid-size locale, which means it is in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Federal counts put enrollment at 486 in 2020-21 and 453 in 2024-25, a 7% decrease. In 2020-21, the student-to-teacher ratio was 12.2:1; by 2024-25 it was 13.3:1.
Community posts for Northern Lights Elementary can cover sports schedules, lunch menus, and spirit week. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Douglas County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
44,229
Census ACS
Median income
$75,099
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
28%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
17
5,519 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Superior School District
- Superior HighHigh · 1,256 students
- Superior MiddleMiddle · 888 students
- Cooper ElementaryElementary · 363 students
- Great Lakes ElementaryElementary · 348 students
- Bryant ElementaryElementary · 283 students
- Four Corners ElementaryElementary · 200 students
Other schools in Superior
- Superior HighHigh · 1,256 students
- Superior MiddleMiddle · 888 students
- Cooper ElementaryElementary · 363 students
- Great Lakes ElementaryElementary · 348 students
- Bryant ElementaryElementary · 283 students
- Four Corners ElementaryElementary · 200 students
Nearby schools
- Superior High0.5 mi · 1,256
- Superior Community Preschool0.7 mi · 109
- Superior Middle1.0 mi · 888
- Great Lakes Elementary1.2 mi · 348
- Cooper Elementary1.5 mi · 363
- Bryant Elementary3.0 mi · 283
Frequently asked questions
About Northern Lights ElementaryWhat is the total enrollment at Northern Lights Elementary?
Northern Lights Elementary enrolls approximately 453 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Northern Lights Elementary serve?
Northern Lights Elementary serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many teachers does Northern Lights Elementary have?
Northern Lights Elementary employs 34 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.3:1.
How diverse is Northern Lights Elementary?
Northern Lights Elementary reports a student body of 79% White, 3% Hispanic, 3% Black, 2% Asian, 11% Two or more.
Who oversees Northern Lights Elementary?
Northern Lights Elementary is overseen by Superior School District in Douglas County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.