Summary:
ZIP code 56579 serves the small rural western Minnesota community of Rothsay, where two public schools, Rothsay Elementary (PK–6, 194 students) and Rothsay Secondary (7–12, 140 students), operate under the Rothsay Public School District for a combined 334 students, with no standalone middle school or alternative school in the area.
Rothsay Elementary is the academic standout, with 55.7% of students proficient in math and 53.6% in reading for 2025–2026, above both district (50% and 48.4%) and state (44.9% and 48.6%) averages. Rothsay Secondary trails in every subject: 41.3% in math, 39.7% in reading, and 15% in science, all below district and state marks. Yet the secondary school shines on completion measures, posting a 95.6% graduation rate and a 0.0% dropout rate, far better than the state's 84.9% and 4.2%. Grade-level results show bright spots, including 3rd grade math at 72.2%, 5th grade reading at 66.7%, 8th grade math at 52.4%, and 11th grade math at 45.8%, alongside weak spots, especially 7th grade math (22.2%) and 7th grade reading (27.8%).
Science is the most consistent weakness across the ZIP, with both schools below the state's 25.5% proficiency mark. In the rankings, both schools hold 3 stars: Rothsay Elementary at the 64th percentile (309 of 869) and Rothsay Secondary at the 54th percentile (218 of 473), while the Rothsay Public School District ranks 183 of 458, or the 60th percentile. Rankings have shifted over three years: the elementary school peaked at 4 stars and the 71st percentile in 2023–2024 before settling into the low-to-mid 60s, and the secondary school climbed from 2 stars at the 50th percentile to 3 stars. Elementary students have a higher free/reduced lunch rate (30.41%) than secondary students (25.71%), and student–teacher ratios are similar (14.7 and 15.3). With only 334 students district-wide, small cohorts mean grade-level percentages can swing widely from year to year.
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