Northern Trails 56 School

Public middle school, grades 5 to 6 · Grand Rapids, Michigan

Northern Trails 56 School in Grand Rapids, Michigan enrolled 520 students in 2024-25 with 29.3 full-time teachers, 17.7 students per teacher against the Michigan middle-school median of 17.5. It ran a targeted Title I program in 2021-22; it takes part in the National School Lunch Program (2024-25). On the state tests, 65-69% of its students tested were proficient in reading in 2021-22 and 58% proficient in math in 2022-23 (Michigan: 44% and 34.5%).

NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 · Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 · Title I status CCD 2021-22 · method

Enrollment rose 9% from 2022-23 to 2024-25; full-time teachers rose 5%

478 students in 2022-23, 499 students in 2023-24, 520 students in 2024-25. Full-time teachers went from 27.8 to 29.3.

Students enrolled at Northern Trails 56 School by school year2022-23: 478, 2023-24: 499, 2024-25: 52002004006002022-234782023-244992024-25520
Students enrolled at Northern Trails 56 School by school year2022-23: 478, 2023-24: 499, 2024-25: 52002004006002022-234782023-244992024-25520
Students enrolled at Northern Trails 56 School by school year2022-23: 478, 2023-24: 499, 2024-25: 52002004006002022-234782023-244992024-25520
Students enrolled at Northern Trails 56 School by school year2022-23: 478, 2023-24: 499, 2024-25: 52002004006002022-234782023-244992024-25520
The numbers as a table
School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Per teacher
2022-2347827.817.2
2023-2449928.517.5
2024-2552029.317.7

17.7 students per teacher, a higher ratio than 54 of every 100 Michigan middle schools

Among the 488 Michigan middle schools that reported teachers for 2024-25 the median is 17.5; the national median for middle schools is 14.6. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.

Students per teacher, Michigan middle schools, 2024-25240 values from 4.2 to 78.0; This school 17.7; state median 17.5.1 more above 30.0 →0102030students per full-time teacherThis school 17.7state median 17.5U.S. 14.6
Students per teacher, Michigan middle schools, 2024-25240 values from 4.2 to 78.0; This school 17.7; state median 17.5.1 more above 30.0 →0102030students per full-time teacherThis school 17.7state median 17.5U.S. 14.6
Students per teacher, Michigan middle schools, 2024-25240 values from 4.2 to 78.0; This school 17.7; state median 17.5.1 more above 30.0 →0102030students per full-time teacherThis school 17.7state median 17.5U.S. 14.6
Students per teacher, Michigan middle schools, 2024-25240 values from 4.2 to 78.0; This school 17.7; state median 17.5.1 more above 30.0 →0102030students per full-time teacherThis school 17.7state median 17.5U.S. 14.6

Source: NCES Common Core of Data membership and staff files, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25; the comparison counts schools with a 2024-25 teacher count and a ratio from 3 to 99 (lower values are reporting errors).

One counselor per 494 students in 2021-22

In the 2021-22 civil rights collection Northern Trails 56 School enrolled 494 students and had 1.0 counselor (full-time equivalent); it reported 11 out-of-school suspensions that year.

  • Advanced Placement coursesNone
  • Gifted and talented programYes
  • Counselors (FTE)1.0, one per 494 of the 494 students enrolled in 2021-22
  • Out-of-school suspensions11
  • Chronically absent7.3% (2022-23)

Who attends

66.5% of students were White, 11.5% Hispanic, 9.0% Asian in 2024-25.

  1. White66.5%
  2. Hispanic11.5%
  3. Asian9.0%
  4. Two or more races7.3%
  5. Black5.4%
  6. American Indian0.2%

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22; chronic absenteeism from EDFacts 2022-23; every count and the counselor ratio are for that school year. Who attends: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25, membership by race and ethnicity.

State test results, 2021-22 and 2022-23

The students tested at Northern Trails 56 School scored proficient or above: 65-69% in reading in 2021-22 and 58% in math in 2022-23, against 44% in reading in 2021-22 and 34.5% in math in 2022-23 across Michigan. Each state writes its own test and sets its own proficiency bar, so compare these within Michigan, not across states. ED Data Express holds no district results after 2021-22, so the district column gives its 2021-22 figure. Where a state published results by grade only, the grades tested are combined, weighted by the students tested in each.

Students proficient or above, 2021-22 and 2022-23
Subject and yearThis schoolIts districtMichigan
Reading and language arts, 2021-2265‑69%73%44%
Math, 2022-2358%67% (2021-22)34.5%

Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results 2021-22 and 2022-23, all students, from ED Data Express (2021-22 through the Data Rescue Project archive); for 2022-23 ED published math by school and reading only by state: ED shows school and district results as ranges (for example 20-24%) to protect small groups.

Middle schools in Grand Rapids

18 public middle schools in Grand Rapids report 2024-25 enrollment; Northern Trails 56 School is number 6 by size.

SchoolStudentsPer teacherFree lunch
Pinewood Middle School84218.558.4%
East Grand Rapids Middle School71019.46.2%
Crestwood Middle School70016.962.7%
Kenowa Hills Middle School63417.232.5%
Valleywood Middle School54114.271.9%
Northern Trails 56 School52017.716.3%
Northern Hills Middle School51518.014.2%
Burton Middle School48819.174.0%

All public schools in Grand Rapids →

Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25.

What to look at next about Northern Trails 56 School

  1. Northern Hills Middle SchoolThe nearest public middle school, 0.3 miles away: 515 students, 18.0 per teacher (2024-25).0.3 mi
  2. East Grand Rapids Middle SchoolThe next nearest public middle school, 3.1 miles away: 710 students, 19.4 per teacher (2024-25).3.1 mi
  3. Compare Northern Trails 56 School with Northern Hills Middle SchoolStudents, teachers, meals, test results and who attends, side by side.
  4. How much Forest Hills Public Schools spends per student$14,433 per student on current operations in fiscal year 2022-23 (U.S. $16,260), with its revenue sources and teacher pay.$14,433
  5. The largest public schools in MichiganNorthern Trails 56 School is the number 233 by size of 489 Michigan middle schools open in 2024-25.#233 of 489
  6. Michigan schools by students per teacher17.7 students per teacher here against the Michigan median of 17.5 for middle schools.17.7:1
  7. Find the school district for an addressA home's district, not its city, decides which public schools it can enroll in.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (locations, enrollment, teachers); NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23. Distances are straight lines between the schools' NCES coordinates, not travel routes.

Questions about Northern Trails 56 School

  1. How many students attend Northern Trails 56 School?
    520 in the 2024-25 school year, according to the NCES Common Core of Data; 478 in 2022-23. It is a middle school in Grand Rapids, MI.
  2. What is the student-teacher ratio at Northern Trails 56 School?
    17.7 students per full-time teacher (2024-25); the Michigan median for middle schools is 17.5. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.
  3. Is Northern Trails 56 School a Title I school?
    Northern Trails 56 School ran a targeted assistance Title I program in 2021-22, the last year NCES published school Title I status.
  4. How do students at Northern Trails 56 School do on state tests?
    The students tested at Northern Trails 56 School scored proficient or above: 65-69% in reading in 2021-22 and 58% in math in 2022-23, against 44% in reading in 2021-22 and 34.5% in math in 2022-23 across Michigan. Michigan's own test sets what proficient means, so results compare within the state, not across states. Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22 and 2022-23; ED publishes school results as ranges to protect small groups.
  5. What district is Northern Trails 56 School in?
    Forest Hills Public Schools, NCES district ID 2614610. The first seven digits of the school's NCES ID 261461000900 are the district's.

Reading these figures: how to choose a school district, what Title I means and what an absenteeism rate means. They are for information and are not a substitute for the school's or district's own records.

Sources

Every federal file behind this record
  • NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25: directory, membership, staff and lunch files. nces.ed.gov
  • NCES Common Core of Data, 2021-22 school characteristics: Title I status. nces.ed.gov
  • Civil Rights Data Collection, 2021-22: AP courses, gifted programs, counselors, discipline. civilrightsdata.ed.gov
  • EDFacts, 2022-23: chronic absenteeism. ed.gov
  • EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22 and 2022-23: reading and math proficiency for the school, its district and its state (ED Data Express). eddataexpress.ed.gov
  • NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, fiscal year 2022-23: district spending and revenue. nces.ed.gov
  • U.S. Census Bureau geocoder and TIGER school districts: the district boundary used by the district finder. census.gov

Source: NCES Common Core of Data Directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25

Source: Civil Rights Data Collection School-level files (AP, gifted, counselors, discipline) · 2021-22

District spending on the district page is from the NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23.

Compiled from official source data by .