Washington Elementary, Ely MN - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Washington Elementary

Washington Elementary serves students from prekindergarten through fifth grade in Ely, a small city that functions primarily as a gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The school is part of the Ely Public School District, which underwent a notable reorganization after a recent expansion project connected previously separate buildings. The district now operates two schools: Washington Elementary for kindergarten through fifth grade (plus prekindergarten) and Ely Memorial High School for grades six through twelve. This change reduced the number of administrators and shifted the configuration that families navigate—students move to a combined middle and high school campus after fifth grade.

On state assessments, the school’s results vary by subject and grade. In math, third and fourth graders demonstrated strong proficiency, with a substantial majority meeting standards. Fifth-grade math was lower, with a smaller share of students proficient. In English language arts, performance was more consistent: a majority of third, fourth, and fifth graders met the benchmark. In science, only about a third of fifth graders reached the proficient level. Overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades placed Washington Elementary among the stronger elementary schools when compared with other districts in St. Louis County. Because only one year of assessment data was available, there is no trend line to indicate whether performance is improving or declining.

The student body is small and predominantly white, with a small share of students identifying as two or more races and very few students of Asian or Hispanic background. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure that points to a moderate level of economic need in the community. Data on students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and English learners was not reported, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about special education supports and language services. The school is a regular public school, not a charter, and is not identified as a magnet or Title I school.

Ely itself has an economy that relies heavily on tourism, with numerous outfitters, outdoor clothing stores, and restaurants concentrated on a compact main street. The town sits on Shagawa Lake within the Superior National Forest, and its residential streets give way quickly to wilderness. Once a mining hub with several iron ore mines operating nearby, Ely saw its last mine close decades ago, and an aging population and steady population decline have shaped the community in recent years. Housing values in Ely are modest relative to state and national benchmarks, and the area has not seen major new housing developments. The most prominent recent development controversy involved a proposed copper-nickel mine near the Boundary Waters, but federal leases were canceled in early 2022.

For parents, Washington Elementary offers a small-school setting in a town where outdoor recreation defines daily life. The academic picture is strongest in the primary grades, especially in math, with a noticeable drop-off in fifth-grade math and science performance that may warrant attention. The district’s recent building expansion and grade reorganization are now settled, so families can expect a consistent pathway from this elementary school to the combined high school campus. The lack of multi-year academic data and the missing information on special education and English learner programs are gaps a prospective parent may want to explore further with the school or district.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 69%

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

Grade 468%

School 68% · District 68%

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

Grade 541%

School 41% · District 41%

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

English language arts

Grade 367%

School 67% · District 67%

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

Grade 463%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 566%

School 66% · District 66%

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

Science

Grade 536%

School 36% · District 36%

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

This schoolELY 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-income69%Higher-income65%4 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income56%Higher-income68%12 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income76%31 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income56%Higher-income56%0 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income67%Higher-income71%4 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income60%Higher-income74%14 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income25%Higher-income50%25 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income56%Higher-income44%12 pp gap