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North Star Elementary

Q: Is North Star Elementary a good school?

North Star Elementary ranks 280 th of 869 Minnesota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 3-6

280^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 869 Minnesota Elementary Schools

Better than 68% of Minnesota elementary schools

Summary

North Star Elementary is a public school in Virginia, MN — a small city on Minnesota's Iron Range in the northeastern part of the state — serving 389 students in grades 3 through 6 as part of Rock Ridge Public Schools. Its 2025–2026 statewide rank is 280 of 869 elementary schools (68th percentile, 3 stars), a clear step up from 2020–2022, when it held a 2-star rating near the 38th–41st percentile.

Academically, North Star scores above both its district and the state in all three tested subjects: math 47.4%, reading 60.3%, and science 35.4%. Reading is the standout strength, running 11.7 percentage points above the state. Grade-level results show a split pattern: 3rd-grade math (64.6%) is a strength, and 5th-grade reading (67.9%) is the highest among nearby tested elementary schools. Math, however, falls to 38.8% in 5th grade and 31.0% in 6th grade — both below district and state — making upper-elementary math the most visible area to watch. Science results have swung widely from year to year, though the current figure remains above district and state averages.

Results by student group are mixed. The school ranks in the 87th percentile statewide for relative effectiveness with low-income students (4 stars) and the 72nd percentile for Native American students (4 stars), while special education students dropped to the 39th percentile from the upper 50s. Among nearby schools, Laurentian Elementary in the same district outperforms North Star in math and reading and ranks higher overall (80th percentile, 4 stars). Merritt Elementary is nearly identical in rank (68th percentile, 3 stars) but leans toward math and science, while Parkview Elementary, less than a mile away, serves PK–2 and has no current test data.

389

Students ?

14.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

42.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

411 S 5th Avenue
Virginia, MN 55792-8888

(218) 742-3943

District: Rock Ridge Public Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

78.4%

Two or more races:

10.5%

American Indian:

5.1%

See top rated Minnesota elementary schools

Compare North Star Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 41st percentile in 2021 → 68th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Minnesota average (52% vs 43% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 27 percentile points since 2021

✓Above the Minnesota median (68th percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school52%

District avg46%

Minnesota avg43%

280^th of 869

Minnesota public elementary schools ?

Top 32%▲ up 27 pts since 2021

From bottom 41% (2021) to top 32% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Minnesota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

129^th of 458Rock Ridge Public Schools 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	67.4	280 of 869	67.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	55.8	417 of 872	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.5	378 of 881	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	46.4	516 of 845	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.9	535 of 858	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	50.3	513 of 869	41.0%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	60.3	304 of 790	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	49.4	440 of 799	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	50.3	448 of 809	44.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.1	546 of 787	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.1	548 of 799	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.5	561 of 783	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	76.6	101 of 764	86.8%	★★★★☆
2025	64.4	231 of 764	69.8%	★★★★☆
2024	54.6	360 of 793	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.4	394 of 774	49.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	60.3	249 of 663	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	58.9	274 of 683	59.9%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	68.8	239 of 807	70.4%	★★★★☆
2025	58.5	363 of 812	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	63.3	296 of 826	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	50.2	438 of 799	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	48.9	471 of 808	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	54.9	393 of 784	49.9%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2022	40.5	56 of 87	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	47.3	24 of 45	46.7%	★★★☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	54.6	11 of 39	71.8%	★★★★☆
2025	50.2	20 of 38	47.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.5	13 of 42	69.0%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	40.3	356 of 579	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	52.5	241 of 562	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	52.6	243 of 572	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.4	237 of 524	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	40.5	320 of 500	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	39.1	280 of 417	32.9%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	54.9	323 of 710	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	42.4	448 of 714	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.8	435 of 730	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.7	554 of 712	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.4	601 of 725	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	30.4	568 of 710	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆

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)87th percentile+19 vs school

Native American (2026)72nd percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)70th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2026)62nd percentile-6 vs school

White (2026)55th percentile-13 vs school

Special Education (2026)39th percentile-29 vs school

Multi-racial (2022)36th percentile~ school

By subject vs Minnesota (2025-2026) ?

Reading60%+12 vs state

Math47%~ state avg

Science35%+10 vs state

★

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Schools Near North Star 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
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)
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
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
Mesabi East Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	601 N 1st St W	Aurora	55705	St. Louis County	Mesabi East School District	No	No	No	Yes	(218) 229-3321	470	32	14.8	49.8%	403 (85.7%)	2 (0.4%)	9 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (8.9%)	40.3	560^th of 869 public elementary schools	35.6%		46.7	503^rd of 872 public elementary schools	42.3%	57	30.4	54.5	35.2	58.1	46.0	11.1	11.1	53.6	59.1	18.5	16.2	36.4	$12,740
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

Frequently Asked Questions about North Star Elementary

Is North Star Elementary a good school?

North Star Elementary ranks 280^th of 869 Minnesota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is North Star Elementary in?

Rock Ridge Public Schools

How many students attend North Star Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 389 students attended North Star Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of North Star Elementary?

Students at North Star Elementary are 78% White, 11% Two or more races, 5% American Indian, 3% Hispanic, 2% African American.

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MNMinnesota Elementary School Rankings

MNMinnesota District Rankings

Schools in Virginia, MN

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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.