Poplar Bridge Elementary, Bloomington MN

Original Research by School Decision on Poplar Bridge Elementary

Poplar Bridge Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Bloomington, a large post-World War II suburb of Minneapolis that has more jobs per capita than either Minneapolis or Saint Paul. The city is car-oriented, connected to the urban street grid, and serviced by multiple freeways and light rail. About a third of Bloomington is reserved for parkland. The school sits within the Bloomington Public School District, which has a Computer Science Immersion program for elementary and middle school students in partnership with the University of Minnesota, integrating computer science across other subjects.

The school enrolls a mid-sized student body for an elementary school. The student population is predominantly white, with a Hispanic share and a Black share that are both smaller but notable, along with smaller Asian and multiracial shares. About a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker the state uses to indicate economic disadvantage. Data on the share of students with individualized education plans or English learner status was not available in the materials reviewed.

On the Minnesota state assessments, Poplar Bridge Elementary shows a mixed academic picture across grades and subjects. In math, proficiency falls within a wide range depending on the grade level, with some grades performing well above others. In English language arts, the pattern is more consistent, with a modest majority of students meeting proficiency standards across the tested grades. Science results, tested only in fifth grade, show that a minority of students reached the proficient level; the state introduced a new assessment and cut scores for science in the testing year, so trend comparisons are not yet possible. Overall, when combining all tested subjects and grades, the school’s proficiency index places it in the top quartile among elementary schools in Hennepin County, a large and diverse county that includes Minneapolis, its inner suburbs, and many wealthier communities. That top-quartile position reflects the fact that the school’s ELA proficiency, in particular, holds above the county median, while math performance is more variable by grade.

Because Poplar Bridge is an elementary school, there is no graduation rate to report. Chronic absenteeism data was not available in the materials provided, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about attendance patterns.

The district recently launched New Code Academy, a fully online K-12 option taught by licensed district teachers and open to any Minnesota family, giving residents a permanent virtual learning alternative. The Bloomington Career and College Academy allows high school students to earn college credit while in high school, but that program serves older students and does not directly affect the elementary experience. At the elementary level, the Computer Science Immersion program is the most distinctive offering, something a family interested in early STEM exposure may want to investigate further.

Housing in the area is priced at a level that is somewhat above the state typical home value but below the most expensive inner-ring suburbs of Minneapolis. Rents have been rising modestly. The national mortgage rate context has been elevated, which affects affordability for buyers across the region.

A parent considering Poplar Bridge will find a school in a large, employment-rich suburb with extensive parkland and transit access, whose overall academic performance on state tests falls in the top quarter of its county, but where per-grade results vary enough that a closer look at specific grade-level outcomes may be worthwhile. The district has made a deliberate investment in computer science integration at the elementary level, which families who value that emphasis will notice, while the mix of economic backgrounds among students is typical of a suburban school with a moderate share of low-income enrollment.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 355%

School 55% · District 48% · ▲ 7 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 466%

School 66% · District 46% · ▲ 20 pts above district

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

Grade 537%

School 37% · District 35% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 354%

School 54% · District 40% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 452%

School 52% · District 41% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 50% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 536%

School 36% · District 25% · ▲ 12 pts above district

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

This schoolBLOOMINGTON PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT, 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 3Lower-income30%Higher-income62%32 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income24%Higher-income70%46 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income32%Higher-income71%38 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income22%Higher-income67%46 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income32%Higher-income89%57 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income16%Higher-income48%32 pp gap