Modern Montessori Charter School, Champlin MN

Original Research by School Decision on Modern Montessori Charter School

Modern Montessori Charter School is a public charter school in Champlin, a northern suburb of Minneapolis. It serves students in preschool through seventh grade and is classified as a regular school. The school opened in a former elementary school building, bringing a Montessori program integrated with STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) to the community. The school is its own district, so there is no larger district administration or board beyond the charter's own.

For a parent considering this school, the single most defining feature is the Montessori approach. Classrooms are multiage, students learn at their own pace, and the curriculum is hands-on and self-directed, with a stated emphasis on weaving technology and engineering into the traditional Montessori model. This is a deliberate choice about pedagogy. Families who want a Montessori environment in a suburban setting will find that here; families who want a more traditional, teacher-led classroom will not.

The student body is small for a school serving these grade levels. Demographically, the population is predominantly white, with small shares of students who are two or more races, Black, Hispanic, Asian, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate that suggests a modest share of families with lower incomes. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available.

State testing results offer a mixed picture. In English language arts, proficiency rates across tested grades fell below the state average. The same was true in math, where proficiency rates were lower still, with the highest rate among tested grades still below half of students meeting the standard. In science, the one grade for which data was reported, the proficiency rate was also low; the eighth-grade science result was suppressed due to a very small number of test-takers. The overall proficiency index places this school slightly above the midpoint among districts in Hennepin County, which is a large and varied comparison set. Still, a parent should note that the school's own state assessment numbers are weak, particularly in math, and may want to discuss with the school how the Montessori curriculum aligns with state standards and test preparation.

Because the school only serves up to seventh grade, it does not have a graduation rate. This also means that families will need to plan for a transition after seventh grade, likely into one of Champlin's traditional public schools in the Anoka-Hennepin district or another option.

Champlin itself is a car-oriented suburb with a commercial corridor along the highway and no traditional downtown. Schools, including this one, are located on separated campuses. The city's population saw a small decline between the 2020 census and a recent estimate. Housing values in Champlin's ZIP code are above the statewide median, and rent is at a similar level, reflecting a market that is not inexpensive by Minnesota standards.

Academically, this school offers a distinctive Montessori model in a community with limited school choice beyond the large Anoka-Hennepin district. The test results are a soft spot that a parent will want to explore directly with the school. For a family committed to Montessori education and comfortable with a small school environment where state test scores are below average, this could be a fit. For a family whose priority is high standardized test performance or a traditional academic structure, it likely is not.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 332%

School 32% · District 32%

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 423%

School 23% · District 23%

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 625%

School 25% · District 25%

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 740%

School 40% · District 40%

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 80%

School 0% · district not reported

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 36%

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

Grade 428%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 40%

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

Grade 650%

School 50% · District 50%

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 50%

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 80%

School 0% · district not reported

▼ 36 pts below state median · ▼ 37 pts below county median

Science

Grade 520%

School 20% · District 20%

▼ 4 pts below state median · even with county median

This schoolModern Montessori Charter School, 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.