Palmer School
Public elementary school, pre-kindergarten to grade 5 · Grand Rapids, Michigan
Palmer School in Grand Rapids, Michigan enrolled 187 students in 2024-25 with 10.6 full-time teachers, 17.6 students per teacher against the Michigan elementary-school median of 15.8. It ran a schoolwide Title I program in 2021-22; every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision (2024-25). On the state tests, 17-30% of its students tested were proficient in reading in 2021-22 and 15-19% 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 5% from 2022-23 to 2024-25; full-time teachers fell 11%
178 students in 2022-23, 184 students in 2023-24, 187 students in 2024-25. Full-time teachers went from 11.9 to 10.6.
The numbers as a table
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | 178 | 11.9 | 15.0 |
| 2023-24 | 184 | 11.7 | 15.7 |
| 2024-25 | 187 | 10.6 | 17.6 |
17.6 students per teacher, a higher ratio than 77 of every 100 Michigan elementary schools
Among the 1,602 Michigan elementary schools that reported teachers for 2024-25 the median is 15.8; the national median for elementary schools is 14.6. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.
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).
Programs and staff in 2021-22
In the 2021-22 civil rights collection Palmer School enrolled 160 students and reported no counselor; it reported 20 out-of-school suspensions that year.
- Advanced Placement coursesNone
- Gifted and talented programNo
- Counselors (FTE)0.0
- Out-of-school suspensions20
- Chronically absent60.7% (2022-23)
Who attends
31.6% of students were Black, 27.3% Hispanic, 22.5% White in 2024-25.
- Black31.6%
- Hispanic27.3%
- White22.5%
- Two or more races15.5%
- Asian2.1%
- American Indian1.1%
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 Palmer School scored proficient or above: 17-30% in reading in 2021-22 and 15-19% 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.
| Subject and year | This school | Its district | Michigan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and language arts, 2021-22 | 17‑30% | 27% | 44% |
| Math, 2022-23 | 15‑19% | 16% (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.
Elementary schools in Grand Rapids
51 public elementary schools in Grand Rapids report 2024-25 enrollment.
| School | Students | Per teacher | Free lunch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walker Charter Academy | 711 | 19.1 | 40.8% |
| Discovery Elementary | 674 | 18.4 | 60.2% |
| Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue | 661 | 21.1 | 63.1% |
| Vista Charter Academy | 641 | 14.6 | 79.6% |
| Endeavor Elementary | 553 | 17.2 | 59.3% |
| Glenwood Elementary | 543 | 18.0 | 66.5% |
| Kenowa Hills Central Elementary School | 538 | 13.7 | 34.6% |
| Knapp Forest Elementary School | 520 | 17.8 | 5.0% |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25.
What to look at next about Palmer School
- Kent Hills ElementaryThe nearest public elementary school, 0.7 miles away: 370 students, 20.8 per teacher (2024-25).0.7 mi
- Aberdeen AcademyThe next nearest public elementary school, 1.1 miles away: 241 students, 12.4 per teacher (2024-25).1.1 mi
- Compare Palmer School with Kent Hills ElementaryStudents, teachers, meals, test results and who attends, side by side.
- How much Grand Rapids Public Schools spends per student$17,565 per student on current operations in fiscal year 2022-23 (U.S. $16,260), with its revenue sources and teacher pay.$17,565
- The largest public schools in MichiganPalmer School is the number 1,443 by size of 1,611 Michigan elementary schools open in 2024-25.#1,443 of 1,611
- Michigan schools by students per teacher17.6 students per teacher here against the Michigan median of 15.8 for elementary schools.17.6:1
- 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 Palmer School
How many students attend Palmer School?
187 in the 2024-25 school year, according to the NCES Common Core of Data; 178 in 2022-23. It is an elementary school in Grand Rapids, MI.What is the student-teacher ratio at Palmer School?
17.6 students per full-time teacher (2024-25); the Michigan median for elementary schools is 15.8. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.Is Palmer School a Title I school?
Palmer School ran a schoolwide Title I program in 2021-22, the last year NCES published school Title I status.How do students at Palmer School do on state tests?
The students tested at Palmer School scored proficient or above: 17-30% in reading in 2021-22 and 15-19% 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.What district is Palmer School in?
Grand Rapids Public Schools, NCES district ID 2616440. The first seven digits of the school's NCES ID 261644005336 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.