The top reported proficiency rate is 14% in Math. The lowest is 9% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Hiawatha Leadership Acdy-northrop
Hiawatha Leadership Academy-Northrop is a charter school in Minneapolis that serves children from kindergarten through fourth grade. It is part of the Hiawatha Academies network, and its location in the city’s southern neighborhoods places it within a dense urban fabric with easy access to public transit, parks, and the cultural resources of the broader metro area.
The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a smaller share of Black students and very few from other racial backgrounds. The vast majority of families qualify for income-based meal programs, a pattern that often signals a high concentration of economic need in the community the school serves. Data on the share of students with disabilities or who are English learners was not reported, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those supports and how the school addresses them.
State testing results are available for the grades that take the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments: third and fourth graders in math and reading. The school’s proficiency rates in both subjects are low. In math, fewer than one in five students met the state standard in the most recent testing year; in reading, the rate was even lower. Among all districts in Hennepin County, the school’s overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quarter. Only a single year of data was available for this school, so it is not possible to say whether performance is trending up or down. Because the school ends at fourth grade, there is no graduation rate to consider.
The school’s program offerings, staffing ratios, discipline data, and attendance patterns were all absent from the available records. Parents considering this school may want to visit and ask about class sizes, enrichment or intervention programs, and how the school supports students who are behind grade level in reading and math.
The surrounding community of Minneapolis is a major urban center with a strong downtown core, a large university campus, and an extensive park system that includes dozens of lakes and miles of trails. The city is a hub for corporate headquarters, cultural institutions, and professional sports. The housing market in the school’s zip code shows typical home values that are below the national median, with rents that reflect the region’s cost of living. Public transit options include buses and light rail, and the city has a generally walkable core.
The parent district, Hiawatha Academies, does not appear to have announced notable recent changes that would affect this school in a substantial way.
This is a small elementary charter school serving a predominantly low-income and Hispanic community in an urban setting. The academic results from state testing are a clear concern, with proficiency rates well below what most families would expect. For a family looking at this school, a close conversation with the school leadership about instruction, support programs, and plans for improvement would be essential. The school’s narrow grade band means that families will also need to consider where their child would go for upper elementary grades and beyond.
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