Summary:
ZIP code 56215 covers Benson, Minnesota, and includes four schools — one elementary and three high schools serving grades PK through 12 — all within the Benson Public School District, which enrolls 760 students and ranks 309 of 458 Minnesota districts (33rd percentile, 2 stars). Northside Elementary (PK–5) and Benson Secondary (6–12) dominate enrollment with 725 of 760 students, roughly 95%. Heartland Girls Ranch (7–12, 22 students) and Benson Area Learning Center (7–12, 13 students) are very small specialized settings. There is no separate middle school; grades 6–8 sit inside Benson Secondary.
Northside Elementary is the academic bright spot, especially in math. Its all-grades math proficiency is 51.1%, above the district's 36.5% and the state's 44.9%, and third-grade math reaches 76.1% versus 57.9% statewide. Reading is 46.8%, close to the state's 48.6%. Science is its weak point at 13.5% against 25.5% statewide. Its rank improved from the 37th to the 44th percentile, still a 2-star school. Benson Secondary shows the opposite pattern: a 97.5% graduation rate and 0.0% dropout rate, well above the state's 84.9% and 4.2%, but lower proficiency — 26.6% in math, 35.9% in reading, and 13.0% in science. Its rank slipped to 341/473, the 28th percentile, 1 star.
The two smallest schools have limited data. Heartland Girls Ranch has the highest poverty indicator (86.36% free/reduced lunch) and lowest student/teacher ratio (7.7); for 2025–26 its math score is suppressed while reading and science were reported at 0%, and many grade-level scores are suppressed, though its 2024–25 science result was 25%. The ALC has all current test scores suppressed, but reports 100.0% graduation and 0.0% dropout for 2024–25, with a 25.4 student/teacher ratio. District-wide, science is the clearest gap at 13.0% versus 25.5% statewide.
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