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Whittier Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

837^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 869 Minnesota Elementary Schools

Better than 4% of Minnesota elementary schools

Summary

Whittier Elementary is a PK–5 school in the Minneapolis Public School District serving 491 students at 315 West 26th St, in a high-poverty Minneapolis neighborhood where 85.34% of students received free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–2025.

Academically, Whittier ranks near the bottom of Minnesota elementary schools: 837th of 869 in 2025–2026 (4th percentile, 0 stars), and it has stayed in the bottom decile for years. In 2025–2026, 12% of students were proficient in math, 15.2% in reading, and 6.8% in science — well below district averages (37.1% math, 41.8% reading) and state averages (44.9% math, 48.6% reading). Among nearby tested schools, only Ella Baker Elementary scored lower. Lyndale Elementary, less than a mile away, has a similarly high poverty rate (79.18%) yet reaches about 27.5% in math and 27.4% in reading, while Kenwood Elementary, 1.27 miles away, ranks in the 59th percentile.

Low results show up across grades and subjects: 5th-grade math was 5.7%, 4th-grade math 13.2%, and reading stayed between 13.5% and 16.9% in grades 3–5. Trends show a modest math uptick (from 8.88% in 2023–24 to 12.0% in 2025–26), but reading and science remain flat and very low. Effectiveness for English Language Learner students and low-income students ranks in the bottom few percentiles statewide. Notably, Whittier's student–teacher ratio of 11.3 is not high compared with higher-performing neighbors such as Green Central Elementary and Bancroft Elementary (both 13.2), suggesting the school's challenges are systemic rather than a staffing issue.

491

Students ?

11.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,943

Per pupil spending ?

85.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

315 West 26th St
Minneapolis, MN 55404-8888

(612) 668-4170

District: Minneapolis Public School District

Students who attend Whittier Elementary usually attend:

High:

South High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

44.4%

African American:

29.9%

White:

12.4%

See top rated Minnesota elementary schools

Compare Whittier Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 11th percentile in 2016 → 4th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Minnesota average (13% vs 43% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (4th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 7 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school13%

District avg37%

Minnesota avg43%

837^th of 869

Minnesota public elementary schools ?

Bottom 4%▼ down 7 pts since 2016

From bottom 11% (2016) to bottom 4% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Minnesota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

25^th of 29Elementary Schools in the Minneapolis Public School District

310^th of 458Minneapolis 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
2026	5.2	837 of 869	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	3.9	850 of 872	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.9	856 of 881	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.7	797 of 845	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	5.4	811 of 858	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	6.3	801 of 869	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.3	797 of 870	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.4	756 of 847	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	7.6	784 of 853	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	13.4	756 of 848	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	16.6	727 of 840	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	19.1	717 of 826	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	19.2	716 of 824	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	7.2	769 of 820	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	12.6	747 of 814	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	9.9	751 of 803	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	6.2	414 of 434	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	2.3	762 of 781	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	2.9	756 of 777	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	6.5	717 of 756	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	0.5	676 of 685	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	4.9	645 of 676	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	0.5	668 of 674	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	17.9	281 of 315	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.3	272 of 298	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	17.0	274 of 310	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.6	236 of 279	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.2	267 of 282	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.9	220 of 227	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.8	275 of 283	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	233 of 266	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	17.6	297 of 305	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.6	298 of 303	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.5	299 of 303	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	28.4	227 of 276	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.6	241 of 256	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.0	171 of 175	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.1	235 of 239	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	21.2	232 of 242	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	4.5	773 of 790	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	3.3	789 of 799	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.5	794 of 809	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.3	742 of 787	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.7	747 of 799	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.6	721 of 783	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.2	740 of 787	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.2	701 of 774	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	14.2	242 of 256	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.5	214 of 238	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.3	238 of 249	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.0	183 of 214	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.5	187 of 209	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.3	206 of 219	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	35.9	161 of 220	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	53.3	4 of 10	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	24.5	9 of 10	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.6	10 of 10	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	40.4	3 of 6	50.0%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	9.0	734 of 764	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	5.6	754 of 764	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.8	776 of 793	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.1	728 of 774	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.3	631 of 663	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.4	657 of 683	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.4	715 of 740	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.7	663 of 728	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	7.8	758 of 807	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	6.1	772 of 812	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.1	788 of 826	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.2	759 of 799	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	5.2	770 of 808	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.7	740 of 784	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.7	728 of 798	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.5	697 of 779	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	21.0	501 of 579	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.9	438 of 515	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.9	397 of 463	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Minnesota percentile	Rating
2026	13.5	670 of 710	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	23.4	629 of 725	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	52.6	355 of 722	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	64.5	235 of 712	67.0%	★★★☆☆

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)

Homeless (2026)60th percentile+56 vs school

Special Education (2026)13th percentile+10 vs school

African American (2026)11th percentile+7 vs school

Male (2026)6th percentile~ school

White (2026)6th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2026)5th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)4th percentile~ school

English Language Learner (2026)3rd percentile~ school

Female (2026)2nd percentile~ school

By subject vs Minnesota (2025-2026) ?

Reading15%-33 vs state

Math12%-33 vs state

Science7%-19 vs state

4.8

4 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★3

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a citizen
Friday, May 29, 2015

We volunteer at the school and are impressed with students and staff. Close Quote

by a parent
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Don't let the test scores fool you -- this school has a lot to offer! Excellent teaching staff, a great curriculum (IB for the Primary Years) and engaged parents make this a wonderful learning community. It's also got a socio-demographic mix of kids, parents and staff that reflects the population of our city and our world.
School also offers Spanish as a world language -- most Mpls K-5 schools do not offer any world language. Close Quote

by a parent
Thursday, January 14, 2010

Rigorous IB curriculum with very diverse international student population. Spanish instruction starting in Kindergarten. Close Quote

Schools Near Whittier 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 7th Grade	MCA-IV Reading 8th Grade	MCA-IV Reading All Grades	MCA-IV Science 5th Grade	MCA-IV Science 8th 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 7th Grade	MCA-III Math 8th Grade	MCA-III Math All Grades	Total
Whittier Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	315 West 26th St	Minneapolis	55404	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(612) 668-4170	491	43	11.3	85.3%	61 (12.4%)	147 (29.9%)	218 (44.4%)	11 (2.2%)	10 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (9.0%)	5.2	837^th of 869 public elementary schools	3.7%		3.9	850^th of 872 public elementary schools	2.5%	13	15.3	13.5	16.9				15.2	6.8		6.8	18.3	13.2	5.7				12.0	$15,943
Ella Baker Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-8	1200 W 26th St	Minneapolis	55405	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	Yes	No	Yes	(612) 668-2720	512	55	9.3	82.6%	51 (10.0%)	172 (33.6%)	205 (40.0%)	13 (2.5%)	27 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (8.6%)	4.3	848^th of 869 public elementary schools	2.4%		4.2	846^th of 872 public elementary schools	3.0%	2	10.0	15.5	13.2	11.5	14.8	16.2	13.7	3.8	3.0	3.4	8.0	15.8	5.7	6.6	8.5	8.8	8.9	$19,075
Lyndale Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	312 West 34th St	Minneapolis	55408	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	No	No	Yes	(612) 668-4000	466	41	11.2	79.2%	88 (18.9%)	132 (28.3%)	208 (44.6%)	7 (1.5%)	5 (1.1%)	1 (0.2%)	25 (5.4%)	16.5	740^th of 869 public elementary schools	14.8%		19.3	716^th of 872 public elementary schools	17.9%	24	21.4	34.4	27.1				27.4	8.8		8.8	20.3	39.3	23.7				27.5	$14,936
Emerson Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	1421 Spruce Place	Minneapolis	55403	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	Yes	No	Yes	(612) 668-3610	491	43	11.3	57.4%	121 (24.6%)	28 (5.7%)	306 (62.3%)	2 (0.4%)	6 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (5.7%)	23.1	703^rd of 869 public elementary schools	19.1%		18.1	727^th of 872 public elementary schools	16.6%	24	34.5	16.7	35.5				29.0	21.9		21.9	39.1	29.5	23.7				31.1	$14,384
Green Central Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	3416 4th Ave S	Minneapolis	55408	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	Yes	No	Yes	(612) 668-3730	594	45	13.2	54.9%	167 (28.1%)	5 (0.8%)	394 (66.3%)	4 (0.7%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (3.0%)	43.6	530^th of 869 public elementary schools	39.0%		29.3	655^th of 872 public elementary schools	24.9%	125	46.3	37.7	43.7				42.6	24.4		24.4	53.1	46.2	34.5				44.3	$22,453
Kenwood Elementary	Public	K-5	2013 Penn Ave S	Minneapolis	55405	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	No	No	No	(612) 668-2760	388	28	13.7	52.3%	166 (42.8%)	85 (21.9%)	63 (16.2%)	20 (5.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (13.4%)	59.4	353^rd of 869 public elementary schools	59.4%		38	585^th of 872 public elementary schools	32.9%	232	44.6	54.1	52.5				50.3	42.5		42.5	55.4	47.5	47.5				50.3	$12,011
Early Childhood Special Education	Public	PK-K	3320 Elliot Ave S	Minneapolis	55407	Hennepin County	Minneapolis Public School District	No	No	No	No	(612) 668-5100	573	52	11.0	54.1%	282 (49.2%)	115 (20.1%)	135 (23.6%)	15 (2.6%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (3.8%)								(n/a)																		$34,559
Lirio Montessori	Public, Charter	PK-K	3015 13th Ave S	Minneapolis	55407	Hennepin County	Minnesota Wildflower Montessori School	Yes	No	No	No	(612) 293-5314	3	0			0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																		$60,173
Cosmos Montessori	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	310 E 38th St	Minneapolis	55409	Hennepin County	Minnesota Wildflower Montessori School	Yes	No	No	No	(612) 444-2236	21	3	7.0	23.8%	14 (66.7%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (33.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																		$42,119
Sankofa Prep Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	2600 26th Ave S	Minneapolis	55406	Hennepin County	Harvest Best Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(857) 334-3135	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	3.4	855^th of 869 public elementary schools	1.6%					(n/a)			16.7				14.3	0.0		0.0			0.0				14.3

Frequently Asked Questions about Whittier Elementary

What district is Whittier Elementary in?

Minneapolis Public School District

What schools do graduates of Whittier Elementary attend?

Students who attend Whittier Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : South High

What is the racial makeup of Whittier Elementary?

Students at Whittier Elementary are 44% Hispanic, 30% African American, 12% White, 9% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 2% American Indian.

Is Whittier Elementary a good school?

Whittier Elementary ranks in the bottom 3.7% of Minnesota elementary schools.

How many students attend Whittier Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 491 students attended Whittier Elementary.

Rate Whittier 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.