Stillwater Schools Among Best For Grades K-8: U.S. News

STILLWATER, MN — Several elementary and middle schools in Stillwater have been ranked among the best in Minnesota, according to a brand-new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.

Schools are ranked at the state and district levels. The best charter schools and best magnet schools ranked as stand-alone categories.

U.S. News ranked the Stillwater Public School District's Gifted and Talented Education program as the best elementary school in Minnesota, according to the new list.

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The district's GATE program for "highly gifted" students in fourth and fifth grades is based in Stillwater Middle School. The program had 55 students in the 2019-20 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

The St. Croix Preparatory Academy Lower charter school in Stillwater was ranked the second-best elementary school in Minnesota by U.S. News & World Report. The St. Croix Preparatory Academy Middle School was ranked the third-best middle school in the state.

Here’s a look at how schools in Stillwater schools ranked compared with others in the state.

Elementary Schools
1: Gifted and Talented Education program a.k.a. Gate 4/5, Stillwater Area Public School District
2: St. Croix Preparatory Academy Lower School, charter school
262: Rutherford Elementary, Stillwater Area Public School District
383: Lily Lake Elementary, Stillwater Area Public School District
618: Stonebridge Elementary, Stillwater Area Public School District

Middle Schools
3: St. Croix Preparatory Academy Middle School, charter school
106: Stillwater Middle School, Stillwater Area Public School District

To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:

• Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
• Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.

The state assessment data used in the rankings is from the 2018-19 school year and, therefore, predates any effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on test-taking.

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Schools were also ranked by district. Here’s how elementary and middle schools in the Stillwater Area Public School District measured up:

Elementary Schools
1. Gate 4/5
2. Rutherford Elementary
3. Afton-Lakeland Elementary
4. Lily Lake Elementary
5. Brookview Elementary
Tied for 6: Andersen Elementary, Stonebridge Elementary, Lake Elmo Elementary

Middle Schools
1. Oak-Land Middle School, Lake Elmo
2. Stillwater Middle School, Stillwater

Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools.

California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.

See the complete list of 2021’s Best K-8 Schools.