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Ellison Elementary

Q: Is Ellison Elementary a good school?

Ellison Elementary ranks 139 th of 900 Missouri elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

139^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 900 Missouri Elementary Schools

Better than 85% of Missouri elementary schools

Summary

Ellison Elementary is a public elementary school located in Saint Joseph, Missouri, serving grades K-6 with a total enrollment of 360 students. The school is part of the St. Joseph School District, which is ranked 218 out of 367 districts in Missouri and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Ellison Elementary consistently ranks among the top elementary schools in Missouri, with a statewide ranking between 53 and 139 over the past several years. The school's students perform significantly better than the district and state averages on the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) tests in Mathematics, Science, and English Language Arts across all grade levels. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, Ellison Elementary's 6th-grade students scored 84.3% proficient or better in Mathematics, compared to 46.7% for the St. Joseph district and 45.5% for the state of Missouri. Ellison Elementary's White students and Low Socioeconomic Status (SES) students consistently outperform their peers in the state, with rankings in the top 25% and top 40% of Missouri elementary schools, respectively.

While Ellison Elementary's academic performance is impressive, the school has experienced fluctuations in chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 10.9% to 29.5% over the past few years. This is an area of concern that requires further investigation. In comparison to the nearby Avenue City Elementary School, which is ranked among the top 25 elementary schools in Missouri, Ellison Elementary performs well academically but falls short in terms of chronic absenteeism and socioeconomic status. Avenue City Elementary has significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates and a lower percentage of free and reduced-price lunch recipients.

343

Students ?

14.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,527

Per pupil spending ?

38.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

45 SE 85th Rd
Saint Joseph, MO 64507-8759

(816) 667-5316

District: St. Joseph

Racial breakdown:

White:

65.0%

Two or more races:

12.0%

African American:

9.0%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 86th percentile in 2015 → 85th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Missouri average (61% vs 42% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 15% of Missouri elementary schools

✓Among the top-ranked schools in St. Joseph

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school61%

District avg37%

Missouri avg42%

139^th of 900

Missouri public elementary schools ?

Top 15%▼ down 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Missouri Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 13Elementary Schools in the St. Joseph

218^th of 367St. Joseph among Missouri districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	82.5	139 of 900	84.6%	★★★★☆
2024	86.6	85 of 906	90.6%	★★★★★
2023	83.5	119 of 898	86.7%	★★★★☆
2022	90.8	53 of 908	94.2%	★★★★★
2021	87.1	90 of 901	90.0%	★★★★★
2019	70.4	257 of 1052	75.6%	★★★★☆
2018	80.8	151 of 1045	85.6%	★★★★☆
2017	72.5	251 of 1032	75.7%	★★★★☆
2016	79.8	153 of 865	82.3%	★★★★☆
2015	82.3	148 of 1058	86.0%	★★★★☆
2014	87.4	79 of 1089	92.7%	★★★★★
2013	88.2	65 of 1108	94.1%	★★★★★
2012	89.2	51 of 1085	95.3%	★★★★★
2011	83.2	110 of 1088	89.9%	★★★★☆
2010	84.1	101 of 1066	90.5%	★★★★★
2009	85.1	99 of 1053	90.6%	★★★★★
2008	80.4	132 of 1084	87.8%	★★★★☆
2007	91.7	21 of 1080	98.1%	★★★★★
2006	95.5	10 of 1074	99.1%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	74.1	108 of 638	83.1%	★★★★☆
2023	55.8	222 of 611	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.7	254 of 907	72.0%	★★★★☆
2018	75.7	126 of 887	85.8%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Missouri percentile	Rating
2025	84.2	87 of 666	86.9%	★★★★☆
2024	84.3	76 of 668	88.6%	★★★★☆
2023	83.7	86 of 673	87.2%	★★★★☆
2022	89.0	50 of 675	92.6%	★★★★★
2021	88.3	61 of 691	91.2%	★★★★★
2019	69.4	232 of 917	74.7%	★★★★☆
2018	84.4	99 of 898	89.0%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

White (2025)87th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)83rd percentile~ school

By subject vs Missouri (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics66%+24 vs state

Science58%+16 vs state

English Language Arts57%+14 vs state

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Schools Near Ellison Elementary

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MAP Mathematics (2025)						MAP Science (2025)		MAP English Language Arts (2025)					Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MAP Mathematics 3rd Grade	MAP Mathematics 4th Grade	MAP Mathematics 5th Grade	MAP Mathematics 6th Grade	MAP Mathematics 7th Grade	MAP Mathematics 8th Grade	MAP Science 5th Grade	MAP Science 8th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MAP English Language Arts 4th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 5th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 6th Grade	MAP English Language Arts 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Ellison Elementary	Public	K-6	45 SE 85th Rd	Saint Joseph	64507	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	No	(816) 667-5316	343	23	14.6	38.2%	223 (65.0%)	31 (9.0%)	28 (8.2%)	17 (5.0%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (12.0%)	82.5	139^th of 900 public elementary schools	84.6%		86.6	85^th of 906 public elementary schools	90.6%	54	54.9	60.8	64.3	84.3			57.7		48.3	57.7	48.8	72.5		$13,527	$503	$13,024
Oak Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	4901 Cook Rd	Saint Joseph	64505	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	No	(816) 671-4290	502	35	14.3	32.9%	304 (60.6%)	50 (10.0%)	62 (12.4%)	37 (7.4%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.6%)	41 (8.2%)	81.3	149^th of 900 public elementary schools	83.4%		81.4	143^rd of 906 public elementary schools	84.2%	6	67.5	68.0	43.2	65.3			49.2		55.6	61.6	50.7	57.6		$15,486	$980	$14,506
Skaith Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	4701 Schoolside Ln	Saint Joseph	64503	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	No	(816) 671-4370	398	28	14.1	100.0%	234 (58.8%)	32 (8.0%)	51 (12.8%)	5 (1.3%)	3 (0.8%)	4 (1.0%)	69 (17.3%)	33	641^st of 900 public elementary schools	28.8%		36.3	596^th of 906 public elementary schools	34.2%	45	42.8	36.3	14.1	38.8			15.9		41.7	32.6	26.2			$13,424	$466	$12,958
Pickett Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	3923 Pickett Rd	Saint Joseph	64503	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	Yes	(816) 671-4330	250	22	11.2	100.0%	166 (66.4%)	11 (4.4%)	28 (11.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.0%)	40 (16.0%)	38.3	586^th of 900 public elementary schools	34.9%		44.3	517^th of 906 public elementary schools	42.9%	69	32.3	42.2	14.4	51.5			20.1		44.0					$15,041	$502	$14,539
Coleman Elementary	Public	K-6	3312 Beck Rd	Saint Joseph	64506	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	Yes	(816) 671-4100	388	32	12.2	100.0%	194 (50.0%)	33 (8.5%)	51 (13.1%)	7 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (10.8%)	61 (15.7%)	34.5	623^rd of 900 public elementary schools	30.8%		28.2	674^th of 906 public elementary schools	25.6%	51	30.1	23.3	30.0	43.8			39.9		23.0	15.1	37.2	37.4		$13,874	$279	$13,595
Parkway Elementary	Public	K-6	2900 Duncan	Saint Joseph	64507	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	Yes	(816) 671-4310	438	32	13.6	100.0%	268 (61.2%)	11 (2.5%)	74 (16.9%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (3.0%)	67 (15.3%)	23.9	708^th of 900 public elementary schools	21.3%		19.1	740^th of 906 public elementary schools	18.3%	32	18.6	20.7	21.6	30.4			27.6		24.6	19.4	42.1			$12,762	$328	$12,435
Field Elementary	Public	K-6	2602 Gene Field	Saint Joseph	64506	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	No	(816) 671-4130	336	21	15.8	52.4%	207 (61.6%)	12 (3.6%)	39 (11.6%)	18 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.1%)	53 (15.8%)	79.8	160^th of 900 public elementary schools	82.2%		74.9	197^th of 906 public elementary schools	78.3%	37	68.0	47.7	47.3	73.1			56.0		58.1		56.1			$13,155	$643	$12,512
Edison Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	515 N 22nd	Saint Joseph	64501	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	Yes	(816) 671-4110	362	31	11.5	100.0%	177 (48.9%)	45 (12.4%)	69 (19.1%)	3 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.0%)	50 (13.8%)	37.8	591^st of 900 public elementary schools	34.3%		27	681^st of 906 public elementary schools	24.8%	90	45.0	43.5	13.5				27.4		59.1		21.5	28.3		$13,988	$689	$13,299
Avenue City Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	18069 Hwy 169	Cosby	64436	Andrew County	Avenue City R-Ix	No	No	No	Yes	(816) 662-2305	229	18	12.8	11.8%	218 (95.2%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.6%)	96.5	18^th of 900 public elementary schools	98.0%					(n/a)	85.1	68.7		76.0	70.0	73.3		82.3		87.5	76.0		94.0	$10,075	$369	$9,707
Pershing Elementary	Public	K-6	2610 Blackwell Rd	Saint Joseph	64505	Buchanan County	St. Joseph	No	No	No	No	(816) 671-4320	285	21	13.8	100.0%	202 (70.9%)	14 (4.9%)	32 (11.2%)	4 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	32 (11.2%)	62.7	334^th of 900 public elementary schools	62.9%		59.1	359^th of 906 public elementary schools	60.4%	25	38.8	59.5	29.0	62.1					30.7	46.7	54.0	52.7		$13,989	$848	$13,142

Frequently Asked Questions about Ellison Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Ellison Elementary?

Students at Ellison Elementary are 65% White, 12% Two or more races, 9% African American, 8% Hispanic, 5% Asian.

What district is Ellison Elementary in?

St. Joseph

How many students attend Ellison Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 343 students attended Ellison Elementary.

Is Ellison Elementary a good school?

Ellison Elementary ranks 139^th of 900 Missouri elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate Ellison Elementary!

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Schools in Saint Joseph, MO

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.