Step Academy 6-12 - Burnsville, Burnsville MN

Original Research by School Decision on Step Academy 6-12 - Burnsville

STEP Academy 6-12 - Burnsville is a charter school serving grades six through eight, located in a southern suburb of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Burnsville itself grew rapidly from a farming community into a bedroom suburb, and it is now considered largely built out. Recent development has centered on redevelopment projects like the Heart of the City district, which brings an urban-style downtown with retail and a performing arts center to an otherwise car-dependent landscape. The school sits within this suburban environment, drawing from a community that includes families who work at the school district itself, Fairview Ridges Hospital, and a range of other employers. The school's district, STEP Academy, is a single-school charter authorizer.

The school is small. Its enrollment is concentrated in the three middle school grades, with the largest group in sixth grade and smaller cohorts in seventh and eighth. The student body is entirely Black. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not reported. This is a common gap for a small charter that may not have significant populations in those categories, but a parent interested in special education services or language support would want to ask the school directly.

Academically, performance on the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments varies by subject and grade. Across tested grades, proficiency in math is low, and science proficiency at grade eight is lower still. Reading and language arts results are stronger, with a portion of students meeting the standard in grades six and eight, though seventh grade shows a drop. Because the school has only one year of state testing data available, it is not possible to see a trend. When compared with other districts in Dakota County, the school sits in the bottom quartile for overall proficiency. This is a challenging academic picture, and parents considering the school may want to learn about the instructional supports and interventions in place.

There is no graduation rate because the school does not serve high school grades. Chronic absenteeism data was not available, so it is unclear how attendance patterns affect the learning environment. The district brief turned up no major recent changes or initiatives at the district level that would shape the school’s direction. The school's charter status means it operates with some independence from the local public school district, and parents should confirm how it handles transportation, special education, and any enrollment preferences, as these can vary from one charter to the next.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 621%

School 21% · District 9% · ▲ 12 pts above district

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

Grade 713%

School 13% · District 7% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 816%

School 16% · District 22% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 39% · ▲ 7 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 724%

School 24% · District 22% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 46% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Science

Grade 87%

School 7% · District 12% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

This schoolSTEP Academy, 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.