Summary:
ZIP code 55053 covers Nerstrand, Minnesota, a small community in Rice County, and it contains exactly one school: Nerstrand Charter School, an elementary school serving grades K–5 with 102 students. It operates as its own single-school Nerstrand Charter School district, so the school and the district are the same entity and every district figure duplicates the school figure. There is no middle school, high school, or alternative program in this ZIP; families must look elsewhere after 5th grade to continue their child's education.
Academically, the school performs well above Minnesota averages. In 2025-26, math proficiency was 63.3% versus 44.9% statewide (18.4 points higher), reading was 61.7% versus 48.6% (13.1 points higher), and science was 30.0% versus 25.5% (4.5 points higher). It beat the state in all eight reported grade-and-subject cells, with the biggest edges in 3rd grade: 77.3% in math (+19.4 points) and 68.2% in reading (+21.4 points). Statewide, the school ranked 207th of 869 schools — the 76th percentile with 4 stars — up from 302nd of 872 (65th percentile, 3 stars) the year before, and above its 2023-24 position of 258th of 881.
Two cautions matter. Science is the school's narrowest margin and the only subject that lost ground year over year, slipping 5.7 points while its lead over the state shrank from 9.6 to 4.5 points. Also, with roughly 17 students per grade, one student's result can move a grade-level percentage by about 6 points, so single-year swings — including the rank jump — may reflect cohort variation rather than a real change. Context: 23.53% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch and the student-teacher ratio is 13.6.
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