Summary:
Zip code 56523 has two public schools, both in the Climax-Shelly Public Schools district and housed at the same address in Climax, Minnesota. Climax Secondary serves grades 6–12 with 94 students, and Climax Elementary serves grades PK–5 with 65 students, for a combined enrollment of 159. The district ranks 419th of 458 in Minnesota (9th percentile, 0 stars), and that district rating applies to both schools.
The two schools show opposite relative strengths. Climax Secondary is the stronger reader: 26.8% of all grades were proficient in reading in 2025–2026, above the district's 22.4% and above Climax Elementary's 17.1%, though both trail the state's 48.6%; 10th-grade reading was 27.3%, still below the state's 42.5%. Climax Elementary, by contrast, leads in math at 20%, ahead of the district's 13.5% and Climax Secondary's 7.7%, but far under the state's 44.9%; its 3rd-grade math of 36.4% is the highest grade-level figure in the zip. Climax Secondary's rank improved to 377 of 473 (20th percentile, 1 star) from 421 of 450 (6th percentile, 0 stars).
Other measures highlight challenges. Climax Secondary's math proficiency was 7.7% and science 8.7%, with 8th-grade science at 0%; its graduation rate was 78.5% versus 84.9% statewide, and its dropout rate 7.1% versus 4.2%. Climax Elementary's reading was 17.1% across grades, with grade-level results from 15.4% to 18.2%, and 5th-grade math was 0%. Poverty indicators are high, especially at the elementary school (73.85% free/reduced lunch versus 58.51% at the secondary school). Climax Elementary's student-teacher ratio of 8.8 is lower than Climax Secondary's 13, yet its reading outcomes are not stronger. With enrollments of only 94 and 65, grade-level percentages can swing sharply, and some 2025–2026 results are suppressed rather than zero.
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