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Tri County Elementary School

Q: Is Tri County Elementary School a good school?

Tri County Elementary School ranks 534 th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

534^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 64% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Tri County Elementary School in Pierson, MI, serves 780 students in Kindergarten through 5th grade and is part of the Tri County Area Schools district. The school has shown a remarkable upward trajectory in recent years, climbing from the 30th percentile statewide in 2020-2021 to its highest rank yet in the 64th percentile for the 2025-2026 school year. This places it ahead of most nearby rivals, including Kent City Elementary School (46th percentile), Newaygo Elementary School (36th), Grant Elementary School (39th), and Morley Stanwood Elementary School (35th).

What makes this improvement especially noteworthy is that it spans nearly all student groups. In the most recent school year, Tri County ranked in the 74th percentile for low socio-economic status students—a significant jump from the mid-50s just two years prior—and in the 61st percentile for special education students, a dramatic rise from the 19th percentile in 2023-2024. Hispanic students also saw gains, ranking in the 68th percentile. The school also boasts a chronic absenteeism rate of just 14.2%, far below the district's 22.5% and the state's 27.9%, and lower than neighbors like Newaygo Elementary School (20.8%) and Morley Stanwood Elementary School (27.4%). All of this is achieved while spending less per student ($14,776) than many peers, such as Kent City Elementary School ($19,268) and Grant Primary Center ($18,975), suggesting efficient use of resources.

Two areas stand out for parents to know. First, 5th graders at Tri County significantly outperform state averages in English Language Arts (56.6% vs. 43.8% proficient), Math (51.3% vs. 32.2%), and Science (54% vs. 40%), indicating particularly strong instruction in upper elementary grades. Second, there is a persistent gender gap: female students rank in the 67th percentile while male students rank in the 51st percentile, a pattern that has held for three years. Additionally, the percentage of students eligible for free and reduced lunch dropped sharply from 67.4% to 50.9% in one year, reflecting a changing student population. Overall, Tri County Elementary is a school on the rise, delivering strong results for diverse learners at a lower cost than its regional peers.

780

Students ?

19.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,776

Per pupil spending ?

50.9%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in Michigan receive free school meals.

89.1%

Kindergartners complete for all required vaccines (2025-26)

Exemptions: 5.9% (any vaccine)

21502 W Kendaville Rd
Pierson, MI 49339

(231) 937-4380

District: Tri County Area Schools

Students who attend Tri County Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Tri County Middle School
High:	Tri County Senior High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

87.8%

Hispanic:

5.6%

Two or more races:

5.3%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Tri County Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 27th percentile in 2016 → 64th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Michigan average (44% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 37 percentile points since 2016

✓Above the Michigan median (64th percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school44%

District avg44%

Michigan avg38%

534^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Top 36%▲ up 37 pts since 2016

From bottom 27% (2016) to top 36% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

303^rd of 625Tri County Area 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
2026	61.4	534 of 1492	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	45.9	776 of 1488	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	47.7	736 of 1486	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	44.8	772 of 1470	47.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	43.2	716 of 1344	46.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.5	810 of 1153	29.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	26.6	1029 of 1408	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.4	946 of 1448	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2017	33.5	972 of 1466	33.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	28.7	1130 of 1548	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	36.7	1055 of 1580	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2014	33.9	1106 of 1533	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	31.2	1173 of 1563	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	38.2	1084 of 1566	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2011	64.5	637 of 1552	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2010	55.0	967 of 1552	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2009	56.2	901 of 1589	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2008	53.2	965 of 1577	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2007	58.0	794 of 1565	49.3%	★★☆☆☆
2006	60.6	711 of 1545	54.0%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	62.7	440 of 1343	67.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	45.1	692 of 1338	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	47.8	654 of 1342	51.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	41.0	748 of 1321	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	39.7	652 of 1106	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.9	673 of 902	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.0	926 of 1171	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.9	917 of 1443	36.5%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	59.6	72 of 225	68.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	51.2	88 of 209	57.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	66.9	351 of 1352	74.0%	★★★★☆
2025	49.8	639 of 1346	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.9	637 of 1381	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	45.0	716 of 1350	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.2	542 of 1099	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	30.5	559 of 749	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.4	844 of 1134	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	41.5	867 of 1397	37.9%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	49.4	666 of 1372	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	36.4	848 of 1366	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.9	833 of 1347	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.9	798 of 1334	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.4	768 of 1139	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	24.4	732 of 915	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.5	966 of 1196	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.5	933 of 1446	35.5%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	56.8	95 of 246	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	32.1	185 of 252	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.1	183 of 225	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.1	190 of 195	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	37.4	248 of 403	38.5%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	47.9	611 of 1199	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2025	31.7	849 of 1206	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	34.6	803 of 1204	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.1	859 of 1198	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	33.8	734 of 1102	33.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	26.1	782 of 1005	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	14.9	1027 of 1128	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	26.7	986 of 1253	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆

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 (2026)74th percentile+10 vs school

Hispanic (2026)68th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2026)67th percentile+3 vs school

Special Education (2026)61st percentile-3 vs school

Male (2026)51st percentile-13 vs school

White (2026)49th percentile-15 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Science54%+14 vs state

Math47%+9 vs state

English Language Arts43%~ state avg

Social Studies26%~ state avg

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Schools Near Tri County Elementary School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				M-Step English Language Arts (2026)			M-Step Math (2026)			M-Step Science (2026)	M-Step Social Studies (2026)	Vaccination (2025-26)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	Vaccination: Kindergartners complete for all required vaccines	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Tri County Elementary School	Public	K-5	21502 W Kendaville Rd	Pierson	49339	Montcalm County	Tri County Area Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 937-4380	780	40	19.5	50.9%	685 (87.8%)	5 (0.6%)	44 (5.6%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (5.3%)	61.4	534^th of 1492 public elementary schools	64.2%		45.9	776^th of 1488 public elementary schools	47.8%	242	37.0	37.5	56.6	48.7	43.0	51.3	54.0	25.7	89.1%	5.9%	$14,776	$1,548	$13,228
Beach Elementary School	Public	2-3	204 E Muskegon St	Cedar Springs	49319	Kent County	Cedar Springs Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 696-0350	445	25	17.8	42.9%	385 (86.5%)	2 (0.4%)	28 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.5%)								(n/a)	38.7			53.8							$14,599	$956	$13,643
Cedar View Elementary School	Public	4-5	204 E Muskegon St	Cedar Springs	49319	Kent County	Cedar Springs Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 696-9102	466	27	17.5	35.2%	410 (88.0%)	3 (0.6%)	23 (4.9%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (5.8%)	62	525^th of 1492 public elementary schools	64.8%		61.1	548^th of 1488 public elementary schools	63.2%	23		42.9	48.9		48.8	44.8	49.8	23.8			$14,570	$1,110	$13,461
Cedar Trails Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-1	204 E Muskegon St	Cedar Springs	49319	Kent County	Cedar Springs Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(616) 696-9884	431	30	14.3	40.4%	379 (87.9%)	5 (1.2%)	19 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.0%)								(n/a)									94.9%	3.5%	$21,383	$1,570	$19,813
Morley Stanwood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4808 Northland Dr	Morley	49336	Mecosta County	Morley Stanwood Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 856-7684	437	28	15.7	65.2%	388 (88.8%)	3 (0.7%)	16 (3.7%)	2 (0.5%)	6 (1.4%)	1 (0.2%)	21 (4.8%)	32.1	971^st of 1492 public elementary schools	34.9%		32.8	971^st of 1488 public elementary schools	34.7%		27.4	24.3	45.2	36.1	21.4	24.2	33.9	19.4	88.5%	10.3%	$17,229	$2,410	$14,819
Lakeview Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-3	9497 Paden Rd	Lakeview	48850	Montcalm County	Lakeview Community Schools (Montcalm)	No	No	No	Yes	(989) 352-8021	306	22	13.9	66.0%	281 (91.8%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.9%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.6%)								(n/a)	68.0			62.7					86.7%	13.3%	$16,029	$1,930	$14,099
Newaygo Elementary School	Public	K-4	29 Post St	Newaygo	49337	Newaygo County	Newaygo Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 652-2100	635	35	18.2	61.6%	544 (85.7%)	3 (0.5%)	65 (10.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	19 (3.0%)	32.9	955^th of 1492 public elementary schools	36.0%		36.1	917^th of 1488 public elementary schools	38.4%	38	23.3	38.7		25.6	38.7				84.9%	9.2%	$15,023	$2,029	$12,994
Lincoln Heights Elementary School	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	12420 Lincoln Lake Rd NE	Greenville	48838	Kent County	Greenville Public Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(616) 754-9167	398	25	15.9	50.0%	368 (92.5%)	5 (1.3%)	14 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.8%)	63.6	503^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	66.3%		71.8	387^th of 1488 public elementary schools	74.0%	116	41.7	44.1	52.6	55.0	47.1	36.8	43.4	35.5	92.4%	7.6%	$15,054	$1,168	$13,885
Grant Primary Center	Public	K-1	103 S Elder Ave	Grant	49327	Newaygo County	Grant Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 834-7382	182	16	11.5	60.4%	127 (69.8%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (25.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (4.9%)								(n/a)									87.9%	6.1%	$18,975	$1,574	$17,401
Grant Elementary School	Public	2-4	160 E State Rd	Grant	49327	Newaygo County	Grant Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(231) 834-5678	332	23	14.3	67.8%	242 (72.9%)	1 (0.3%)	83 (25.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.8%)	36.1	913^th of 1492 public elementary schools	38.8%		37.8	896^th of 1488 public elementary schools	39.8%	17	31.5	33.0		40.7	26.8						$15,524	$1,459	$14,065

Frequently Asked Questions about Tri County Elementary School

What district is Tri County Elementary School in?

Tri County Area Schools

What schools do graduates of Tri County Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Tri County Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Tri County Middle School
High : Tri County Senior High School

How many students attend Tri County Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 780 students attended Tri County Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Tri County Elementary School?

Students at Tri County Elementary School are 88% White, 6% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races.

Is Tri County Elementary School a good school?

Tri County Elementary School ranks 534^th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Tri County Elementary School!

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

2024–25 school spending data (updated)NewNov 2, 2026

2021–22 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

2025–26 M-Step, PSAT & SAT test scoresSep 4, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

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.