Parker Elementary, Elk River MN - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Parker Elementary

Parker Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Elk River, part of the Elk River Public School District. It is a regular public school, not a charter, and sits within Sherburne County, a stretch of the northern Twin Cities exurbs that grew rapidly through the 1990s and continues to see population increase.

The school enrolls a student body that is predominantly white, with small shares of students who are Black, two or more races, Hispanic, and Asian. About a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of moderate economic diversity. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available, a gap a parent may want to ask the school about directly.

On state assessments for the most recent school year, Parker’s results in math and reading sit at a level that positions it well among its peers. Compared with other districts in Sherburne County, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grade levels places it in the top quarter. In math, proficiency rates across grades three, four, and five cluster together, with grade three standing a bit higher than the others. In reading, the pattern is upward: proficiency in grade three is lower, grade four climbs, and grade five reaches a noticeably higher rate. Science results for grade five, the only tested grade in that subject, are lower than the math and reading figures. Because the state changed the science assessment and its cut scores in this period, a direct comparison with prior years is not possible, so the science number stands on its own without a trend line.

Only a single year of schoolwide data was available, meaning there is no multi-year trend to confirm whether these results represent a stable pattern or a single snapshot. A parent may want to ask the school how current performance compares with past years.

Parker is housed in a school building on School Street in Elk River, a city that serves as the Sherburne County seat and functions partly as a commuter suburb of Minneapolis. The city has a historic downtown, extensive paved trail systems, and a mix of manufacturing, health care, and retail employers. Housing in the zip code is somewhat above the state average, with a typical home value and rent that reflect the area’s demand as a growing exurb. That growth context matters: the district recently faced budget pressures and approved staffing reductions for the 2024-2025 school year, a development that could affect class sizes and program support at individual schools, including Parker.

The district has also expanded a permanent full-time online learning option, Online728, giving families a lasting alternative to in-person instruction. In November 2024, voters approved a capital projects levy for technology, safety, and facility maintenance, which provides ongoing funding for those areas. These district-level decisions create the backdrop for what Parker can offer day to day.

There is no data on discipline, chronic absenteeism, or course access for Parker, so those dimensions of school climate cannot be characterized here. The school serves only elementary grades, so there is no graduation rate. For a family weighing this school, the academic picture shows a school performing above the county median in tested subjects, with a notable jump in upper-grade reading proficiency, set within a district that is adapting to enrollment and budget shifts while also investing in infrastructure.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 73% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Grade 462%

School 62% · District 72% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▲ 11 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 563%

School 63% · District 58% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 352%

School 52% · District 61% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Grade 464%

School 64% · District 60% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 575%

School 75% · District 71% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 530%

School 30% · District 33% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

This schoolElk River 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-income47%Higher-income54%7 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income65%Higher-income64%1 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income61%Higher-income81%21 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income56%Higher-income74%18 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income48%Higher-income67%19 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income57%Higher-income65%8 pp gap