Hilltop Elementary, Inver Grove Heights MN

Original Research by School Decision on Hilltop Elementary

Hilltop Elementary is a regular public school in Inver Grove Heights, part of Inver Grove Heights Schools, serving students from prekindergarten through fifth grade. The school enrolls a student body that reflects the surrounding suburban community’s diversity. White students make up the largest share, followed by a substantial Hispanic population, then Black students, and a meaningful number of students of two or more races. Asian and American Indian students are also present in smaller numbers. More than half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, indicating a significant share of families with lower household incomes. Data on the share of students with individualized education plans or English learner status was not available for this report, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those support services.

On state assessments, Hilltop’s results sit below many other elementary schools in Dakota County. Across tested grades and subjects, the school’s overall proficiency index lands in the bottom quartile when compared with other districts in the county. In reading and math, roughly a quarter of students scored proficient in the most recent testing year, with some variation by grade. Third graders had math proficiency around the school’s average, while fourth graders posted similar figures. Fifth graders, however, showed a notable drop in math proficiency, and science proficiency at that grade level was very low. These are meaningful gaps, and a family considering Hilltop may want to discuss with the school how it identifies and supports students who are not yet meeting grade-level expectations, especially as students move into the upper elementary years.

Hilltop is housed within a district that has not recently reported any major curriculum or facility changes that would affect a typical family, according to publicly available information. The district itself includes multiple elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school, so students transition within the same system after fifth grade.

Inver Grove Heights is a suburban city southeast of Saint Paul, with a population that has been relatively stable. The area is car-oriented, with major highways and residential subdivisions rather than a walkable downtown core. The city hosts several large employers, including an agricultural cooperative headquarters, a major garden center, a large oil refinery, and a community college. Housing values in the area are slightly below the state median but remain above the national average. Rents are moderate, and the overall cost of housing relative to incomes is manageable by national standards. The city’s economic base is diverse, and the school district is a significant local employer.

For a parent evaluating this school, the clear message is that Hilltop serves a diverse, economically mixed student population in a stable suburban setting, but its academic performance on state tests is an area that warrants close attention. The school’s results are below the midpoint among its county peers, and the low proficiency rates, particularly in science and in fifth-grade math, suggest that a family might want to ask what intervention strategies are in place and how the school tracks student progress across grades. The lack of data on special education and English learner populations makes it harder to assess the full scope of student support, but the school’s size and grade span are typical for a suburban elementary, and the district appears to offer continuity into middle and high school. One missing piece is any information about enrichment programs, arts, or extracurricular offerings, which the school’s website or a direct inquiry could fill.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 333%

School 33% · District 49% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 45% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 511%

School 11% · District 28% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 31 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 37% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 426%

School 26% · District 35% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 529%

School 29% · District 46% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Science

Grade 55%

School 5% · District 14% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

This schoolINVER GROVE HEIGHTS SCHOOLS, 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-income17%Higher-income36%19 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income20%Higher-income31%11 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income28%Higher-income29%1 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income22%Higher-income49%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income24%Higher-income41%16 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income8%Higher-income15%7 pp gap