Best Public Schools in Crookston, MN

Crookston, Minnesota has two schools in this data set: Crookston Secondary, which serves grades 6–12 with 592 students, and Highland Elementary, which serves grades K–5 with 474 students, both in the Crookston Public School District.

For parents comparing the two, Highland Elementary has had the stronger recent math profile and a more favorable student-teacher ratio of 12.6 versus 15.2 at Crookston Secondary, despite a higher free/reduced lunch rate (57.81% vs 52.03%). In 2024–2025, Highland Elementary was above state in all-grade math (54.02% vs 45.21%) and reading (52.68% vs 49.59%), but in 2025–2026 its rank fell to 529 of 869 (39th percentile, 2 stars), down from 59th percentile and 3 stars; all-grade math dropped to 43.6% and reading to 45.0%. Crookston Secondary has bright spots in reading and graduation: all-grade reading is 50.0% (above district 47.8% and state 48.6%), 8th grade reading is 61.7% (well above state 50.0%), and its graduation rate is 88.8% (above state 84.9%). But its all-grade math is 30.5% (state 44.9%), all-grade science is 19.0% (state 25.5%), 11th grade math is 14.9% (state 35.3%), and its dropout rate is 7.7% versus the state’s 4.2%.

Science is a shared weakness: both schools are below the state’s 25.5% in 2025–2026 all-grade science, with Crookston Secondary at 19.0% and Highland Elementary at 22.4%. The Crookston Public School District is ranked 245 of 458 statewide (47th percentile, 2 stars), and both schools ended 2025–2026 at 2 stars. Because Crookston Secondary covers grades 6–12, middle-grade results are folded into its all-grade scores, which can hide contrasts such as strong 8th grade reading and very low 11th grade math. Overall, Highland Elementary offers stronger elementary math and smaller classes but is trending down, while Crookston Secondary offers reading and graduation strengths but has significant math, science, and dropout concerns.