Belgrade-brooten-elrosa Sec., Belgrade MN

Original Research by School Decision on Belgrade-brooten-elrosa Sec.

Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Secondary School serves grades six through twelve as the main secondary campus for a rural district of the same name. The school sits in Belgrade, a quiet small town at the junction of two highways in Stearns County. The community is a flat, compact agricultural hub with a slowly declining population, a volunteer fire department, a small museum, and a World’s Largest Black Crow statue in its centennial park. The housing market here is somewhat below the national benchmark and under the state’s typical home value, and the town contains limited commercial activity beyond the main routes. The secondary school is the only one in the district at this grade band, drawing students from the surrounding area.

Enrollment is modest and spans the full six-year range. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with a small share of Hispanic students and an even smaller number of Asian students on record. About two-fifths of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a proxy for household economic need that places this school in a mid-range bracket for the region. The district brief did not surface any recent changes or strategic initiatives with information we could confirm.

The state assessment results present a sharp split by subject and grade. In reading, sixth graders showed a strong proficiency rate, but seventh grade fell to a much lower level and eighth grade came in around the middle mark. Across all tested grades combined, the school’s reading proficiency sits near the middle. Math results are lower, with a similar pattern of sixth grade performing the strongest while seventh and eighth grades recorded much weaker outcomes. Schoolwide math proficiency across tested grades falls in a softer range. In eighth grade science, proficiency was low. Only a single year of assessment data is available, so there is no multi-year trend to compare. Parents should note that the reading drop between sixth and seventh grade is stark, and the math and science numbers overall are well below the state median for the county. The school would be worth a direct conversation about how it supports students moving into the upper middle grades and where targeted help is available.

The comparison against other districts in Stearns County places this school’s overall proficiency index below the midpoint of the cohort. The data did not include a graduation rate or chronic absenteeism figure, so some of the standard secondary-school benchmarks are missing. This may reflect the nature of the school’s reporting or data collection rather than a problem, but a parent might want to ask the school directly about its graduation outcomes and attendance patterns.

Programs, course access, and staffing details were not available in the data we used. There is no information on dual-credit, career and technical education, AP, or extracurricular offerings through the standard source. Families should look up the school’s course catalog and speak with the administration to understand what pathways are available, especially since a secondary school that ends at grade twelve can shape a student’s postsecondary options. The discipline record and special education rates were also not present.

This is a small rural secondary school that serves a stable, low-growth community. Literacy results are uneven across grades, with a strong starting point in sixth that does not hold in seventh. Math and science proficiency are areas a family would want to investigate. The school’s setting and size mean it likely provides a close-knit environment, but the academic profile suggests that students may need more support to reach higher levels of achievement, particularly in the middle school years. Without data on graduation rate, programs, and staffing, a thorough in-person visit and conversation with the principal would be a reasonable next step for any family considering this school.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=90%Cohort of 49 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

649 schools plotted. 88 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 637%

School 37% · District 37%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 713%

School 13% · District 13%

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 817%

School 17% · District 17%

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 673%

School 73% · District 73%

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 34 pts above county median

Grade 726%

School 26% · District 26%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 48%

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Science

Grade 87%

School 7% · District 7%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolBELGRADE-BROOTEN-ELROSA SCHOOL DIST, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income56%Higher-income87%31 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income7%Higher-income38%30 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income69%Higher-income39%30 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income11%Higher-income57%45 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income0%Higher-income21%21 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income0%Higher-income24%24 pp gap