Summary:
The Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart school district in Minnesota consists of two schools: Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart Secondary and Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart Elementary. While the secondary school has a 2-star rating and ranks in the bottom half of Minnesota high schools, the elementary school is a standout performer, with a 5-star rating and placing it in the top 48 out of 881 elementary schools in the state.
The elementary school consistently outperforms the secondary school and state averages in student proficiency on MCA-III tests, with 78.13% of students proficient or better in Math, compared to 19.57% at the secondary school and 45.47% statewide. The secondary school, however, has a strong 94.5% four-year graduation rate, though it also has a relatively high 5.4% dropout rate. Both schools serve a significant proportion of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, with the elementary school at 60.7% and the secondary school at 48.31%.
The stark contrast in performance between the two schools within the same Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart district is noteworthy, and the high graduation rate but also high dropout rate at the secondary school suggests potential issues with student retention and support during the transition from elementary to secondary education. The data highlights the importance of closely examining school-level performance and not relying solely on district-level metrics.
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