Greenbush Elementary

Greenbush Elementary is a small PK–6 school in Greenbush, Minnesota, in rural Roseau County in the far northwest corner of the state, serving about 120 students as part of the Greenbush Middle River Schools district. Its current standing is the lowest in the ten-year record available: for 2025-2026 it ranks 701st of 869 Minnesota elementary schools — the 19th percentile, or 1 star — with proficiency below both its district and the state in all three tested subjects (Math 23.2%, Reading 31.9%, Science 9.1%). In 2016-2017 this same school ranked in the 88th percentile with 4 stars, and it was still at the 63rd percentile as recently as 2021-2022.

The decline is recent and broad rather than a single bad year. Math has fallen from 54.69% in 2022-2023 to 23.2% (the state is at 44.9%), reading dropped about 13.5 points over two years while the district stayed flat, and science went from 78.57% in 2022-2023 — nearly double the state average — to 9.1%. Greenbush now sits below its own district in math and science even though it is the district's foundational school. Staffing does not appear to be the constraint: the student-teacher ratio is a favorable 13:1, and the share of students from low-income families is 31.67%, the lowest among the nearby schools compared here.

The most useful local comparison is Badger Elementary, 9.6 miles away: nearly the same size and grade span, but with a much higher low-income share (58.06%) — and better results in every subject, including reading 20.3 points higher and above the state average, plus gains of 10.1 points in math and 24.2 points in science. Karlstad Elementary, 17.7 miles away, is broadly similar in size and results. One bright spot: the current 6th grade is at or above the state in reading (61.1% vs. 53.4%) and essentially at state in math, while grades 3–5 are 15–30 points behind in math. Small classes mean individual grade results can swing on a few students, but the all-grades figures confirm a real, school-wide pattern.