Summary:
ZIP code 56738 contains just one elementary school — Newfolden Elementary — a 93-student school serving grades 2 through 4 at 305 W Minnesota Ave in Newfolden, Minnesota, and operating as part of Marshall County Central Schools.
Since it is the only elementary school in the area, Newfolden Elementary sets the local benchmark on its own. Math is its clearest strength: in 2025–2026, all-grade math proficiency was 61.3%, which is 21.9 points above the district's 39.4% and 16.4 points above the state's 44.9%. Reading showed a major turnaround. After sitting at 46.97% in 2024–2025 — below both the district (53.7%) and the state (49.59%) — reading climbed to 58.1% in 2025–2026, now above the district's 47.6% and the state's 48.6%. That is an 11.13-point gain in a single year. The school's state rank also improved to 303 of 869 (65th percentile) in 2025–2026, up 79 places from the prior year, though its star rating held steady at 3 stars across all three reported years.
Looking inside the grades, the results are uneven. Third grade is the standout: 81.5% proficiency in math (23.6 points above the state) and 77.8% in reading (31.0 points above the state) — the strongest figures in the data set. Fourth grade is the weak spot, with 45.7% in math (9.5 points below the state) and 42.9% in reading (5.9 points below the state). Because the all-grade scores blend these two very different cohorts, the school-wide numbers can mask what is happening in a given classroom. With only 93 students and tests covering grades 3 and 4, grade-level percentages rest on small groups, so single-year swings deserve caution. Additionally, 44.09% of students qualified for free/reduced lunch in 2024–2025, a figure from a different school year than the test scores, so comparisons should be made carefully.
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