Lincoln Elementary, Hibbing MN - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Lincoln Elementary

Lincoln Elementary is a regular public school in the Hibbing Public School District serving second through sixth grade. Its enrollment is substantial for an elementary and middle-grades building, drawing a student body that is primarily white, with a smaller share of students identifying as two or more races, and still smaller shares who are Hispanic, Black, or American Indian or Alaska Native. More than half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate that signals a substantial low-income population. The school’s location in the city of Hibbing places it in a community with a heavy industrial footprint, shaped by the iron ore mining of the Mesabi Iron Range. The world’s largest open-pit iron mine sits at the edge of town, and mining remains the primary economic driver. Hibbing’s population has been relatively stable but has seen a modest, gradual decline in recent years. Housing in the area, based on recent estimates, is priced well below state and national benchmarks, making it more accessible on a typical income.

State testing results from the most recent school year show a mixed picture across subjects and grade levels. In reading, fourth-grade and fifth-grade proficiency rates were above the midpoint among assessed grades, with a stronger showing in fifth grade. Sixth-grade reading results were also above the midpoint. For mathematics, proficiency rates were more uneven. Fourth-grade math was comparatively strong relative to the school’s other grade levels, but fifth-grade math and sixth-grade math were lower. The school’s single year of trend data means there is no prior year against which to measure improvement or decline. Overall, across tested subjects and grades, the school’s proficiency index sits above the midpoint when compared to other districts in St. Louis County, though the index masks a notable range between stronger reading results and weaker math performance. Parents considering the school should expect that academic outcomes will vary considerably by subject and grade level, and they may want to ask directly about supports in mathematics. Discipline data, chronic absenteeism, and staffing ratios were not available, so those dimensions of school climate are not part of this picture.

The building serves a grade band that starts at second grade, meaning younger students begin their elementary experience at another school in the district. By second through sixth grade, students are in a middle-tier school that likely feeds into a dedicated middle school or junior high after sixth grade. Because the school does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report. No charter or magnet designation is indicated. Title I status was not available from the data, but given the share of students from low-income households, it is plausible that the school receives federal funding for supplemental academic support. Civil rights data on discipline, advanced coursework access, and staffing equity were not available, leaving a gap for any family focused on those areas.

Hibbing itself offers a mix of residential and commercial areas with a historic downtown core. The city is home to a two-year community and technical college, a revived historic high school building that is a community landmark, and a collection of museums including the Greyhound Bus Museum and a Bob Dylan collection. Civic anchors like city hall and nearby McCarthy Beach State Park provide local amenities. District-level strategic changes or new programs have not been publicly documented in recent years, so a family looking for a school in flux or one pursuing a particular reform should note that the public record is quiet on that front. Lincoln Elementary offers a straightforward, conventional academic program in a small city where housing is affordable and the mining economy remains central. It fits a family seeking a mid-sized school with a low-income student population in a stable, industrial, northern Minnesota community, where reading performance is more consistently solid than math.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 57%

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

Grade 537%

School 37% · District 37%

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 649%

School 49% · District 49%

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

Grade 729%

School 29% · District 29%

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

English language arts

Grade 447%

School 47% · District 47%

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

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 64%

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

Grade 668%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 737%

School 37% · District 37%

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

Science

Grade 525%

School 25% · District 25%

even with state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

This schoolHIBBING 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-income43%Higher-income61%18 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income38%Higher-income55%17 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income55%Higher-income75%20 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income60%Higher-income74%14 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income28%Higher-income46%18 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income64%Higher-income85%21 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income50%Higher-income63%13 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income28%Higher-income47%19 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income27%Higher-income66%39 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income15%Higher-income42%28 pp gap