Enrollment
9
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Wadena, MN
Elm Tree Academy
Federal NCES profile for Elm Tree Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 270001404821
👥 S:T ratio 64
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Elm Tree Academy earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 85% of Minnesota schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Minnesota schools.
- #6 of 7
- schools in Wadena · Resource Index
- 31
- Resource Index · Lower
- 9:1
- small classes for Minnesota
- 9
- students enrolled
Elm Tree Academy has class sizes smaller than 85% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Elm Tree Academy ranks #6 of 7 schools in Wadena, MN.
School address
District: Freshwater Education District · Minnesota
NCES ID 270001404821 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
1.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-43% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Elm Tree Academy compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Elm Tree Academy
Elm Tree Academy is a small combined-grade school in Wadena, Minnesota, enrolling 9 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 9:1, Elm Tree Academy is leaner than roughly 85% of Minnesota schools and 43% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 94% of Minnesota schools, with 9 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 88.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 30.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Freshwater Education District also operates Freshwater Education District Alc (101 students) and Early Childhood Special Education (64 students) alongside Elm Tree Academy.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Elm Tree Academy compares
Elm Tree Academy on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9:1 | ▼ 43% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 9 | top 94% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
9
Bigger than 1% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
9:1
students per teacher
- 43% below state mean
Top 15% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 85% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
88.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Elm Tree Academy is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
How Elm Tree Academy Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freshwater Education District Alc | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Early Childhood Special Education | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Leaf River Academy | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| White Pine Academy | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Elm Tree Academy's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 101
- Students per teacher
- 9.2:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 64
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 15
- Students per teacher
- 5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 11
- Students per teacher
- 5.5:1
- Resource Index
- 69/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~9 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Elm Tree Academy's federal record.
- Compare Elm Tree Academy against another school. Compare schools
- Freshwater Education District's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Elm Tree Academy
How many students attend Elm Tree Academy?
Elm Tree Academy has 9 students enrolled. It is a special-education school in Wadena, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Elm Tree Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Elm Tree Academy is 9:1, which is 43% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 43% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Elm Tree Academy?
The largest demographic group at Elm Tree Academy is White at 100.0% of enrollment, in Wadena, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Elm Tree Academy?
Elm Tree Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Elm Tree Academy rank among schools in Wadena?
By Resource Investment Index, Elm Tree Academy ranks #6 of 7 schools in Wadena, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Wadena on the city page.
Is Elm Tree Academy a good school?
Elm Tree Academy earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 85% of Minnesota schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Minnesota schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Freshwater Education District?
Besides Elm Tree Academy, Freshwater Education District also operates Freshwater Education District Alc (101 students), Early Childhood Special Education (64 students), and Leaf River Academy (15 students). See the Freshwater Education District district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.