Birch Lake Elementary, White Bear Lake MN

Original Research by School Decision on Birch Lake Elementary

Birch Lake Elementary is a regular public school in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, serving students from prekindergarten through fifth grade. It sits within the White Bear Lake School District and enrolls a student body that is roughly half white, with notable shares of Hispanic, Asian, Black, and multiracial students. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a moderate level of economic diversity for this elementary school. Enrollment is small for a public elementary, and the school draws its population from an established lakeside suburb roughly 20 miles north of downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul.

The academic picture from the most recent state testing shows a mixed pattern. In math, proficiency was highest in third grade, where a majority of students met expectations, but the share declined in fourth grade and dropped further in fifth grade. Reading proficiency was more consistent across grades, hovering around a third of students scoring proficient. Science results in fifth grade were very weak, with only a small fraction of students reaching the proficient level. Because the school serves only through fifth grade, it does not have a graduation rate, and no trend data over multiple years is available—the current year is the only one reported. Compared with other schools in Ramsey County, Birch Lake’s overall performance across tested subjects sits above the midpoint among the county’s districts, meaning it is not a top performer but is stronger than many of its neighbors.

The school’s setting in White Bear Lake gives it a particular character. The city is a largely built-out suburb where White Bear Lake itself serves as the central community anchor, offering boating, fishing, ice fishing, and a downtown with a walkable core of restaurants and shops. The downtown hosts a weekly summer market festival. Major employers include Smarte Carte and International Paper. The city’s population has been stable with a slight recent decline, and the focus of local development discussion has been on managing the lake’s water levels rather than new housing. Schools in the district are on separate campuses away from downtown, and the district overall includes multiple elementary sites, two middle schools, and two high school buildings. We looked for recent boundary or attendance changes from the district but found no publicly reported information.

A parent considering Birch Lake Elementary should note that while the school’s overall proficiency compares favorably within Ramsey County, the decline in math performance from third to fifth grade and the particularly low science scores are areas worth exploring directly with the school. The student body is diverse and the school serves a community with a stable, established suburban identity. For families who value a neighborhood school in a lake-centric suburb with a moderate academic profile and a varied peer environment, Birch Lake fits that description without strong distinguishing features that would make it stand out in either direction. The absence of publicly reported data on discipline, staffing, and special education or English learner populations leaves several dimensions of student support unaccounted for in a parent’s initial picture.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 356%

School 56% · District 59% · ▼ 3 pts below district

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

Grade 445%

School 45% · District 62% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 48% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 49% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 51% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 535%

School 35% · District 67% · ▼ 32 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Science

Grade 57%

School 7% · District 26% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

This schoolWHITE BEAR LAKE 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-income25%Higher-income42%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income14%Higher-income50%36 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income36%Higher-income33%3 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income58%Higher-income54%4 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income29%Higher-income63%35 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income18%Higher-income32%13 pp gap