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Kalkaska Elementary School

Q: Is Kalkaska Elementary School a good school?

Kalkaska Elementary School ranks 954 th of 1488 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

954^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,488 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 36% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Kalkaska Elementary School is a public elementary school serving grades PK-5 in Kalkaska, Michigan, with an enrollment of 501 students. The school faces several challenges, including declining academic performance, high chronic absenteeism rates, and a student population with a high proportion of low-income families.

Kalkaska Elementary School's academic performance, as measured by M-Step proficiency rates, is generally below the state averages and the performance of nearby higher-ranked schools. For example, in 2024-2025, the school's 3rd grade ELA proficiency rate was 25.8% compared to the state average of 38.9%, and its 5th grade Math proficiency rate was 20.8% compared to the state average of 32.9%. The school's performance has declined relative to the state and nearby schools, such as Cherry Knoll Elementary, Lakeland Elementary, and Courtade Elementary, which are all higher-ranked and have stronger academic outcomes.

Additionally, Kalkaska Elementary School has seen a significant increase in chronic absenteeism rates, rising from 16.4% in 2023-2024 to 29.5% in 2023-2024, which is notably higher than the state average and the rates of nearby schools like Rapid City Elementary and Fife Lake Elementary. This high chronic absenteeism rate may be linked to the school's high percentage of students from low-income families, with 67.66% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in 2023-2024, significantly higher than the state average and the rates of nearby schools.

517

Students ?

15.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,356

Per pupil spending ?

62.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

309 N Birch St
Kalkaska, MI 49646-8263

(231) 258-8629

District: Kalkaska Public Schools

Students who attend Kalkaska Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Kalkaska Middle School
High:	Kalkaska High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

95.4%

Hispanic:

2.1%

Two or more races:

1.5%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Kalkaska Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 22nd percentile in 2006 → 36th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 14 percentile points since 2006

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (31% vs 39% meeting standards)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Social Studies scores 12 pts below the Michigan average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school31%

District avg30%

Michigan avg39%

954^th of 1,488

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Bottom 36%▼ down 9 pts since 2024

From bottom 45% (2024) to bottom 36% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

340^th of 613Kalkaska Public Schools among Michigan districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	33.9	954 of 1488	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.3	813 of 1486	45.3%	★★☆☆☆
2009	50.8	1043 of 1589	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2008	44.1	1140 of 1577	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	17.0	1440 of 1565	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	38.4	1208 of 1545	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	17.4	1120 of 1338	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	34.1	863 of 1342	35.7%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	45.4	703 of 1346	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	47.9	667 of 1381	51.7%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	40.5	781 of 1366	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.2	763 of 1347	43.4%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	18.2	229 of 252	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	20.9	1007 of 1206	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.5	882 of 1204	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)48th percentile+12 vs school

Male (2025)43rd percentile+7 vs school

White (2025)17th percentile-19 vs school

Female (2025)16th percentile-20 vs school

Special Education (2025)9th percentile-27 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2024-2025) ?

Science35%-5 vs state

Math32%-6 vs state

English Language Arts32%-10 vs state

Social Studies18%-12 vs state

★

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Schools Near Kalkaska Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				PSAT Mathematics (2025)	M-Step English Language Arts (2025)					M-Step Math (2025)					M-Step Science (2025)	M-Step Social Studies (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSAT Mathematics 8th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Kalkaska Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	309 N Birch St	Kalkaska	49646	Kalkaska County	Kalkaska Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 258-8629	517	34	15.2	62.3%	493 (95.4%)	3 (0.6%)	11 (2.1%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.5%)	33.9	954^th of 1488 public elementary schools	35.9%		42.3	813^th of 1486 public elementary schools	45.3%	141		25.8	38.8	31.0			48.4	23.3	20.8			35.2	18.3	$16,356	$2,531	$13,825
Crawford School	Public	K-8	5521 M 72 E	Kalkaska	49646	Kalkaska County	Excelsior Township S/D #1	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 258-2934	46	3	15.3	54.3%	46 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)														$15,264	$1,754	$13,510
Rapid City Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	5258 River Rd	Rapid City	49676	Kalkaska County	Kalkaska Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 331-6121	70	6	11.6	77.1%	64 (91.4%)	1 (1.4%)	1 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (4.3%)								(n/a)														$20,524	$4,041	$16,483
Mill Creek Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	9039 Old M 72	Williamsburg	49690	Grand Traverse County	Elk Rapids Schools	No	No	No	No	(231) 267-9955	0	0	16.5		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)														$00	$00	$00
Mill Creek Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	9039 Old M 72	Williamsburg	49690	Grand Traverse County	Mill Creek Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(231) 264-8692	233	14	17.0	24.5%	213 (91.4%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (5.2%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.0%)								(n/a)
Woodland School	Public, Charter	K-8	7224 Supply Rd	Traverse City	49696	Grand Traverse County	Woodland School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(231) 947-7474	209	13	15.9	22.0%	200 (95.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.9%)	63.3	521^st of 1488 public elementary schools	65.0%		64.5	490^th of 1486 public elementary schools	67.0%	31	72.2	56.5	37.5	52.4	47.8	70.8	47.8	70.8	33.3	34.8	50.0	47.6	22.7	$9,405	$778	$8,626
Mancelona Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	231 W Limits St	Mancelona	49659	Antrim County	Mancelona Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 587-8661	288	18	16.1	75.7%	272 (94.4%)	1 (0.3%)	7 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.8%)	42.4	830^th of 1488 public elementary schools	44.2%		23.6	1107^th of 1486 public elementary schools	25.5%	277		23.2	42.4				32.1	45.5						$15,073	$3,066	$12,007
Fife Lake Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-3	108 Pierce St	Fife Lake	49633	Grand Traverse County	Forest Area Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 879-3362	144	12	12.3	61.1%	103 (71.5%)	6 (4.2%)	4 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (18.1%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.5%)								(n/a)		27.6					20.7							$16,386	$4,448	$11,938
Lakeland Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	616 Buckley St	Elk Rapids	49629	Antrim County	Elk Rapids Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 264-8289	289	18	16.2	29.8%	262 (90.7%)	2 (0.7%)	9 (3.1%)	1 (0.3%)	10 (3.5%)	1 (0.3%)	4 (1.4%)	78.4	289^th of 1488 public elementary schools	80.6%		80.4	243^rd of 1486 public elementary schools	83.6%	46		42.5	63.8	68.3			45.0	38.3	52.4			65.1	54.0	$00	$00	$00
Courtade Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1111 Rasho Rd	Traverse City	49696	Grand Traverse County	Traverse City Area Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 933-5800	215	15	14.2	28.8%	188 (87.4%)	9 (4.2%)	6 (2.8%)	5 (2.3%)	7 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	75.6	328^th of 1488 public elementary schools	78.0%		72.9	359^th of 1486 public elementary schools	75.8%	31		59.3	64.3	55.8			63.0	52.4	46.5			44.2	39.5	$17,252	$1,185	$16,067

Frequently Asked Questions about Kalkaska Elementary School

What schools do graduates of Kalkaska Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Kalkaska Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Kalkaska Middle School
High : Kalkaska High School

Is Kalkaska Elementary School a good school?

Kalkaska Elementary School ranks 954^th of 1488 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Kalkaska Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 517 students attended Kalkaska Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Kalkaska Elementary School?

Students at Kalkaska Elementary School are 95% White, 2% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races.

What district is Kalkaska Elementary School in?

Kalkaska Public Schools

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Michigan Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.