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Cherry Elementary

Q: Is Cherry Elementary a good school?

Cherry Elementary ranks 358 th of 869 Minnesota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-6

358^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 869 Minnesota Elementary Schools

Better than 59% of Minnesota elementary schools

Summary

Cherry Elementary is a PK–6 school in Iron, MN serving 297 students in the St. Louis County School District, and it stands out as an improving school that outperforms its district. The district ranks 323rd of 458 Minnesota districts (29th percentile, 1 star), while Cherry ranks 358th of 869 schools in 2025–2026 (59th percentile, 3 stars). Over the past decade its statewide rank climbed from the 25th percentile in 2015–2016 to 39th in 2022–2023, then 45th, 53rd, and 59th percentile in the years since.

In 2025–2026 all-grade proficiency, Cherry scored 43.6% in math (district 31.7%, state 44.9%), 52.1% in reading (district 40.8%, state 48.6%) and 35.9% in science (district 17.1%, state 25.5%) — above its district in every subject, above the state in reading and science, and just 1.3 points below the state in math. Locally, Cherry beats Keewatin-Nashwauk Elementary School in all three subjects and edges Greenhaven Elementary and Vaughan-Steffensrud Elementary in reading, but trails North Star Elementary, Merritt Elementary and Laurentian Elementary in math and reading. It has the lowest free/reduced-lunch rate (38.05%) among nearby schools and a favorable 12.8 student-teacher ratio.

Two things stand out. First, students from lower-income backgrounds perform exceptionally well — that group ranked in the 85th percentile statewide in 2025–2026 and 89th in 2024–2025. Second, fourth grade is a clear weak spot: 4th grade reading was 25% versus the state's 48.8%, and 4th grade math 39.3% versus 55.2%, even as 3rd grade math reached 63.6%. Male students rank higher than female students, and special education students ranked at the 23rd and 10th percentiles in the two most recent available years — an area worth asking about. For context, nearby districts Rock Ridge Public Schools (72nd percentile) and Mountain Iron-Buhl School District (64th) rank higher than Cherry's own district.

297

Students ?

12.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,430

Per pupil spending ?

38%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3943 Tamminen Rd
Iron, MN 55751-8041

(218) 258-8991

District: St. Louis County School District

Students who attend Cherry Elementary usually attend:

High:

Cherry Secondary

Racial breakdown:

White:

88.6%

Two or more races:

8.1%

Hispanic:

2.4%

See top rated Minnesota elementary schools

Compare Cherry Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 25th percentile in 2016 → 59th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 34 percentile points since 2016

✓Among the top-ranked schools in St. Louis County School District

✓Above the Minnesota median (59th percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school46%

District avg33%

Minnesota avg43%

358^th of 869

Minnesota public elementary schools ?

Top 41%▲ up 33 pts since 2016

From bottom 25% (2016) to top 41% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Minnesota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 5Elementary Schools in the St. Louis County School District

323^rd of 458St. Louis County School District among Minnesota 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	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	59.1	358 of 869	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	56.5	407 of 872	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.7	486 of 881	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.3	517 of 845	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	49.4	505 of 858	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	51.9	489 of 869	43.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	41.4	600 of 870	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.8	554 of 847	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2017	46.3	542 of 853	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2016	35.1	632 of 848	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	30.3	665 of 840	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	20.6	709 of 826	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	39.4	595 of 824	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	63.9	338 of 820	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2011	75.5	149 of 814	81.7%	★★★★☆
2010	84.8	29 of 803	96.4%	★★★★★
2008	69.9	202 of 781	74.1%	★★★★☆
2007	74.4	144 of 777	81.5%	★★★★☆
2006	61.7	312 of 756	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2005	37.7	521 of 685	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	41.1	484 of 676	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	36.8	515 of 674	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	48.7	431 of 790	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	45.9	470 of 799	41.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.4	545 of 809	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.9	500 of 787	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	56.9	387 of 799	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.0	351 of 783	55.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	48.1	497 of 787	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.7	473 of 774	38.9%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	74.3	118 of 764	84.6%	★★★★☆
2025	80.8	86 of 764	88.7%	★★★★☆
2024	64.1	258 of 793	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	52.0	388 of 774	49.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	57.4	279 of 663	57.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	42.5	424 of 683	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	41.8	471 of 740	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.5	461 of 728	36.7%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	61.8	308 of 807	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	63.4	310 of 812	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.6	354 of 826	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	45.2	489 of 799	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.1	581 of 808	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	37.7	557 of 784	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.5	605 of 798	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.0	560 of 779	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2024	26.9	442 of 572	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.8	469 of 524	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	38.4	466 of 710	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	34.4	523 of 714	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.8	542 of 730	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.1	619 of 712	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.2	625 of 725	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.8	585 of 710	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.2	676 of 722	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.8	646 of 712	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)85th percentile+26 vs school

Male (2026)62nd percentile+3 vs school

Female (2026)45th percentile-13 vs school

White (2026)34th percentile-24 vs school

Special Education (2024)23rd percentile-22 vs school

By subject vs Minnesota (2025-2026) ?

Reading52%+3 vs state

Math44%~ state avg

Science36%+10 vs state

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a teacher
Saturday, September 23, 2017

Cherry has such a dedicated staff!!! Close Quote

Schools Near Cherry Elementary

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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 Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				MCA-IV Reading (2026)					MCA-IV Science (2026)		MCA-III Math (2026)					Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
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 (2025)	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	MCA-IV Reading 3rd Grade	MCA-IV Reading 4th Grade	MCA-IV Reading 5th Grade	MCA-IV Reading 6th Grade	MCA-IV Reading All Grades	MCA-IV Science 5th Grade	MCA-IV Science All Grades	MCA-III Math 3rd Grade	MCA-III Math 4th Grade	MCA-III Math 5th Grade	MCA-III Math 6th Grade	MCA-III Math All Grades	Total
Cherry Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	3943 Tamminen Rd	Iron	55751	St. Louis County	St. Louis County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 258-8991	297	23	12.8	38.0%	263 (88.6%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (8.1%)	59.1	358^th of 869 public elementary schools	58.8%		56.5	407^th of 872 public elementary schools	53.3%	49	54.5	25.0	62.5	59.0	52.1	35.9	35.9	63.6	39.3	35.0	38.5	43.6	$10,430
Merritt Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	8659 Unity Drive	Mountain Iron	55768	St. Louis County	Mountain Iron-Buhl School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 735-8271	354	23	15.5	45.2%	307 (86.7%)	1 (0.3%)	13 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (8.2%)	67.8	274^th of 869 public elementary schools	68.5%		66.4	304^th of 872 public elementary schools	65.1%	30	46.2	60.0	57.1	60.0	56.1	42.9	42.9	48.7	65.0	48.6	40.0	50.0	$14,750
Laurentian Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	1409 Progress Pkwy	Eveleth	55734	St. Louis County	Rock Ridge Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(218) 735-6202	488	34	14.5	42.2%	417 (85.5%)	9 (1.8%)	14 (2.9%)	3 (0.6%)	8 (1.6%)	1 (0.2%)	36 (7.4%)	77.7	170^th of 869 public elementary schools	80.4%		72.9	231^st of 872 public elementary schools	73.5%	61	47.7	73.4	65.6	68.4	64.0	34.9	34.9	64.1	71.9	46.8	49.4	57.6
Vaughan-Steffensrud Elementary	Public	PK, KG-3	1000 1st Ave NE	Chisholm	55719	St. Louis County	Chisholm Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 254-5726	207	16	12.6	64.7%	173 (83.6%)	2 (1.0%)	11 (5.3%)	1 (0.5%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (9.2%)								(n/a)	45.5				45.5			50.0				50.0	$13,037
Washington Elementary	Public	K-1	2100 12th Ave E	Hibbing	55746	St. Louis County	Hibbing Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 208-0843	310	28	11.0	59.4%	245 (79.0%)	11 (3.5%)	10 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	1 (0.3%)	40 (12.9%)								(n/a)													$13,532
Greenhaven Elementary	Public	2-3	323 E 37th St	Hibbing	55746	St. Louis County	Hibbing Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 208-0844	312	20	15.6	58.3%	253 (81.1%)	9 (2.9%)	18 (5.8%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (8.3%)								(n/a)	43.4				43.4			61.6				61.6	$13,969
North Star Elementary	Public	3-6	411 S 5th Avenue	Virginia	55792	St. Louis County	Rock Ridge Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 742-3943	389	26	14.7	42.2%	305 (78.4%)	8 (2.1%)	12 (3.1%)	3 (0.8%)	20 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (10.5%)	67.4	280^th of 869 public elementary schools	67.8%		55.8	417^th of 872 public elementary schools	52.2%	137	55.0	62.6	67.9	55.6	60.3	35.4	35.4	64.6	55.0	38.8	31.0	47.4
Parkview Elementary	Public	PK, KG-2	506 N 9th Ave W	Virginia	55792	St. Louis County	Rock Ridge Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 742-3802	336	19	17.4	52.4%	253 (75.3%)	10 (3.0%)	11 (3.3%)	2 (0.6%)	7 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (15.8%)								(n/a)
Keewatin-Nashwauk Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	100 Spartan Way	Nashwauk	55769	Itasca County	Nashwauk-Keewatin School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 778-1280	313	26	12.0	52.7%	269 (85.9%)	2 (0.6%)	6 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (10.9%)	32.4	624^th of 869 public elementary schools	28.2%		35.5	595^th of 872 public elementary schools	31.8%	29	32.4	32.7	43.2	47.5	38.9	11.6	11.6	55.9	46.0	20.9	25.0	36.5	$13,353

Frequently Asked Questions about Cherry Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Cherry Elementary?

Students at Cherry Elementary are 89% White, 8% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic, 1% American Indian.

How many students attend Cherry Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 297 students attended Cherry Elementary.

What district is Cherry Elementary in?

St. Louis County School District

What schools do graduates of Cherry Elementary attend?

Students who attend Cherry Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Cherry Secondary

Is Cherry Elementary a good school?

Cherry Elementary ranks 358^th of 869 Minnesota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Cherry Elementary!

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Latest Minnesota data All new data »

2024–25 through 2025–26 MCA-III & MCA-IV test scoresNewSep 30, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 MCA-III test scoresAug 29, 2025

2023–24 dropout rates & graduation ratesMay 8, 2025

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