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Middle Area Learning Center

Q: How many students attend Middle Area Learning Center?

In the 2024-25 school year, 54 students attended Middle Area Learning Center.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Middle Area Learning Center?

Students at Middle Area Learning Center are 80% White, 7% American Indian, 6% Two or more races, 2% African American, 2% Asian, 2% Hispanic, 2% Pacific Islander.

Public Grades 5-8

Summary

Middle Area Learning Center is a public middle school in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, serving grades 5-8 with a total enrollment of just 53 students. However, this small school faces significant challenges, including consistently low academic performance, racial disparities, high poverty rates, and an extremely high student-teacher ratio.

The school consistently ranks in the bottom 10% of Minnesota middle schools, with a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger indicating very low academic achievement. This is particularly concerning given the school's high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 37% to 64% over the past three years, which is significantly higher than the district and state averages. Additionally, the school's student population is predominantly White, ranging from 82% to 87%, while the percentage of Native American students is relatively high, from 8.9% to 10.9%, suggesting significant racial disparities.

Compared to nearby schools like Hill City Middle School, Greenway Middle, and Robert J. Elkington Middle School, which are part of the Hill City Public School District, Greenway Public School District, and Grand Rapids Public School District, respectively, Middle Area Learning Center stands out as an outlier, with an extremely high student-teacher ratio ranging from 37.6 to 63.8 over the past three years, which can negatively impact the quality of education and individual attention students receive.

Students ?

63.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

44.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1000 NE 8th Ave
Grand Rapids, MN 55744-2354

(218) 327-5800

District: Grand Rapids Public School District

Racial breakdown:

White:

79.6%

American Indian:

7.4%

Two or more races:

5.6%

See top rated Minnesota public schools

Compare Middle Area Learning Center to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 6th percentile in 2012 → 1st in 2023

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Minnesota average (2% vs 48% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 5 percentile points since 2012

!Reading scores 50 pts below the Minnesota average

Students meeting standards (2023-2024) ?

This school2%

District avg50%

Minnesota avg48%

Not ranked this year

Middle Area Learning Center did not have enough recent test-score data to be ranked. Check the trend below for past years.

144^th of 446Grand Rapids Public 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
2023	4.0	522 of 529	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	5.7	499 of 520	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	3.8	511 of 521	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	1.0	515 of 518	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	10.9	469 of 523	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	9.6	458 of 508	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	7.8	471 of 516	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	3.3	468 of 490	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	2.5	476 of 488	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	4.8	443 of 469	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	0.9	473 of 478	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	0.2	402 of 403	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	0.6	402 of 406	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	0.1	393 of 396	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	0.0	386 of 387	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2022	4.3	460 of 467	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	2.4	443 of 443	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2023	8.0	449 of 459	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.9	395 of 399	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	2.0	399 of 401	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2023	2.7	464 of 464	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.8	455 of 476	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	6.7	420 of 437	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2023	1.0	435 of 436	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	1.5	435 of 438	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	0.6	422 of 422	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	0.1	428 of 428	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

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 (2023)2nd percentile~ school

Female (2022)1st percentile-3 vs school

White (2023)<1st percentile~ school

Male (2023)<1st percentile~ school

By subject vs Minnesota (2023-2024) ?

Math4%-41 vs state

Reading0%-50 vs state

★

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Schools Near Middle Area Learning Center

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MCA-III Math (2025)					MCA-III Reading (2025)					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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MCA-III Math 5th Grade	MCA-III Math 6th Grade	MCA-III Math 7th Grade	MCA-III Math 8th Grade	MCA-III Math All Grades	MCA-III Reading 5th Grade	MCA-III Reading 6th Grade	MCA-III Reading 7th Grade	MCA-III Reading 8th Grade	MCA-III Reading All Grades	Total
Robert J. Elkington Middle School	Public	6-8	1000 NE 8th Ave	Grand Rapids	55744	Itasca County	Grand Rapids Public School District	No	No	No	No	(218) 327-5800	764	44	17.2	34.2%	657 (86.0%)	4 (0.5%)	20 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (5.8%)	1 (0.1%)	38 (5.0%)	68	145^th of 519 public middle schools	72.1%		65.6	163^rd of 545 public middle schools	70.1%	18		49.1	35.9	37.8	41.2		65.4	46.7	50.6	54.6	$11,531
Middle Area Learning Center	Public	5-8	1000 NE 8th Ave	Grand Rapids	55744	Itasca County	Grand Rapids Public School District	No	No	No	No	(218) 327-5800	54	0		44.4%	43 (79.6%)	1 (1.9%)	1 (1.9%)	1 (1.9%)	4 (7.4%)	1 (1.9%)	3 (5.6%)								(n/a)
Greenway Middle	Public	5-8	308 Roosevelt St	Coleraine	55722	Itasca County	Greenway Public School District	No	No	No	No	(218) 245-1287	244	16	15.7	51.6%	193 (79.1%)	3 (1.2%)	7 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (12.7%)	40.8	317^th of 519 public middle schools	38.9%		47.9	283^rd of 545 public middle schools	48.1%	34	56.0	47.4	27.9	16.7	36.8	56.0	51.7	34.8	27.1	42.2	$11,974
Hill City Middle School	Public	5-8	500 Ione Ave	Hill City	55748	Aitkin County	Hill City Public School District	No	No	No	No	(218) 697-2394	83	4	20.6	55.4%	70 (84.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (13.3%)	22	422^nd of 519 public middle schools	18.7%		28.6	414^th of 545 public middle schools	24.0%	8	16.0	12.5	17.4	28.6	18.0	28.0	37.5	21.7	35.7	29.5	$14,215

Frequently Asked Questions about Middle Area Learning Center

What district is Middle Area Learning Center in?

Grand Rapids Public School District

What is the racial makeup of Middle Area Learning Center?

Students at Middle Area Learning Center are 80% White, 7% American Indian, 6% Two or more races, 2% African American, 2% Asian, 2% Hispanic, 2% Pacific Islander.

How many students attend Middle Area Learning Center?

In the 2024-25 school year, 54 students attended Middle Area Learning Center.

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MNMinnesota Middle School Rankings

MNMinnesota District Rankings

Schools in Grand Rapids, MN

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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.