The top reported proficiency rate is 81% in Math. The lowest is 45% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Normandale Elementary
Normandale Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Edina, a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis. The school sits within Edina Public School District, a system that in recent years has made several structural changes families enrolling here will want to know about. The district extended the elementary school day starting in 2024-25, adding roughly the equivalent of several weeks of instruction annually, with dedicated blocks for science, social studies, and intervention or enrichment. That same school year, the district approved a substantial round of budget reductions tied to the expiration of federal pandemic aid and ongoing enrollment decline, which led to staffing cuts across schools. For a median-value Edina home, the school district portion of property taxes rose as well. These are real pressures that affect the operating reality of any school in the system, including Normandale.
On state assessments, Normandale’s results place it well above typical performance levels for a school serving these grades. The school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades ranks in the top quartile among elementary schools in Hennepin County, according to available comparison data. That is a strong signal. Looking at the details by grade and subject, math proficiency was very high in third and fourth grade, then dipped in fifth grade. English language arts proficiency was solid across all tested grades, with fifth grade reaching a particularly high level. Science is tested only in fifth grade, and the proficiency rate there was lower than the school’s performance in math and reading. That gap is something a parent may want to ask the school about, especially since the extended elementary day now adds more science time.
The student body is predominantly white, with smaller shares of Hispanic, Asian, two or more races, and Black students. A very small share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the affluent community that the school serves. The school is not a Title I school, and the poverty rate among families is very low. Edina itself is a high-cost housing market; home values are well above state and national medians, and rents are correspondingly high. The city is nearly built out, with modest population growth projected, and it is car-dependent with auto-oriented circulation divided by highways. For families considering moving into the attendance area, the combination of high housing costs and a high-performing elementary school is a central feature of the decision.
The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. There is no publicly reported information on gifted programs, special education, or English learner services at the school level, so those are gaps a parent would need to explore directly with the school or district. The district does offer a full-time online program for high school students, but that is not relevant for an elementary family.
Normandale’s enrollment is substantial for an elementary school, with each grade from kindergarten through fifth grade having a roughly similar number of students. The school day now starts earlier at 7:50 a.m. with dismissal at 2:35 p.m., a change that families with young children will need to factor into their routines. The overall environment is one of high academic expectations in a well-resourced community, with the caveat that the district is managing budget constraints and enrollment decline that may continue to affect class sizes and offerings in the years ahead. The proficiency results, particularly the dip in upper-elementary math and science, are mild relative to statewide norms but worth attention for a school whose reputation rests on strong outcomes. Parents choosing Normandale are likely to find a school that delivers a rigorous academic baseline in a stable, low-poverty setting, with the understanding that the district is navigating fiscal headwinds and that the community’s high housing costs are a practical barrier for many. The available data does not include measures of chronic absenteeism or discipline, so those dimensions of school climate remain uncharacterized here.
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